


The Parent Trap

by Predec2



Category: Queer as Folk
Genre: Angst, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-05-23
Updated: 2014-02-13
Packaged: 2015-01-28 21:58:13
Rating: M
Chapters: 39
Words: 392,954
Publisher: www.fanfiction.net
Story URL: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7016860/1/
Author URL: https://www.fanfiction.net/u/2160016/Predec2
Summary: Loose adaption of the movie - Justin and Brian are living separate lives in different cities, raising one twin alone; what happens when their two daughters meet unexpectedly as pre-teens? **THIS STORY IS COMPLETE!**





	1. Divergent Lives

_*FLASHBACK*_

_Pittsburgh – Alleghany County Courthouse_

"Order! This hearing will now come to order! The Honorable Judge Prewitt Holloway presiding!"

The authoritative voice of the bailiff announcing the arrival of the judge caused Brian's head to rise and peer at the man who would be deciding the fate of his and Justin's two daughters. As he stood up along with the rest of the small audience in the courtroom, he stole a glance over at Justin who was standing next to his own attorney nearby and he swallowed the lump in his throat as their eyes locked for a couple of seconds before he glanced away.

When Kaylee and Katherine Taylor-Kinney had been born a year and a half ago, he never in his wildest dreams thought he and Justin would wind up here in court, battling over whom would get custody of their twin daughters. Of course, before he would have never even dreamed he'd ever agree to have any more children in the first place. But that was before Gus…..and before _Justin_. Before the bomb that had forced him to face some startling realities and had made him realize how much he loved Justin and wanted to be with him.

Admittedly, it had taken some persistent persuasion on Brian's part to convince his partner that he had really meant what he said, having not exactly been a very fervent proponent of monogamy or commitment before. Eventually, though, he had worn Justin down and convinced him that he really _did_ want to be with only him. And at first, it had been good, even great. He had purchased their current home, Britin, for the two of them to live in as sort of a new beginning for their relationship. They had kept the loft for occasional overnight stays in the city when the need or desire warranted, but despite Lindsey's adamant declaration that Justin could only pursue his art career in New York City, Justin's career had flourished in their new home. Brian had even had an art studio constructed out of the carriage house that was nestled in majestic pine trees and sat several yards back from the main house for Justin to craft his masterpieces, and to their delight (but not much to Brian's surprise), Justin had garnered enough attention from the article in Art Forum magazine that soon his works were in demand, both in Pittsburgh as well as elsewhere. His talent had quickly become noticed by several gallery owners from LA to Chicago to New York, all of whom began to clamor for his attention and his paintings to display, to their mutual benefit of course…..Justin's sensual, dramatic style of painting was quickly getting national notice and Brian had no doubt that eventually his talent would be recognized worldwide…

A few months after they had happily moved in together again, he had observed Justin displaying a sort of melancholy, dreamy look at times on his beautiful, pensive face when he occasionally dropped in unannounced at his studio. Concerned that something was wrong, it had taken him several persistent attempts before Justin finally opened up and told Brian what was _really_ on his mind – he was craving part of what Michael and Ben had; not exactly the white picket fence and 2.4 kids, but close enough – simply put, Justin wanted children of their own. He adored Gus and considered him his own son by now – and Gus had quickly adopted the name _Poppa_ for him, loving him deeply in return – but Justin craved more. He yearned to hold a newborn in his arms again, rock him or her to sleep, look into the baby's face and see either him or Brian staring back at him. He knew Brian was a wonderful father to Gus, and he knew instinctively he would be the same way with their own children, too.

At first, Brian vehemently opposed it; he felt like the last thing they needed was another baby to take care of. He had had more than his share of dirty diapers, colic, and throwing up to last a lifetime, and to Justin's credit, he hadn't really pushed it after confiding to Brian what was in his heart; he had simply quietly continued his paintings, surreptitiously slipping in more and more sketches of a newborn Gus into his artwork to Brian's part amusement and part consternation.

Eventually, though, he realized two things: the dirty diapers, sicknesses and colic had been temporary and had metamorphosized into pleasurable, delightful moments with his son – riding the horses at Britin with him, going to baseball games, even watching Justin making cookies with him, although they normally wound up eating more of the cookie dough than actually _cooking_ it. He treasured the times when Gus was able to come home from Toronto to visit them, and he realized how much richer his and Justin's lives were because of him. The arguments he had so steadfastly espoused before had seemed petty and irrelevant now. So it was on that day approximately two years ago, he had watched Justin's face light up in absolute joy as Brian had unexpectedly told him, _yes,_ he would like another child, too.

The question of who was to carry their child, and perhaps more importantly, who was to be the biological father was discussed but only briefly; Brian was more than willing for Justin to be the sperm donor this time, assuring him that he wouldn't mind a miniature blond, blue-eyed Justin look-alike pitty-pattering around the halls of Britin. Daphne was the immediate person to come to mind as the mother, being Justin's best friend and most ardent supporter of their relationship. They weren't sure how receptive Daphne would be to the idea, though, due to her wish to enter pre-med school the following fall. And to most women, having a child was a major event; not every woman would be willing to bear a man's child and give up custody rights to it, even though Justin would make sure Daphne was firmly entrenched in their child's life; to their relief, though, when he and Justin had broached her with the idea soon afterward, she had been surprised but ecstatic about the idea, knowing how much Justin had adored holding Jenny Rebecca and Gus in his arms when they were little and taking care of them. She instinctively knew her friend would make a wonderful father and enthusiastically endorsed their request, actually delaying her entry into pre-med school until the following year after he and Justin had offered to let her stay at Britin and pay for all her expenses while she was carrying Justin's child.

Imagine their surprise a few weeks later, then, when they not only found out Daphne was already pregnant (no doubt a result of Justin's youth and fertility, a fact that Brian never ceased to be grateful for when they were fucking), but she was expecting _twins_. TWO little versions of Sunshine soon to be toddling around the hardwood floors of their home.

He at first had been secretly terrified about the idea of TWO babies needing to be raised at the same time, even going so far as to tell Justin about the _first_ time he had had 'two babies' to take care of that fateful night so long ago; of course, all that flippant response got was a icy glare and a slap on his flat abs in return. But as he watched Justin's face light up with joy when they watched on the monitor as two little heartbeats rapidly beat in time with each other, and he observed Justin almost reverently place his and Brian's hands against Daphne's stomach to feel two pairs of feet robustly kicking back, he had to admit – it was fucking thrilling as hell.

And when Kaylee Marie and Katherine Elizabeth Taylor-Kinney had been born about 18 months ago, and he held his and Justin's two daughters in his arms, that had been one of the happiest days of his life…...

"Brian?" He was jolted back to the present at the sound of his attorney's voice. Mark Peterson leaned over and whispered, "The judge is about to sign off on your agreement; last chance – are you sure this is what you and Justin want?"

_Was it?_ The question echoed in his mind. _No…..But it was the only way….._He nodded his head sadly as he once more glanced over at Justin, whose eyes were boring into his, no doubt thinking the same thing. There was a wistful ghost of a smile on his face before he broke off their gaze to turn and look at his attorney and nod. "Yes," he whispered. "It is."

Brian peered up at the distinguished, silver-haired judge who was reviewing the custody document that he and Justin had signed last week in the mediator's chambers in view of their attorneys; the agreement that would rend their family permanently apart. "The paperwork seems to be in order," Holloway said authoritatively as he glanced out at the two men, one blond and slender, one dark, tall, and brooding. He noticed the typical, customary sadness and disappointment on their faces, so common in difficult custody cases, but he knew he had to do his job; the paper was legally binding. It still didn't make his job any easier, though…..

"If there are no objections, then, I hereby grant sole custody of Kaylee Marie Taylor-Kinney to Mr. Justin Taylor, and order that sole custody of Katherine Elizabeth Taylor-Kinney be awarded to Mr. Brian Kinney as set forth in this document." He waited a few moments to make sure there were no rebuttals to his statement before adding authoritatively, "It is so ordered." As the judge slammed the wooden gavel down on the dais, it was like a wooden stake being driven into Brian's heart as he sat there, trying to come to terms with what had just happened. It meant not only that his relationship with Justin and his one daughter was over; it also mean that tomorrow, Justin would be flying out to Chicago to begin a new life there, and he would be taking Katie back with him to Britin. The great Kinney-Taylor partnership was now officially shattered. He stood up and politely shook his attorney's hand before steeling himself to walk over to Justin one last time; he had already said his goodbye to Kaylee earlier in the mediator's chambers. It had been one of the hardest fucking things he had ever had to do in his life, but this was going to be a close second.

Justin nodded at his attorney, speaking softly to him before he, too, shook his hand and turned to face Brian; somehow, he knew his now former partner would be standing there even though he hadn't looked his way yet. His heart still fluttered rapidly as he turned to look into the hazel eyes he knew so well. He couldn't help offering a shy, regretful smile at the brunet as he said softly, "I guess this is it."

Brian pursed his lips tightly together to hold his emotions in check as he nodded. "Yeah, I guess so. Your flight leaves tomorrow?" he asked casually, even though he already knew the answer to that question. Tomorrow, his life as he – and Justin – knew it would be changed forever.

"Yeah," Justin answered quietly. "9:00."

Brian nodded as he cleared his throat, not quite trusting how his voice would sound. "Give Kaylee a kiss for me," he whispered finally.

Justin swallowed the lump in his throat as his eyes watered. "I will," he told Brian. "And you do the same for me for Katie." He sniffled slightly before looking toward the exit door. "I…..I'd better get going," he told the brunet. "I've got a lot to do before we leave tomorrow."

"Justin…." He said, reaching to grasp the pale wrist. He really didn't know what he wanted to say – he supposed it had all been said already, but he still didn't want Justin to leave just yet…..

"Don't, Brian, please," Justin replied as he closed his eyes for just a second, trying to slow his rapidly-beating heart in response to Brian's touch. "We've been through all this before. You know this is the best way."

Brian let out a weary breath through his lips. "Yeah," he whispered finally. "I guess so." He couldn't resist pulling Justin toward him to bestow one last, brief farewell kiss on the soft, familiar lips as he whispered in his ear, "Take good care of yourself and Kaylee. If you ever need anything…."

Justin pulled back from Brian's embrace as he brunet reluctantly let go of his wrist. He shook his head. "No, we'll be fine; I've got enough money saved up from the proceeds of my paintings to take care of us for quite a while."

Brian nodded silently as Justin turned to go. "Take care, Brian," he whispered as he slowly walked up the courtroom aisle and opened the wooden, swinging door to disappear out of sight.

"Bye, Sunshine," Brian said, his voice barely above a whisper. He knew somehow that it would be a long time before he ever saw any kind of sunshine ever again….. "Bye, Baby Girl." He took a few moments to mourn what he had lost before straightening his shoulders and following Justin out the door; he had a child now to take care of that needed him.


	2. Preparing for Camp and a Big Surprise

_Present Day – Eight Years Later – Chicago_

"Kaylee Marie Taylor-Kinney, get your butt down here – you're going to be late!"

"I just need a couple more minutes, Daddy!" he heard his daughter protest pleadingly from upstairs. Justin sighed heavily in aggravation. There wasn't any need to go upstairs in search of his daughter; he knew precisely where he would find her – primping in the bathroom again. But just how much 'preening' did a 10-year-old girl need to do to go camping?

It had taken an enormous amount of convincing and parental prerogative on his part to even get his fashion-conscious daughter to agree to go to the summer camp in the first place; she had been positively aghast to find out that there was no air conditioning inside the cabins she and the other girls would be staying in for the next two weeks. She had queened out at length especially about how the heat and humidity would make her long, thick blond hair frizzy and uncontrollable (she had been blessed or cursed, depending upon how you looked at it, with her mother's hair texture) and she had been almost inconsolable to find out that (gasp!) she would have to endure the entire two weeks without the luxury of a bathtub, having to limit her beauty regimen to a brief, daily shower instead.

"Kaylee Marie!" he sternly shouted once more at his daughter, quickly running out of what little patience he had left. "Get down here right NOW!" He couldn't help thinking that if his daughter was this rebellious as a pre-teen, how was he ever going to endure her as a teenager? He loved his daughter deeply, and she was actually a good kid – she made excellent grades and was involved with several groups at school, including the newspaper and glee club – but when it came to having to do without life's 'luxuries,' even temporarily, or having to speed up her primping routine, she could be quite the handful. He sighed as he saw no sign of her or heard any approaching footsteps; considering Kaylee was conceived through his sperm, how did she wind up being a miniature version of her _other_ father instead?

_Brian. _ God, why did he have to bring _him_ up? He still missed him so much, as well as Katie. He tried to stay busy so he wouldn't have time to think about them, tried not to wonder what the two of them were doing back in Pittsburgh. He knew when he and Kaylee had moved to Chicago eight years ago that it would be hard to leave his old life – his family, his friends, and most of all, the only man who had captured his heart and truthfully _still_ held it hostage. But at the time he hadn't realized just how hard it would be. Oh, he had managed to land on his feet successfully enough, at least in a business sense; thanks to the notoriety he had received from the article in _Art Forum_ magazine and some well-placed networking he had undertaken soon after he had arrived in the Windy City, his art had quickly become in demand here, enough that he and his daughter were living a comfortable life in an old brownstone in one of Chicago's toniest areas, an enclave for creativity full of musicians, actors, and fellow artists. The neighbors were helpful and kind enough, and Kaylee was close friends with several girls around her own age who lived on the block, and her bubbly personality made her quite popular with her schoolmates. For all intents and purposes, at least from an outsider's viewpoint, he and his daughter lived full, busy, and happy lives. And to a certain extent, they did; Justin still derived a great deal of satisfaction out of seeing the positive reviews and accolades he received in his new 'hometown;' he had a shelf full of awards and plaques attesting to that fact. And it was almost a blessing that because Kaylee had been so young when she and her sister had been separated, she sadly didn't remember much of either Katie OR Brian; the only information she could recall was another child around her age she used to play with, but nothing more.

Justin had agonized for months over what to tell – or not tell – his daughter about Brian and Katie. Kaylee was quite familiar with Daphne as well as her grandmother – both women came to visit them frequently and were an important part of her life. Both his mother and Daphne, who had since accepted a residence at a teaching hospital in Pittsburgh, absolutely doted on Kaylee and she felt the same way about them in return. He was thankful they were both in his daughter's life, and he had made no secret of who Daphne was. It had been somewhat hard to explain to his daughter just why Daphne, who was her biological mother, hadn't been romantically involved with him; after all, that was the normal course of events when a child was born. But he had never planned on hiding his being gay from her, so when she turned 9 years old, he finally sat her down and told her exactly who her 'Aunt' Daphne was and why they weren't together, and why they never HAD been or would be…...

His daughter, who always did seem very mature for her age (even if he wasn't impartial about it,) accepted his statement about his sexuality and Daphne's role in her life fairly easily to his enormous relief. Telling her about Brian, however, was another matter. He had pondered that quandary for weeks leading up to their fateful discussion, and finally, he had decided that he would have to tell her about him, at least some of it; after all, she had part of his name and had always wondered about it. Before, Justin had told her it was part of an old family surname and she had seem satisfied with that explanation. He had eventually decided to simply tell her that he and her other father had met before she was born, fell in love, and decided to have a child together with Daphne's help, but had encountered 'problems' shortly afterward and were forced to separate.

The hardest part was having to lie to her about not knowing where her other father was and even worse, about having a twin sister. Even now, almost two years later, his heart ached over his subterfuge. How could he just dismiss what he and Brian had had so cavalierly now? And how could he not tell Kaylee that she had a twin sister and he knew exactly where both of them were? What seemed like easy answers, though, were anything but; as part of their separate custody agreements, it was written out that both he and Brian were to take one daughter each to raise as their own with the stipulation that they were not to divulge the other girl's whereabouts or even disclose she existed. Once the girls turned 18, however, they would be allowed to be told the truth.

Their crazy custody agreement had been the brainchild of both their attorneys and the mediator that had been appointed to their case; at the time it seemed like a logical solution to their dilemma, as both men deeply loved their children. But now, as he looked back on it, he found the whole thing seemed so absurd and even cruel. Unfortunately, he was bound to abide by the agreement that had been constructed, as uncomfortable as it made him feel. That didn't mean that he still didn't miss both Brian and his other daughter like crazy.

Yes, he still loved Brian; perhaps he always would. You didn't just fall in love at first sight with a man and forget him in an instant or even a lifetime. Just because he still loved Brian, though, didn't mean they could live together and build a solid relationship. They had tried that shortly after he had come home from New York and for several months it had been wonderful. They had been monogamous, living quite contently at Britin with Daphne as they anxiously awaited the birth of what would turn out to be their twin daughters. And when Kaylee and Katie had been born for several months afterward Brian was the doting father, even agreeing to help feed and diaper the girls when the need arose, along with Justin's help; as per their agreement, Daphne directed her attention a few months later to her medical career and enrolled in a pre-med school, leaving the new fathers alone to rear their two girls. Even now, Justin could still see in his mind's eye an image of Brian holding Kaylee in his arms, a powder-puff pink baby blanket (Gucci, of course) slung over one shoulder as he rocked his daughter back and forth in an attempt to get her to burp; he would always chuckle softly at how lady-like Kaylee's burps were compared to Katie's, who sounded more like a sailor when SHE burped. And he could still recall Brian wheeling both girls down the driveway in their twin, side-by-side stroller with one hand, wearing his dark sunglasses and sipping his black morning coffee out of a portable to-go mug with his other hand before he would drive off to work for the day. Brian had had such a proud, happy expression on his face at the time…..

But eventually the old Brian returned, as the man whose insecurities about growing older and being less attractive than the other 'studs' of the Liberty Avenue bar scene flared to the surface. The Brian Kinney that only knew one way to show he was the king and was triumphant over all the others, the only way that he knew how to prove that he was still the most stunningly handsome, sexy man in all of gay Pittsburgh – by fucking some nameless bigwig's son in his private bathroom at Kinnetik after a multi-million dollar deal was in jeopardy when he had been unable to 'persuade' the client in a more conventional manner to go along with a radically-new ad campaign he had constructed.

Justin had had the misfortune of walking into Brian's office around lunchtime one day with thoughts of surprising his lover with a makeshift picnic lunch just as he and the other man had emerged from the bathroom with that 'just fucked' look all over their faces. Even if they hadn't had the telltale signs, there was no mistaking Brian's look of guilt as his startled eyes bored into Justin's angry and hurt blue ones. Without a word, he had dropped the wicker basket and rushed from the room, leaving the client's son wondering what was going on and leaving Justin with his heart shattered.

Before it wouldn't have mattered; he knew what Brian was like, what he felt he had to do to validate his place in society. But that was before – before he had promised to be monogamous to him, before they had taken the significant step of doing it raw, and before their two daughters had been born. Brian had tried to apologize later that day at home, deciding apparently to wait a while to give Justin time to cool off. But it had backfired; Justin hadn't needed to _cool off_ because he wasn't really that furious with Brian. Yes, he was angry but he was more hurt and disappointed that Brian had finally broken a promise to him. Perhaps it hadn't been fair to keep Brian high up on that pedestal, but it had been the first time Brian had lied to him and it had hurt like a knife had been plunged and twisted into his heart. Leaving Justin alone for several hours after the event had occurred had merely made his partner even more disillusioned and hurt than he was initially.

Despite Brian's attempts to try and get his lover to forgive him, Justin couldn't do it. Too many years of seeing Brian fucking other men, at home, at Babylon, at Kinnetik, at Woody's, the diner; hell, _everywhere_, had culminated in the inability for him to forgive and forget this time. At that moment, he knew he had only been kidding himself that Brian would ever commit to him totally. And when Brian, in a fit of anger and hurt himself, had brought up his 'indiscretion' with Ethan again, it had been the last straw. Because it had hit a nerve – a painful nerve of truth – and he had fought back accordingly, telling Brian he was not going to make amends for that for the rest of his life. One impetuous insult led to another until finally, Justin had stomped upstairs to the master bedroom to collect a few things and had spent the night in the guest bedroom down the hall.

Several days of tense living under the same roof occurred afterward, with only clipped yes or no answers among them as they maintained care for their daughters, until the two ultimately decided their plan to live happily ever after as an almost hetero-type family unit wasn't going to work. Never one to really dwell on the finer things in life – not that he didn't appreciate them, but he never needed them – Justin would have moved out that day, except he was unwilling to leave his daughters. He finally decided to seek an attorney's advice, discovering that under their parental rights as signed over by Daphne to them, Justin as the biological father actually had more legal rights to both daughters than Brian did.

His attorney had recommended to Justin, then, that he sue Brian for full custody of both daughters, allowing Brian occasional time with both Kaylee and Katie as part of their agreement. But as soon as Justin had brought it up, one look at the anguish on Brian's face as he realized he would be losing not only his partner but also both daughters he treasured and Justin knew he couldn't do that to him. Eventually, the painful decision was made for each man to take one daughter each, with Daphne involved in both their lives as she saw fit. Fortunately, as upset and stunned as Daphne had been by the dissolution of their partnership, she had thankfully decided to maintain a close relationship with both Kaylee AND Katie. To this day, she continued to see both Justin and Brian when she came to visit her daughters, always deliberately bringing up the other man's name in their conversation in hopes it would help but always getting politely rebuffed as they quickly changed the subject.

Justin sighed as he returned to the present; it wasn't as if he was in contact with Brian, at least not directly. His mother had kept in touch with him due to Katie living with him, so she was able to keep him apprised of Brian's comings and goings as well as how his other daughter was doing. To Brian's credit, he had welcomed Jennifer's influence in Katie's life as well as Daphne's and hadn't done anything to discourage it; in fact, it was just the opposite. He allowed his mother to pick up Katie frequently for day outings or to spend the weekend with her, and as a result, grandmother and granddaughter were extremely close. And not surprisingly, Brian and his mother were still cordial at least, although it was awkward now since he and Brian weren't together any more. She had told him that they purposely tried to focus on 'polite' conversation about 'safe' topics such as the weather, politics, or how Katie was doing in school when she went to Britin; it was as if both of them were too afraid to talk about what they really wanted to say when it came to his and Brian's relationship, and he really didn't want her to play mediator for him anyway. He and Brian were in the past now; the only thing they had in common were their two daughters.

He spoke with his mother several times a week and she was wonderful about sending him updated photos of Katie so he could at least be partially involved in her life, and she kept him up-to-date on how she was doing in school; apparently while Kaylee had turned into a 'girly-girl,' his _other_ daughter had turned into a regular tomboy. He smiled as his mother described how she had climbed a tree several yards up a few weeks ago, merely to carve her initials and those of some boy she had a crush on into the tree's trunk with a pocket knife; how she had managed to climb back down without breaking a leg was a mystery to him, but she apparently was part monkey because she had succeeded admirably. She excelled at sports just like Brian had when he was growing up, playing on both the soccer and swim teams in her Pittsburgh middle school, and to his delight, she seemed to have an affinity for art as evidenced by some of the drawings his mother had shown him of some still lifes and landscapes she had drawn.

His heart both rejoiced as well as ached, though, each time he saw a new picture of her or thought of her; how he longed to compare their artistic abilities with her or just talk to her to get to know her better. She was the spitting image of Kaylee, except for the hair. While Kaylee's was long and unkempt at times and she preferred to just wear it down and loose, Katie's hair was cut more into a bob, barely reaching the nape of her neck. If you gave both of them the same hair style, however, it would be hard to tell them apart – Daphne's genes must have taken a recessive position when they were born because they had the same eye color as he did and the same blond hair, too, although it was maybe a tad darker than his. Until Katie reached adulthood, however, there was little chance he would ever get to see her in person, or even tell her who he was…..

He bit his lip to keep the tears from falling as he finally heard his daughter rushing down the steps, her hair flying everywhere behind her as she ran up to him. She gave him an apologetic smile and briefly hugged his neck. "I'm sorry, Daddy," she said softly. "I'm ready now." She was fashionably adorned with a sleeveless, light blue tank top and a pair of khaki shorts with matching beige sandals with sapphire-blue fake jewels on top; her fingernails matched the color of her blue top exactly. "Can you go get my suitcase for me? It's really heavy."

Justin shook his head. "Kaylee, what did I tell you? You didn't have to bring everything – they WILL have laundry facilities there – you should have just brought a few outfits that were interchangeable."

"Dad-dy," she whined a little bit. "I wouldn't be caught_ dead_ in the same outfit twice! Isn't it enough that I won't have access to a bathtub?"

She looked so serious that Justin had to laugh at her pouting look. "Okay, Princess," he acquiesced as he turned to head up the steps to retrieve her suitcase. "You go grab something to eat for breakfast real quick and I'll get your suitcase loaded into the car. But hurry – we only have a few minutes to spare."

"Okay," she replied as she ran down the hall toward the kitchen. Justin smiled after her tenderly as he hurried up the steps, partly excited for his daughter's adventure but also knowing he would miss her terribly while she was gone…..

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Britin <em>

"Katie? Are you coming?" Brian called from his place in the library. They should have left fifteen minutes ago for the airport. He glanced up from his laptop when he didn't hear any movement from the steps. "Katie! We've got to go, honey!"

"Coming, Dad!" Brian closed his laptop as he heard the thunder of pre-teen hoofs rushing down the steps, along with the tell-tale thump-thump-thump of her wheeled suitcase following along behind her. Yep, that was his daughter, all right – not a dainty bone in her body…. He winced at the damage the wheels might be doing to the hardwood steps, but he knew there was probably no way she could have gotten it down the stairs by any other method, even if years of playing sports _had_ made her a lot stronger than she looked….His daughter, if nothing else, was quite independent and liked to do things for herself.

He smiled at her tenderly as she came running full force into the library; she had her suitcase trailing along behind her and had a soccer ball in one hand. "I'm sure they'll have all kinds of sports equipment at the camp, Katie," he told his daughter with an amused expression. "I think you can leave that here."

She shook her head. "I'm not taking any chances," she told him firmly. "I'm not being stranded in the boondocks without at least something to play with."

Brian snorted. "Honey, you _saw_ the brochure! The camp sits on a 300-acre lake and there're tons of activities scheduled for the entire two weeks! Trust me – you won't need to take any sports equipment." He had been happy to see how excited Katie had been at the thought of going to this camp; he would have never given any consideration to such a thing while he was going to be away on business at the same time, but Jennifer had shown him a brochure describing it and he had decided it might do his daughter some good to travel some place new and be exposed to different sights and sounds. Her soccer league didn't start up for a few weeks yet, and she had just gotten out of school, so this would be a perfect time for her to make some new friends and expand her horizons somewhat.

His daughter scrunched up her nose in thought, reminiscent of her biological father, as she finally nodded in agreement. "All right….but I still want to take my sketchbook, okay? I don't want to miss not being able to draw something that I might not be able to see anywhere else."

Brian swallowed the painful lump in his throat; God, she was so much like Justin sometimes. Same petite build, same blue eyes, even the same expressions when she was thinking or passionately trying to make a point. And she had a lot of the same artistic talent that Justin did. It all made it extremely difficult not to think about her father when she looked at him that way. Of course, he really didn't need much reason to think of Justin anyway; he was in his thoughts all the time. He was sometimes successful in forcefully pushing the memories of him away at times – it was the only way he could go on with his life, that and taking care of his daughter who he loved deeply – but Justin was never far away from his mind.

Whenever Jennifer came to visit and mentioned his name, he tried to pretend he was indifferent to how Justin was doing, requesting that she change the subject, but the truth was he was very much interested in his welfare and that of his other daughter. He lived for the new photos that Jennifer would bring him, marveling at how much Kaylee looked like her sister, except for the longer hair. They were both so beautiful and reminded him so much of Justin. God, he missed him so much even now. After eight years, the pain was still raw and fresh, but as his daughter got older, he began to wonder how everything had spiraled so out of control and how they had reached this point. The arguments they had had seemed somewhat muted now; silly even. But it had been him who had fucked up – literally as well as figuratively – and now he had to live with the consequences. He was thankful at least that he had his daughter and still had a way to know that Justin and Kaylee were doing okay through Jennifer; it certainly didn't compare to having them in his life, though, but it was better than no information at all.

When he felt the time was right a few years ago to tell her about his ex-partner, he had been straight with Katie about Justin, advising her that he had had a relationship with her biological father and they had broken up after she had been born. He had also informed her that her 'aunt' Daphne was in fact her real mother, who loved her and would stay in her life but would not be with her on a day-to-day basis like he was. True to their deal with the devil, however, he was prohibited from telling her about Kaylee, and it fucking killed him. A lie had been the eventual cause of his and Justin's downfall, and the last thing he wanted was to make things even worse by having to tell yet another lie. His hands were tied, however; he had agreed to the custody arrangement and that had been one of the stipulations. He only wished now that he had found another way to settle things, because the thought of his daughter never seeing either Justin or her twin sister possibly ever again filled him with remorse and sadness.

"Dad?" he lifted his head, aware he had zoned out while his daughter was waiting for his reply. "I'm sorry, Honey," he told her sheepishly. "Of course you can take your sketchbook. Do you have it with you?"

She nodded her head. "Yeah – it's in my suitcase."

Brian quietly closed his laptop and stood up. "Okay, well, we'd better get going, then. We have a plane to catch." He knew Katie would probably be okay flying by herself – this wouldn't by any stretch of the imagination be her first flight, having accompanied him on several business trips in the past – but he still didn't feel right leaving her by herself. Having both Justin and Kaylee out of his life had made him hold on even harder to his remaining daughter.

He walked around the heavy, wooden desk to place a gentle hand on her arm. "Okay, Princess," he told her softly. "Let's get going."

A few minutes later, having stowed her gear in the more practical Cadillac SUV he had long ago traded his 'Vette for, they took off hurriedly for the Allegheny County Airport to board a plane for their destination, Cheboygan, Michigan, the nearest airport for Camp Pinewood in the northern part of the peninsula.

Brian reached over to squeeze his daughter's hand as he pulled out of the driveway. "You're going to have so much fun, Katie," he told her, smiling; he was glad to see a sparkle of excitement in her eyes in reaction to his statement. He would do anything for this little girl, as long as it made her happy. In a way, it was his way of making things up to Justin…..It would never push him out of his mind, though – or his heart.

* * *

><p><em>One Hour Later – Jennifer's Condo<em>

Jennifer searched for her cell phone as it rang, berating herself for once more dropping it down wherever it was convenient, only to have to look for it later. For a real estate agent, she still had a bad habit of not placing her cell phone in one particular spot so it was readily accessible whenever buyers, sellers, or fellow agents called her about a house listing.

She placed her mug of tea down on the kitchen counter and went in search of the cell phone ringing nearby. Several seconds later, she finally uncovered it lying beneath her lightweight jacket. "Hello, this is Jennifer," she responded breathlessly as she flipped it open, not taking the time to check the caller I.D.

"Hi, Mrs. Taylor, it's Daphne." Daphne had just come from working a 12-hour shift and was exhausted; all she wanted to do was crash on her bed, but first she return Jennifer's call to her earlier.

"Daphne! I'm so glad you called!" the older woman responded excitedly; she had been waiting eagerly for her to call, hardly able to contain the news she had for her. Ever since the young woman had met Justin in school and the two had become good friends, Jennifer had been very grateful for the brunette's relationship with her son; Daphne had always accepted Justin for who he was, not WHAT he was, unlike her husband. Not to mention the fact that thanks to her, she now had two wonderful granddaughters that she loved more than she ever thought was possible. Until Molly, who had recently left for college out of state, got married and hopefully gifted her with more grandchildren, these were her only two and as a result she spoiled them terribly. She only wished she could do more to bring their fathers closer together. Hopefully, she was about to help with that problem….. "How are you, dear?" she asked softly, trying hard to stay calm.

"I'm beat," the younger woman admitted promptly with a small laugh. "I just got off an extended shift at work and I'm ready to collapse. You wanted to talk to me?" She had retrieved a voicemail message from Justin's mom about an hour ago when she got off work, noticing Jennifer seemed excited about something…..could that mean….? "It's not about the camp?" she supplied anxiously.

"Yeah," Jennifer told her with a higher-pitched voice, unable to stop smiling now. "I asked Brian about it last night, and guess what? She's _going_!" she practically shrieked.

"Shit!" Daphne said, her eyes wide in shock. "You're sure?"

"Yes," Jennifer breathed out in jubilation. "That means that both Katie AND Kaylee will be at the same camp at the same time! Which _also_ means that both fathers have to take them up there to drop them off!"

"Oh, my God, Jennifer!" Daphne cried, her exhaustion temporarily forgotten over the revelation. "Do you think they'll run into each other?"

"I certainly hope so!" Jennifer said with a laugh. "That's the idea, isn't it?"

Daphne chuckled. "Yeah, it is…..you're good, Mrs. Taylor; _real_ good. How did you know they would both agree to let the girls go there?"

"Well, I wasn't that sure about Brian. But Justin used to go to Camp Pineland every summer when he was their age and he absolutely _loved_ it! I knew if I played things right with him I could probably talk him into sending Kaylee there. But Brian was the unknown factor – I wasn't sure he'd let Katie go so far away from home. You know how protective he's gotten of her – since he and Justin….well, you know." It still hurt her to think of how much pain the two men had inflicted on each other; she knew Justin had been hurt terribly and had felt he couldn't trust Brian, but she _also_ knew her son still loved him…..this might be their last chance to make things right, but it would be up to them to initiate that. That didn't mean she couldn't help things along a little, though….

"Mrs. Taylor?"

"Yes, Daphne?" She could sense a certain hesitation in the brunette's voice. "Something wrong?"

"No….I'm glad they're both going. But what _about_ the two girls? What are they going to think when they meet? They'll _have _to realize they're sisters – they're spitting images of each other, at least except for the hair. What about the agreement?" Daphne loved her two daughters and didn't want them to get hurt; on the other hand, she thought they finally deserved to know about each other.

To her surprise, Jennifer was decidedly blunt. "Fuck the agreement," she said brusquely. "It was a stupid agreement in the first place. If Brian and Justin can't come to their senses after all this time, it's time to give them a little shove in the right direction."

"But the court order said…"

"It said the BOYS couldn't divulge the other girl's existence; it didn't say anything about someone _else_ revealing it."

Daphne smiled. "You little sneaky grandmother, you," she replied in admiration. "No….I guess it didn't." She sobered somewhat, though, as she thought through all the possible consequences. "But what if the girls figure everything out and then Brian and Justin still won't speak to each other? Won't that make it worse?"

"Worse than not knowing they have a sister at _all_?" Jennifer countered. She had done a lot of thinking about this, knowing that both men might very well be furious with her if they discover what she did. But she had pondered all the pros and cons at length, and finally decided it was time to try and right a terrible wrong. Eight long years had passed, and these two stubborn men who were obviously still in love with each other were still as far apart – both figuratively as well as distance wise – as they had ever been. It was time to give both of them a well-appointed push on their asses to help them figure it out….

"Daphne, these two love each other. I'll be damned if I'm going to let them pine away for each other from afar while my two granddaughters are being kept apart, also, oblivious to the other's existence. I'm prepared to accept the consequences if it means there's a chance we can get them back together. Don't you think it's worth it?"

Daphne was quiet for a few seconds as she pondered Jennifer's argument, respecting her children's grandmother's courage, borne from love for both of them as well as the two obstinate men who had been apart for far too long. "Yeah, I do, too," she told her. "But you know in the end, what happens will still be up to them."

"Yeah, I know," Jennifer told her. "But I'm betting that once they see each other again, they won't be able to stay apart. Those two are like sexual magnets when they're around each other, and they DO love each other still, Daphne; I KNOW they do."

Daphne smiled, recalling how both men still kept pictures of each other around their respective residences and how their eyes lit up, despite their attempts to hide it, every time she mentioned the other's name. "Yeah, me, too. I'll keep my fingers crossed for both of them – _and_ my daughters."


	3. Camp Arrival

_A/N: The girls arrive at camp with their fathers (sorry, though - no meeting with the boys yet!), as Brian and Justin continue to dwell on what might or could have been..._

* * *

><p><em>Two Hours Later <em>

"How much longer, Dad?" Katie asked her father as she squirmed restlessly in her first-class seat; she had spent the last five hours alternatively listening to her I-Pod and sketching, in between being fed brunch around 11:00, but she was getting fidgety now. When her father had told her where Camp Pinewood was, she figured by plane it might take a couple of hours or so, not the several hours they had already endured in the air.

Brian glanced up from his copy of the _Wall Street Journal_ through his wireless reading glasses and smiled at her indulgently. "About another hour and a half, Princess," he told her softly. Brian pushed his glasses back up on his nose and sighed in irritation; he had practically gone kicking and screaming to the optometrist's office about a year ago when Cynthia had started complaining that he was missing words on some of the ad mockups that were being discussed at their strategy meetings. Only his most trusted, long-time assistant would be able to get away with telling him his eyesight wasn't as good as it used to be. He had fucking hated to have to get his eyes tested, because deep down he knew she was right – he could tell his close-up reading ability had deteriorated a little over the years. But it was a major blow to the last vestiges of his vanity and youth, and it still bothered him. As he glanced at his daughter, though, whose blue eyes were peering back at him so intently, he realized there were more important things than worrying about some minor eyesight loss. He looked down curiously at the pad of paper she was doodling on. "What's that?" he asked tenderly with a smile and a nudge of his chin, acknowledging a charcoal sketch she had been working on ever since they had taken off. He could tell it was a portrait of some kind, but from his vantage point the subject matter was mainly obscured.

She looked back at her sketchpad almost bashfully before saying, "Just something I thought up in my head." She hastily placed both of her slim hands on either side of the pad as if she were shielding it from view.

Brian leaned over to try and take a closer look. "Can I see?" he asked her, noticing Katie licking her lips nervously. Normally she couldn't be stopped from showing it off whenever she drew a picture – she practically thrust it under Brian's nose every time she finished one. This time, though, she was oddly reticent about revealing what she had drawn. "Come on, Honey, let me see it."

"Promise you won't get mad," she said softly as she looked over at him in odd apprehension.

Brian frowned. "Why would I get mad? I always _love_ whatever you draw. Let me see," he said a little more forcefully, getting a little concerned now.

Katie eyed her father warily for a few seconds before she answered finally, "Okay," as she passed the sketchbook to her father and bit down on her thumb's fingernail nervously as she looked over at him. She wasn't sure what his reaction would be to her subject matter, but she _did_ notice her father's eyebrows narrowing as he gazed at the portrait.

Brian sucked in a sharp intake of breath as he gazed down at a face that haunted his every dream. "Where did you get the idea for this?" he asked a little more brusquely than he had intended. He couldn't help it, though; there was no doubt where his daughter had gotten her artistic talent, and it was painfully staring him right in the face presently. The angular chin, the delicate, seashell ears, the wispy hair hanging down almost in the eyes that he knew if they were in color would be as blue as an early spring day, and the full lips that he recalled were so soft and kissable. It was a remarkable likeness of the man he hadn't stopped thinking about since they had parted eight years ago. He looked back over at his daughter, whose eyes were wide with worry. "I asked you a question, Katie," he commanded as he glanced down once more at the drawing. "Where did you get the idea for this from?" He knew she couldn't have gotten the inspiration from any photo _he_ had shown her, although he _did_ have one of Justin displayed in their home – on his desk in his personal office. Even though the two of them were no longer together, he knew he couldn't hide the fact that he was her father, nor did he want to. He figured Justin at least deserved to have proper acknowledgment as her biological father, and besides, Jennifer was bound to have told her all sorts of stories about him anyway. But as he stared at the incredible likeness of the man he still, yes damn it, _loved_, the pain of their separation was reopened again like a fresh wound that would never heal.

"I'm sorry, Dad," she told him timidly, a little fearful of the somber expression on his face. "Grandma gave me some new pictures of Daddy the last time I saw her and I just wanted to draw him. She wanted me to have them," she insisted, her words rushing out in a torrent of sorrow and regret over the look of hurt on her father's face. "I… I'm sorry," she repeated, her eyes filling with tears over the thought that she had upset her father. He had told her about her other Daddy – how he was an artist like her and had the same blue-colored eyes as she did. He had told her how they had fallen in love and decided to have a child together with help from her Daddy's best friend, Daphne, but that they had broken up shortly after she had been born. She had never seen her other father in person, but her Dad let her do all sorts of things with her grandmother Jennifer, who was her Daddy's mother, and he had made no secret of the photo he kept on his desk at home.

Katie bit her lip in apprehension; she never told her father, but she had actually found a photo of the two of them in one of their books in the library. She had gone in search of something to help her draw one night several weeks ago when she couldn't sleep, and had found herself drawn to a book on one of the middle shelves with the name, _Artistic Inspirations_, on it. The name on the front, and the colorful cover with its swirls of bold, dramatic maroons and navy blues had appealed to her sense of style, and she had curled up in one of their overstuffed, dark-brown leather chairs to take a better look at it, hoping to gain some ideas about new subjects to draw. As she was flipping through the pages of the book, however, her heart had stopped when she had come to a slightly faded, 4 X 6 color photograph of what could only be both of her fathers. Her one father was instantly recognizable even though the picture had apparently been taken some time ago from the looks of his longer, unkempt shock of dark brown hair and his younger appearance. But she was mesmerized by the other man in the photo. He was shorter than her father with blond hair a lighter shade than her own, but had the same facial features and blue eyes as she did. And his smile – he had a smile that could light up a room. The two were standing with her father's arms around her biological father's waist, and they were both glowing with happiness as he gave the smaller man a peck on the cheek for the camera.

Her eyes had filled with tears of longing as well as confusion over how someone who appeared to be so happy with each other could have gone their separate ways. They looked so wonderful together, as if they had been made for each other. What had happened? How could everything have gone so wrong? She had felt a little guilty taking the photograph from the art book, but she figured her father had either forgotten about the photograph altogether or perhaps didn't even know about it, assuming from the book that it had been a memento of her biological father's, so she had quietly slipped it into the pocket of her pajamas and crept back upstairs, book and all, to her bedroom where she had placed the treasured picture under her mattress for safekeeping. Since then, she had taken it out often to look at it, finding that it provided her with a measure of comfort when she was scared or insecure, but leaving her with a strong longing to get to know her biological father better.

She looked over at her father a little worried now, noticing how quiet he had become. "Dad?" she called out softly. If she was going to be in trouble for what she did, she figured she might as well get it over with. She watched him continue to study the portrait she had drawn for a few seconds longer and take a deep breath before he silently handed the sketchbook back to her. She breathed a sigh of relief as his expression softened and he reached over to lightly rub the back of his hand across her cheek.

Brian smiled at her wistfully and swallowed to compose himself before saying, "It's okay, Honey. _I'm_ the one who should be sorry. I didn't mean to sound so harsh with you. I guess your sketch just sort of took me by surprise, that's all." He stared into the blue eyes that were so identical to Justin's before he added a little more softly, "I guess it's only natural that you're curious about him." He couldn't fault Jennifer, either, for wanting to share information about Justin – or photos – with her granddaughter. Just because the two of them weren't together anymore didn't mean his daughter didn't have a right to know about him…

"Dad," he heard his daughter say as he came out of his reverie to gaze into her eyes. "Can I ask you something? About Daddy?" Her father's acknowledgment about her need to know more about her other father prompted her courage to press him.

Brian held his breath for a second before replying, "Sure, Honey. What?"

"Did you fall out of love with him? Is that why you broke up?"

Brian closed his eyes for a second, feeling the pain wash over him at the thought of exactly why they _did_ end their relationship before replying honestly, "No, Princess. I didn't fall out of love with your father. I…I still love him, I guess."

Katie scrunched up her button nose, just like someone _else_ he knew used to do as she asked in confusion, "Then why, Dad? If you still love him…"

"It's more complicated than that," Brian responded a little curtly before he let out a heavy sigh. "It's hard to explain. Someday when we have more time, maybe I'll try to do that." The chime signaling their imminent arrival at the Cheboygan airport thankfully interrupted their awkward conversation as he added, "We're almost at the airport – better put your seatbelt on and put your things away, Honey."

Katie nodded, realizing her father was really trying to avoid any more intense discussion about her biological father, but also understanding that for some reason, he didn't want to talk about him anymore. Being grateful for what little she _had_ been able to glean from their talk, she chose to let it drop for now, but she also resolved to make sure she pressed him further on it sometime later on. As she placed her seat back in its upright position, she glanced at her father, noticing him staring out the window, apparently lost in thought. She reached over to take her father's hand as he curled his fingers around her smaller one in response but didn't turn to look at her.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time<em>

Justin had to smile as he looked over at his daughter seated in the passenger seat of their rental car; she was holding up a small-mirrored compact to check out her hair with one hand and smoothing it down with her other, which was sort of ironic considering how mussed up her hair was no doubt going to be soon once she began participating in activities at the camp. Their flight from Chicago to Cheboygan had been uneventful; he had actually thought of driving to their destination initially – it was only a four-and-a-half drive – but he knew how Kaylee began to squirm after a couple of hours or so in the car, so he chose instead to take the short, 25-minute flight from Chicago to the closest airport to the camp to save both of them the inconvenience.

"Kaylee, you know you'll be participating in a lot of outdoor activities at the camp," Justin told her in amusement. "I don't think they're really going to care whether every hair is in place."

"Daddy," she answered, a little annoyed. "_I'll_ still know." She took one more look in the mirror before snapping it closed and placing it in her backpack lying next to her on the seat. "I just want to look my best, that's all." A sudden, horrible thought occurred to her as her eyes widened and she asked, "They don't wear uniforms up there, do they? If I have to wear something that looks like a Girl Scout uniform hand-me-down, I'll just…"

"Relax, Honey, they don't do that up there," Justin assured her with a smile before she could go into full queen-out mode. "It's just your standard jeans and tee shirt wear…No uniforms." He observed his daughter relax somewhat as she nodded and turned to gaze out the car. "It's really pretty up here, isn't it?" Justin commented, noticing the wide swaths of pine trees and lakes surrounding the countryside. The homes were few and far between in this area, and when they _did_ see one, they were tucked back into the trees or up on the hillsides where the view must be spectacular. He imagined it would be quite relaxing to own either a year-round vacation home here or at least one you could escape to on the weekends, but it would be far too long a distance – or too expensive – to consider owning one himself. While he made a comfortable income as an artist in Chicago, the cost of living was still astronomical, prohibiting him from buying anything quite as extravagant as a summer home. Considering what his and his daughter's life _could_ have been like had he not been so successful in his career, though, he was grateful for what they _did_ have. At least it provided him with enough income that he hadn't had to rely on anyone else's salary like he used to.

The thought of the 'old days' caused his throat to constrict with the memories of just whose salary he had been dependent upon. He sighed softly. He never had liked taking Brian's money, even though his former partner never seemed to have any problems providing it to him, and he had seen that Brian was paid back for every cent he had advanced him, at least as much as he could possibly calculate. It was nearly impossible to accurately determine the cost of more intangible items such as food and lodging; fuck knows he had spent more time at Brian's loft than anywhere else after they had met doing just that, despite Brian's initial extreme reluctance to let him into his life. And Brian had refused through his attorney to accept any of his money at all at first. But he had finally managed to get Brian to take it by setting up a trust account for their daughter, Katie, for her college fund. It wasn't quite the same as Brian receiving the money personally, but it was as much as Brian's pride would allow him to accept and Justin had the added knowledge of knowing it would go toward their daughter's education.

"Is something wrong, Daddy?" he heard his daughter ask curiously. He came back to the present as he glanced over at his daughter's puzzled blue eyes; he hadn't realized his morose thoughts had somehow been transmitted to her.

"No, Honey – why do you ask?"

His daughter smirked at him. "Because I asked you something twice and you acted like you didn't even hear me."

Justin gazed back at her sheepishly. "I'm sorry, Kaylee. I just had my mind on something else, that's all. What did you ask me?"

"I was saying – they _do_ have hot running water and indoor plumbing up there, don't they?"

Justin laughed at her grave look of concern. "Yes, they have all the creature comforts of home as they say, except for no bathtub," he assured her. His mother had told him that she had waxed nostalgic with Kaylee a few months back, telling his daughter how her great-grandfather – Justin's grandfather – had grown up in a house that had no indoor plumbing and an outhouse, and had told him about the horrified look on his daughter's face as a result. Apparently she hadn't forgotten that and wanted to make sure she wasn't being forced to live like a pioneer. He smiled at her sympathetically. "You'll be fine, Honey, you'll see. You'll love it! You'll be so busy for those two weeks you won't even miss not having a bathtub."

He heard his daughter snort softly. "Nice try, Daddy, but trust me, I'll miss it a _lot_."

Justin grinned. "You'll come through just fine – and I'm sure you'll be squeaky clean when I next see you, too." He gazed at his daughter's cynical look before he added more softly, "You sure you'll be okay from home for two weeks?" Except for occasional weekend trips with his mother and an overnight sleepover with friends, this would be the first time he and his daughter had been apart for any length of time since she had been born.

"Dad-dy," she sing-songed, insulted. "I'm not a little girl anymore. I'll be fine. I think _you'll_ be the one who won't be okay," she said a little smugly. "You'll miss me."

Thoughts of a time long ago when Justin had said something very much like that to Brian drifted through his head as he reached over to grab her hand and give it a brief squeeze before releasing it. "You're right, Sweetheart," he admitted, finding his eyes glistening just a bit. "I WILL miss you – tons." And it was true, too – he _would_ miss her. Kaylee was pretty much his life. Oh, he had friends outside their home – mainly through his artwork – and he had Daphne's support and love. And he even had a steady boyfriend – an architect, Alex, that he had met a few years ago at the grand opening of a new art exhibition hall downtown. They had an easygoing, congenial relationship. It was not explosive or earth-shattering, and Alex's lovemaking didn't engender the same passion in him as Brian always did – after all, Brian had been his first love and he was _Brian Kinney_ – but it was…_nice_. Alex was a gentle and caring lover and a considerate, intelligent, and creative man. They spent quiet nights at his condo, drinking wine and discussing art projects, or attending concerts or plays together and occasionally trying out new restaurants in town. It was an unpressured, calm, and stable relationship, and gave Justin the companionship he craved at times. Not that he didn't love his daughter dearly – and he always made sure on his date nights with Alex that his daughter was either spending the night with a friend or spending time with Daphne or his mother – but sometimes he just needed the company of a peer if only to validate that he was still desired.

He had long ago quit going out clubbing or to the bars – he would stop from time to time to meet with a potential client or to be interviewed by one of the art magazine reporters in town if he was asked to, but once his daughter had taken over his life (willingly, he was quick to add), he had found his priorities had changed. She came first, and then his career. His so-called social life was a distant third. And he had to admit, Alex's attitude when it came to his daughter was somewhat of a concern to him. He was always polite enough around her – and never spoke negatively about her, respecting Justin's desire to accommodate their dating schedule around his daughter's needs – but he was almost, well, _indifferent_ to her. He was never rude to her, but on the other hand he wasn't exactly effusive toward her, either; perhaps it was due to Alex never having any children of his own so he didn't have any personal point of reference to use. Whatever the reason, he hoped that somewhere down the road his boyfriend's neutral attitude toward Kaylee would change, however, and he would grow to understand what an awesome young lady she was.

He glanced up ahead and noticed the sign announcing their destination. "Look, Kaylee, we're almost there," he reported. "Just a couple more miles." He smiled in amusement as his daughter rolled her eyes; apparently while she was looking forward to checking out the myriad of activities the camp had on tap for the next two weeks, having to do without some of the "finer" things in life wasn't making her overly enthusiastic about some other parts of it. "You'll have fun, trust me," he told her enthusiastically. At least he hoped so; he had had a blast going to camp when he was her age. He could get away from other students at school who tended to pick on him for his petite stature and concentrate on some of the quieter activities at the camp, such as hiking, canoeing, and swimming. If he wanted to be alone to draw, too, he could do that, also. His daughter was very outgoing, unlike him; he had been shy most of his life in school, while she was bubbly and made friends easily, so he had no doubt she would fit in well with the other girls.

"Are there going to be boys here?" his daughter abruptly asked. Justin's eyes widened; he didn't care one way or the other whether his daughter would wind up preferring boys or girls eventually, but he wasn't quite ready yet for his 11-year-old daughter to become worried about it.

"Do you want there to be?" he asked her curiously as he turned right onto the exit ramp toward the camp; the terrain was getting more and more rugged and uninhabited the closer they approached their destination. The road they had turned onto was a single-lane highway that didn't have even a yellow line painted down the middle; the only stoplight, also, had been the one coming off the interstate. Except for a few gas stations and a couple of fast food restaurants, there was nothing around except for gently rolling hills and woods – lots and lots of, predictably, pine trees. He glanced over at his daughter for her response as, to his great relief, she shook her head.

"No way!" she announced. They're all a bunch of immature dweebs! I don't want anything to do with them until they grow up!"

Justin laughed. "Well, you won't have to worry about them up here, Honey," he told her with a smile. "It's strictly an all-girls camp." _Thank God_, he couldn't help thinking. The last thing he needed right now was to worry about his pre-teen daughter going through puberty prematurely. He had already had the nail-biting "birds and bees" conversation with her about a year ago – knowing that girls her age seemed to be thrown into the adult world much too soon now – but he was thankful that apparently his daughter was still more concerned with cheerleading and fashion than boys.

"Good," she reported, crossing her arms over her chest as she peered out the window. "Where exactly _is_ this place?" she asked. "There's nothing out here."

Justin grinned. "It _is_ pretty isolated," he said in agreement. "But that's the point, Kaylee; you get to converse with nature." For a few seconds, he fondly recalled the time that Emmett and Michael had attended that "fairy" camp; he imagined both camps would encourage camaraderie, but that was probably where the similarities ended…He made a mental note to himself to contact Emmett soon; Em had been one of the few people he had kept in contact with since leaving the Pitts, except for Debbie. He figured he would _always_ be in touch with his "second mother," even though he had long ago cautioned her that he did NOT want to discuss Brian with her; she had amazingly enough abided by his wishes, even though he knew deep down she was probably having to bite her tongue to do it…

"There's the sign, Daddy," Kaylee pointed out as they came to another cutoff to the right; a dark green wooden marker with _Camp Pineland_ spelled out in cream-colored letters was situated at the intersection to a gravel road leading to the camp. "Looks like they ran out of money to pave the road," she sarcastically added.

Justin chuckled at his daughter's less-than-enthusiastic endorsement of her home-away-from-home for the next two weeks. "I think that was planned, Honey." He grinned at her look of skepticism before veering the car down the long, narrow gravel drive toward the camp; an open field on either side of the road quickly transformed into dense pine forest as they drove about a quarter mile further; through the open windows of their rental vehicle – a small SUV – he could smell the pine aroma surrounding them and feel the drop in temperature from the thick shaded canopy overhead. He inhaled the fragrance as his daughter promptly declared, "It smells like air freshener around here."

Justin burst out laughing. "Oh, Kaylee," he murmured. "I'm glad you're going to be at this camp. I think you've been watching way too much television, sweetheart." His daughter stuck her tongue out at him in reply as he smiled. "I know you're going to have a good time, Honey, really," he assured her once more.

Kaylee peered over at her father, not quite convinced. "Maybe," she said noncommittally. "Do I get my own room?"

Justin shook his head and smiled. "Sorry – you'll be sharing with one other girl. But I'm sure you'll get along just great with everybody. And look at it this way – you'll be very popular when they start choosing sides for the camp cheerleaders and the makeup discussion groups." He had no idea if they even _had_ such things at the camp – chances are they didn't – but he was trying to reassure Kaylee that she would have no trouble fitting in. She would be just fine, he was sure of it; she always made friends quite easily, ever since she had been little, and his daughter was always on top of the latest fashion looks and, despite his misgivings, the current makeup trends. He actually limited what sort of makeup his daughter could use to mainly lip gloss and some lightweight perfume for now to her disappointment, feeling she was way too young to wear anything else, but he knew it was only a matter of time before she graduated to wanting more.

She certainly hadn't gotten her sense of style and fashion from _him_, he thought ruefully; he never had given a flying fuck _what_ he wore and had never dressed up with the intention of impressing someone with his apparel. He preferred, instead, to speak through his art. And she hadn't gotten it from her mother, either; Daphne's sense of style was even less pronounced than his. But he could not deny that his daughter definitely had a flair for dressing well. If he didn't know better, then, he'd say she got her fashion sense from her _other_ father, but he knew that wasn't possible. He sighed as his thoughts once more strayed to Brian; it seemed that no matter how much he tried to forget him, that wasn't possible, either…

He noticed the heavy concentration of pine trees thinning out somewhat as they approached a clearing; just as he suspected, the road turned toward the right again into a wide, gravel parking lot. Several girls around Kaylee's age and their parents were milling around their cars, luggage splayed out everywhere as they helped their children carry their luggage over to a series of wood buildings. The structures were rustic but clean looking – all single story units except for the largest building centrally situated in front of them that abutted a large lake. "Here we are, Kaylee," he told his daughter as he pulled into an empty parking spot near the end on the right. While there were numerous buildings grouped around the parking lot, the actual space to park was somewhat small; it was virtually packed at the moment with other parents dropping their children off for the orientation scheduled in an hour.

As he stopped the car and opened the door to get out and retrieve his daughter's luggage from the back of the trunk, father and daughter both failed to notice a black Jeep Grand Cherokee pulling up and parking at the opposite end of the lot.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Camp Pineland <em>

"What do you think, Princess?" Brian asked Katie as they pulled up to the camp; according to the brochure Jennifer had given him, the camp encompassed over 400 acres of mainly woods, with a couple of lakes situated near the main base for canoeing and swimming; he could see several cabins interspersed around the main building, which if he recalled correctly, was a combination dining hall and meeting room; that was where the new camper orientation was to be held shortly. He was glad to see that the camp looked clean and well-kept, even though the prominence of so much wood gave it a distinct primitive, rustic feel, the exact appearance he supposed they had been shooting for, but his preference always gravitated more for the contemporary, sleek look.

He glanced over at his daughter, who was still clasping her sketchbook in her lap; she had kept it close by the entire time since they had entered their rental vehicle, almost as if she were afraid he would still take it away from her because she had drawn a picture of Justin, but he knew how much she needed her outlet and he wouldn't dream of depriving her of it. Just like someone else he used to know, it frequently served as a release for her when she was upset, lonely, insecure, or unsure of herself. Those were typical emotions for a girl her age, but for his sensitive daughter, they seemed to be even more heightened and being able to express her feelings down on paper was a great catharsis for her. As he stared at her profile, his heart did a flip-flop. She reminded him so much of Justin, it was almost as if he were still here. But as much as he wished that were the case, he knew he wasn't. And it had been all his own doing…

Katie opened her car door to emerge into the bright sunlight surrounding the camp. "It's okay," she said neutrally as she looked around. "I'm just not sure how I'll fit in, though, Dad. I'm not really into camping."

Brian opened the back of the Jeep to grab her wheeled piece of luggage as his daughter joined him. "You'll be just fine, Katie," he reassured her. "You'll get used to it in no time, especially once they start all the sporting activities. And I know they have all sorts of hiking trails and swimming and even painting classes – I _know_ you'll like those!"

His daughter smiled at that thought as her blue eyes lit up. "Yeah, that would be nice," she agreed as she carefully slid her sketchbook into the front pocket of her luggage. She had never had any formal painting classes, and normally preferred to do her drawings with charcoal. But she had always wanted to try using acrylic paints instead; this at least would give her a chance to experiment with them.

Brian grinned at her expression as he put his arm around her and gave her a squeeze. "Let's go check out the dining hall, okay?" She nodded as he took her hand and walked with her up a gravel walkway toward the two-story main building directly in front of them, his daughter's piece of navy-blue Armani luggage trailing along behind her and her soccer ball under her arm.

* * *

><p>"Ready, Honey?" Justin urged her daughter as he grabbed her piece of paisley-themed luggage from the back of the SUV and placed it on the ground. He looked up as his daughter walked up beside him with a makeup case in her hand. "Kay-lee," he intoned. "I thought you were going to leave some of that at home." He knew his daughter wouldn't be caught, though, without some of her "beauty products," but he hadn't even realized she had brought this additional piece of luggage with her.<p>

"I needed it, Daddy," she insisted. "You don't want me to look like a troll while I'm here, do you?"

Justin grinned and shook his head in amusement. "Kaylee, you would _never_ look like a troll, with or without makeup." He remembered the photo of his daughter that had been taken right after she had been named captain of the girls' cheerleading team for next year, despite the fact that she really wasn't that athletically inclined. But she had been named to the position anyway, because she _was _a hell of a good spokesperson for the squad and was the leader all the girls looked up to, a fact that made Justin very proud of her… He recalled that she had been horrified at the time to realize she had to have her picture taken that day without any lip gloss, but the photo of his beautiful, freshly-scrubbed, smiling little girl had quickly become one of his most favorite pictures of her and presently resided in a special place on one of his bookshelves at his studio.

His daughter shrugged her shoulders as if it were the most natural response in the world to bring a makeup kit to camp with her as he placed his hand on her shoulder and pulled her against him to give her a quick kiss on the cheek. "Dad-dy," she complained good-naturedly, a little embarrassed to be seen with her father kissing her like a little baby. "Everyone will see."

"Oh…Sorry," Justin told her. "I forgot." He ruffled her hair briefly before letting go and grabbing her largest piece of luggage. "Ready to go see the dining hall now?" he asked her as she nodded, relieved that her father wasn't going to take her "security blanket" away from her. He grinned as together the two of them walked along with the rest of the burgeoning crowd toward the reception area for the orientation.

As they approached the front entrance, they noticed four rectangular, portable metal tables set up underneath a large, white, vinyl sign sporting the camp's logo – a trio of pine trees with different heights, ringed by a lake – and the words "_Campers – Register Here_" written to the side. Each table had a tri-fold, cardboard sign set up near the end that indicated a certain range of the alphabet; Justin took hold of his daughter's upper arm and whispered in her ear, "This way," as he steered her toward the last table on the right that indicated registration for "N-Z."

One of the two middle-aged women seated at the table and wearing a Kelly-green vest with a patch of the camp's logo on it glanced up as Justin walked up to her. She smiled politely. "The camper's name?" she inquired.

"Kaylee Taylor-Kinney," he told the woman, hoping that his daughter was registered under the letter T rather than K. He wondered whether he was correct, however, when Kaylee stepped into view and the woman frowned.

"Didn't we already register you?" she asked Justin's daughter, feeling certain she had already given the same girl an identification badge several minutes ago. The camp was teeming as usual with new arrivals, but she felt a distinctive sense of déjà vu as the young blonde stared at her in confusion.

"No," Justin answered for her, wondering if the dark-haired, bespectacled woman had lost her mind. "We just got here," he told her. He looked down at the name labels displayed in front of the woman and pointed out his daughter's name. "There she is," he told her in confirmation.

The woman glanced at the badge and nodded, convinced she had simply seen one too many blonde-haired pre-teen girls today. "Yes, I see it," she verified, as she retrieved the self-adhesive badge and gave it to Kaylee. "Welcome to Pineland, Kaylee. You can go on in for orientation." She stared sympathetically at Justin, recognizing the tell-tale signs of a fretful father before advising, "We recommend you say goodbye out here before your daughter goes in; it helps with any separation anxiety. I promise we'll take real good care of her and she'll have a great time. Campers are not allowed to make phone calls home, but we have a phone here at the camp in case of emergency, and she will be ready for pick up two weeks from today at the same time." As the pair turned away from her table to say goodbye, the woman scanned the sheet of names on her list and realized why the girl had looked familiar – apparently there were _two_ sisters – twins – participating at the camp, both with the unusual hyphenated name of Taylor-Kinney, but she could have sworn the other girl had arrived with a different man. Scrunching up her face in confusion, she nonetheless crossed off the latest arrival and returned to greet the next camper waiting in line.

Justin swallowed the unexpected lump in his throat now that it was time to say goodbye to his daughter. He knew it was silly to feel this way – the camp had a stellar reputation – but it was almost like saying goodbye to Brian and his _other_ daughter all over again. As Kaylee placed the name badge on her chest, he gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile and said, "Guess this is it, Honey. I know you're going to have a great time here – and you'll no doubt get a nice tan to boot," he said with a smile, knowing that part would likely appeal to her. Thank goodness she had adopted some of Daphne's slightly darker skin rather than his own; at least she wouldn't burn as easily as he normally did. He could recall how Brian had often used to scold him whenever he went outside at Britin without applying any sun block to swim or simply sit on the patio when the sun was beating down during the day; actually, he would have never told Brian, but he often did it on purpose just so he could have the pleasure of feeling his partner's warm, sensitive, and talented hands roaming all over his body as he applied the lotion to his chest and back. Of course, then that normally resulted in the _rest_ of his clothing being taken off right before he and Brian fucked in the pool bareback….

"Daddy?" He blinked as he realized he had once again zoned out as he peered down at his daughter whose hands were on her hips in slight aggravation. "Sorry, Kaylee," he told his daughter, smiling back at her apologetically. "I'll say goodbye now, then," he told her, still reluctant to leave just yet but knowing he had no excuse to stay. "I'll see you in two weeks, okay?"

She nodded and turned to go as Justin reluctantly released her arm. Just before she left, however, she impulsively gave her father a kiss on the cheek. "Bye, Daddy."

"Bye, Honey," Justin told her, forcing himself not to let his tears show even though he was feeling quite vulnerable at the moment, knowing this would be the first prolonged amount of time he and his daughter had been apart. He remembered telling Brian when their daughters were born that he would never be one of those clingy, overprotective parents but at that moment he had to admit he was guilty as charged. "I love you," he whispered, saying it too low for anyone but his daughter to hear. "Have a great time."

His daughter nodded and smiled as she took a few steps toward the entrance; just as Justin turned to go, however, she ran back and threw her arms around her father's neck, whispering, "I love you too, Daddy." As quickly as she had returned, however, she was gone again, her luggage rolling along behind her as she purposefully walked toward the door and another camp employee opened the entrance for her as she disappeared inside.

_When did my daughter get so grown up?_ Justin wondered wistfully as he watched her go. He suddenly was feeling pretty old himself as he stood there among the sea of other parents and their children. Taking a deep breath and letting it out to try and push away some of the anxiety over leaving his daughter in an unfamiliar place, he turned to walk back toward the parking lot, lost in thought.

* * *

><p>Brian sat behind the wheel of his SUV, composing his thoughts. He had just dropped off his daughter near the dining hall and found he had mixed feelings about it. He knew his daughter could be somewhat shy at times around strangers – hence her frequent sketching when she was feeling on edge – but he was still confident that once she was more comfortable in her surroundings, she would have a great time. At least he hoped so; he never thought he would find himself in this situation, but somehow he had become one of those dreaded parents who fretted over everything their child did and constantly worried about whether their child was happy. He tried hard to encourage his daughter to be self-sufficient and make her own decisions, but he also knew he would be always be right behind her just in case, quietly looking over her shoulder and making sure she was both protected and loved no matter what she did. Up here, though, Katie would be on her own for two weeks. He sobered somewhat as he thought of his beautiful but sensitive daughter struggling to break out of her shell enough to make new friends inside the camp. But she was so gifted in sports as well as art; he had no doubt as a result that she would make friends quickly. <em>Give it a chance, Princess<em>, he thought to himself. _This will be good for you…_

He knew Katie needed more opportunities like this, but it still didn't prevent him from worrying. He _also_ realized she would never learn to break out on her own if he didn't push her to try. _You've got more of your father in you than you know, Katie_, he thought to himself. _I know you can do this…_

He sighed as an image of Justin appeared in his mind; the man who had challenged so many people and issues he encountered and hadn't backed down from any of them. He could still remember Hobbs appearing outside Woody's with his curious hetero friends as Justin almost proudly announced to practically the entire block that he had jacked him off. He remembered the incredibly-creative propaganda posters his ex-partner had made to try and defeat Stockwell during his campaign. He remembered how Justin had stood up for himself when he was suspended by the Dean for not apologizing to the asshole police chief. He recalled how Justin had managed to secure a job as one of the higher-paid go-go-dancers at Babylon by letting that fucker Saperstein blow him (although that was definitely one time he would have rather forgotten). And he had remembered how Justin had stubbornly fought with him over his decision to remain in the Pitts and develop his art career at Britin rather than in New York City; his partner had proven Lindsey and everyone else, including himself, wrong shortly thereafter when his work had garnered numerous awards and other accolades in an amazingly short time.

_This isn't helping, Kinney_, Brian told himself as he bit his lip in frustration. Thinking about Katie's father wasn't helping his apprehension one little bit. _She'll be okay_, he told himself. _She's got it in her genes all right._ He shook his head in reproach as he turned the ignition and started up the Jeep to back out. Just before he turned to look behind him, he thought he saw a familiar flash of blond hair among the bustling crowd near the front of the dining hall and his heart did a flip-flop at the thought. _Yeah…Right_…He scolded himself as he sighed in disgust and began to slowly back out of his parking place. As he did so, he missed the blond-haired, slender man who walked down the gravel pathway from the dining hall and veered toward the right on his way back to his own vehicle.

* * *

><p>AN:

_Sorry it's taken me a few days to get this posted; BTW - for those of you chewing on your nails for the next chapter of "Paper Hearts," I'm working on it! I was actually going to post it first but fell victim to a slight case of writer's block over the very pivotal next chapter in that story. I promise to get it posted very soon, though - thanks to everyone for reading this and my other stories - I am very grateful.:)_


	4. As Astonishing Discovery

_Thirty Minutes Later – Camp's Dining Hall_

The shrill sound of a metal pea whistle startled the din of voices all clamoring for attention in the open area of the dining hall as the operations manager, a tall, lanky, bespectacled, dark-haired man in his 30's by the name of Perry Winters, stood up on top of one of the long, rectangular wooden eating tables and stared down at the sea of female faces looking up at him inquisitively. Even after several years of performing the same speech over and over again and seeing the same looks of uncertainty mixed in with a bit of anticipation, he still enjoyed his job overseeing the camp. One thing he always insisted upon, however, was refusing to bow to technology in this rustic, primitive setting; he always vowed to keep such contraptions as far away from the camp as possible during the girls' stay here, choosing instead to revert back to a simpler time. He waited with clipboard in hand until the noise predictably died down and finally stopped before he used his unexpectedly deep, booming voice to be heard throughout the large expanse of the room.

"Welcome to camp, Ladies!" he exclaimed exuberantly as he held a walking stick in his other hand. "My name is Perry Winters – I am the chief operations manager for Camp Pineland, and I am going to be both your mother and your father for the next two weeks! To maintain order and civility during your stay here, as well as make sure you remain safe during our care, there will be, yes, those dreaded _rules_ that you will be expected to follow."

A collective groan erupted as expected from the campers huddled around the wooden eating tables as he persisted nonetheless, his commanding voice cutting through the protests. He abruptly pounded the walking stick down onto the top of the table he was standing on for added emphasis and to get everyone's attention again before he continued authoritatively, "You will listen to me and do as I and the counselors say while you are a camper here; in exchange…," he pressed on with a grin, despite another wave of groans that erupted, "In exchange… I can promise you that you will have the time of your life!" He smiled. "Many of you are returning campers, so you already know what to expect. But there will be some new surprises even for the veterans here. In fact, I can give you a sneak peak right now." He nodded over at one of the counselors wearing the familiar Kelly green camp vest with the yellow patch on it as the young blonde in her twenties pressed a button and a white screen mounted onto a nearby wall began to play a short video clip of a new activity installed just in time for the present season. A round of "oohs" and "aahs" instantly replaced the previous groans as the newly-arrived campers saw footage of several girls wearing hardhats and outfits that looked like a telephone repairman's uniform. "Yes," Winters confirmed amidst the sound of excited shrieks. "We just installed a new zip line adventure for our campers this year, and everyone will get a chance to try it out!"

The room broke out into applause, with most of the campers high-fiving each other and talking animatedly at once as the director allowed a few seconds for it to sink in. Eventually, though, he had to resort to the whistle once more to be noticed over the din. "Okay," he said at last, speaking loudly to make sure he was heard. "Just a few more things and then we'll break up in preparation for your move into your appointed cabins." He glanced down at the paper on his clipboard for reference before advising, "Dinner will start at 5:30 p.m. sharp. Your cabin will contain information regarding where your seating assignment is located here in the dining hall. You will be assigned a table designated by a letter painted on the floor next to each row of tables. Where you sit at the table is up to you, but I encourage all of you to mingle with the other campers to get to know each other better. There is also a list of elective activities the camp will be conducting throughout your stay here; you will need to sign up for what you are interested in out in the lobby – there are sheets for each day's activities located on the bulletin board there. There will also be NO use of either computers or cell phones during your stay; there will a cabin inspection first thing tomorrow morning to make sure this rule is being adhered to – if you are found in violation of this rule, your equipment will be confiscated until the end of camp. Lights are out at 9:30 – NO exceptions!" he advised them as a collective groan of disbelief erupted in response; he wasn't surprised, though – he _always _received that reaction during orientation, but he also knew by the time all the girls participated in their chosen activities during the day, when 9:30 rolled around they were more than ready to hit the sack after being exhausted from their exertion.

"One more thing and then we will be breaking up into groups. There is a packet of information for each of you on your assigned bunk with your camp vest underneath it – make sure you are wearing both the vest and your name badge at _all_ times! It not only helps us to get to know you better, but it also identifies you as a participant!"

He looked over at the dozen counselors lined up against the far wall near the double exit doors that led out back to the several cabins ringing the main reception hall; they were spaced approximately 10 feet apart from each other, standing underneath a sign containing a series of alphabet letters. "Okay… Now if you will look over at the far wall at our camp counselors, they are each standing under a sign with a range of letters representing your last names. When I call your table number, you will walk over to the appropriate counselor who will give you your cabin number. The cabin number is located to the right of each door. You will have until dinner to rest up and take a short hike to acquaint yourself with the camp; do NOT, however, leave the perimeter on your own! You will have plenty of time for exploring tomorrow when activities begin! Are there any questions, ladies?"

Blissfully, the girls remained uncharacteristically silent, although he knew that would be short-lived. "Very well, then," he said with a more normal tone of voice as he nodded. He glanced down at his clipboard and checked off the first group. Peering out over at the table located in the far right corner, he pointed at them before stating, "Table No. 1! Back there! You're first!"

As the initial group of ten girls began to walk over to their appointed camp counselor, Katie sighed. She wondered, not for the first time, exactly what she was doing here. She mainly was doing it for her father's sake; he seemed more enthusiastic about it than she was, although she knew there would be some sports activities that she enjoyed. And she _did_ enjoy the outdoors – hiking, camping, and just finding that one perfect vista to extract a new drawing idea from. And she _adored_ animals – all kinds, but especially cats and horses. She never could get her father to agree to let her have her own cat – saying they were always smelly, hairy, and always under foot – but she _had _been able to convince him to purchase a couple of horses so they could ride together around the back of their property at Britin. The woods and meadows behind the house were now full of dirt trails where she and her father had ridden side by side through them time and time again, and she loved the feel of freedom it gave her. She wasn't always the most coordinated sports player in the world when she played soccer, basketball, or volleyball – but when she sat upon her horse at home, she exuded an unexpected air of grace, almost like she was floating on the horse's back. And during her rides with her father, it often gave her a chance to talk to him about her hopes, fears, and dreams. Her most fervent wish, however, remained mainly unknown to her father, however, because she wasn't certain how he would react to it. Her most desired wish, however implausible it may be, was that one day she and _both_ of her fathers would be together again as one, big happy family. She knew it was probably never going to happen, but it didn't prevent her from wishing it were so.

"Hey!" She turned her head as a redheaded girl yelled at her impatiently, her hands on her hips as she stood next to her at their table; the space was so narrow in between each wooden table that the other girl was unable to move until Katie did. "They called our number! Get your ass in gear, Blondie!"

Katie rolled her eyes as she picked up her luggage located immediately behind her and slowly scooted out from the table to follow the other girls who were several feet ahead of her, hoping that this nasty girl following wouldn't wind up being her roommate. It was going to be a long two weeks…

* * *

><p>A few minutes later, she had managed to locate her cabin. Except for the number carved into a wooden plaque to the left of the door, it looked like every other cabin surrounding it – a small, square, log-hewn structure with a single door in the middle, set off by two identical, rectangular-shaped windows on either side. As she opened the door and peeked in, she noticed two twin-size bunk beds on opposite sides of each other, with matching, side-by-side pine dressers located on the far wall; an oval mirror hung above each one, allowing some reflection from the sunlight streaming in through the two windows that were adorned simply with translucent, ivory-colored curtains. She sighed, feeling unexpectedly scared a little now that she was on her own as she walked over and saw a white folder lying on the bed to her left with her name written on the front; one of the camp's green vests was lying neatly folded underneath. <em>What am I doing here? <em>she couldn't help wondering. Sitting down next to the folder, she glanced in distaste at the tacky bedspread on her bed depicting a wooded scene complete with bears and pine trees as she heard a commotion at the doorway.

"Hey," a female voice called out from the doorway; she turned to observe a slender, dark-haired girl with wire-rim glasses lugging a large, navy-blue wheeled piece of luggage into the room. The girl, of average height and weight, promptly plopped down on the bed with an "oomph!" as she released her grip on the luggage handle and the suitcase quickly fell over from its top-heavy weight onto the floor between the two beds. "This mattress feels even worse than last year," she commented dryly as she placed her own pillow down at the head of the bed and fluffed it up a little.

As if she was just now noticing Katie for the first time, she turned to focus her attention on her blonde roommate. She pinched part of her shirt near her pinned-on name badge to highlight her name as she said brightly, "I'm Christina. At least that's what my name badge says," she joked with a smile. "And you are…" She squinted her eyes to try and make out the name of her roommate's badge. "Katie, huh. First time here, Roomie?"

Katie stared at her bunkmate curiously; she certainly seemed comfortable here. Apparently this girl must have been here before. She nodded her head in response to her question. "Yeah," she responded. "You've done this before?"

Christina smirked as she leaned back on the bed with her hands. "Are you kidding? This is my third time! I think my parents look forward to it more than _I_ do! They get fourteen days away from me and I get to pretend I'm the greatest tennis player since Serena Williams!"

Katie had to smile at the other girl's carefree personality. "So you like it here?"

The dark-haired girl shrugged her shoulders. "It's okay," she said. "Most of the girls here are pretty nice. You always get a few with their noses up in the air who think they're more superior to everyone else. I just wait until we have the tug of war game or we go canoeing and then they either wind up in a mud pit or spitting up water after their canoe springs an unfortunate leak. That always brings them down a notch."

Katie's eyes widened in shock. "You mean...?"

Christina smiled. "I'm a lot stronger than I look – after playing tennis for so long it gives you a lot of upper-arm strength." She eyed the other girl intently. "So what are _you_ doing here?"

Katie sighed as she looked at her roommate. "My father read about this place and thought it might do me some good to get out and enjoy some_ fresh air_."

"Yeah… Sounds like the typical parent," Christina agreed. "Well, unless you become seriously ill or pitch a hissy fit, you're stuck here for the duration; they do a bed check every night to make sure everyone's accounted for." She shook her head. "Believe me, Periwinkle was right when he said he was going to be our mother _and_ our father while we're here; he's worse than _they_ are."

Katie giggled. "Periwinkle?"

Christina grinned. "Yeah… That's my nickname for him. Sometimes I call him that and act like I'm just confused about his name, but I'm not; the dork just _reminds_ me of a Periwinkle." She nodded her head at Katie's sketchbook which was lying next to the head of her bed. "What's that?"

Katie followed her gaze to see what she was looking at before she responded, "It's my sketchbook. I like to draw in my spare time; I'd like to be a professional artist one day," she said, unable to keep the sparkle in her eyes at the thought. She couldn't think of anything better than being able to make a living at something she enjoyed doing so much.

"Drawing , huh? Can I see?"

Katie hesitated for a moment, unexpectedly shy about having a stranger appraise her work, before she finally reached over and handed the sketchpad to Christina.

Her new friend flipped the spiral-bound pad open and studied the contents inside; Katie had drawn several landscapes of Britin, along with candid shots of Debbie at the diner, her father's friend Emmet, who constantly entertained her with jokes and colorful stories, her stepbrother Gus, who she saw from time to time when he came home from Canada to visit, and her grandmother Jen, along with drawings of their horses at home. She watched a little anxiously as Christina slowly leafed through the pad and examined what she had done.

"Shit! These are really good!" the girl exclaimed as she looked over at Katie, who beamed with both pleasure and relief. "They're very realistic. Are these your horses? " she asked as she stared down at the two majestic-looking animals drawn in a relaxed repose in a meadow surrounded by pine trees.

Katie nodded. "Yeah… My father and I like to ride them around the grounds back home."

"The_ grounds_?" Christina repeated with a blueblood-type accent. "Where do you live – in a mansion?"

Katie found herself too embarrassed to admit that that was precisely how she would describe Britin; she had often thought that it was way too big for just the two of them. She never did understand why she and her father lived in such a gigantic house, or what had made her father ever consider buying such a monstrous structure. It was old and beautiful, she supposed, but much too big for just her and her father. She had asked her Grandma Jen once about why her father had bought such a big house away from the city, receiving a rather cryptic explanation that he had bought it when both of her fathers were still together, but other than that her grandmother had been oddly hesitant to explain any further, merely replying that it was a personal matter. She suspected, then, that it was a painful subject for some reason and that there was a whole lot more to it than that, but she had chosen not to press either her grandmother or father about it, at least for the time being.

"No," she found herself saying, not wanting to suggest that she lived much more affluently than most. "We just have some land around it, that's all, so we can ride." She noticed that her new friend seemed to accept that explanation as she came to the last sketch in her book and her breath caught just a bit as she watched the brunette gazing at the drawing of her father.

"Who's this?" Christina asked her as she raised her eyes to look over at her curiously. "He's very handsome." She looked at Katie's face intently. "He looks like you; this must be your father."

Katie's face flushed at the realization that someone could identify who her father was by her drawing; they _did _resemble each other. She had noticed that readily when she had found the photo of him and her other father in the library that day. It was heartening, though, to know that she could draw him realistically enough that a total stranger would be able to make the connection between the two of them. She nodded her head and simply told her, "Yes, it is," not willing to really delve into her unusual family situation.

Christina nodded as she slowly closed the sketchpad and handed it back to Katie. "You're really talented," she told the other girl as she scrunched up her nose. "I can't even draw a stick figure."

Katie laughed. "Thanks," she responded softly as she gently placed the pad back down on her bed and looked over at her bunkmate; she was relieved that at least this girl seemed nice enough. "So you come here to play tennis?"

Christina nodded. "Yeah for the most part… I'm on the tennis club at school; pretty good at it, too. But I also like the hiking they have here as well as the swimming and canoeing." She indicated the sketchpad lying on Katie's pad. "I guess you're mainly here for the art classes, then?"

Katie nodded. "I guess… I've never used acrylics before and I know they offer that here. But I'm also on the soccer and swim teams at school, so I guess I'll give those a try, too."

"Ah… an artist _and_ an athlete. Well, I'm glad we're roomies, then; you'll come in handy with the team activities. Why don't I show you around the camp for a while? We've got an hour before they serve us dinner... Or at least what they try to _fool_ us into thinking is dinner."

Katie wrinkled her nose. "Is it that bad?"

Christina grinned as the two girls rose from their beds and walked over toward the still-open door. "Well, just be glad you have me for a roommate," the girl told her as they walked outside. "Because I'm going to tell you how to avoid food poisoning."

* * *

><p><em>Same Time<em>

Kaylee swept her long, thick hair out from under the bright green, sleeveless vest she was being instructed to wear, crinkling her nose up in distaste as she looked at her reflection in the compact mirror she held in her hand. The garish-looking vest did nothing to compliment the tie-dyed short sleeve tee shirt she was wearing with her jeans, and it just made her fair complexion look paler than ever. She threw her compact down in disgust next to her on the bunk, watching it bounce lightly in response against the firm mattress. "Pathetic," she murmured, suddenly missing both her soft, queen-size bed at home as well as her own room. She nervously bit on her thumbnail, wondering who she would wind up bunking with. Except for overnight slumber parties with her friends, or occasional sleepovers with her Grandma Jen, she had never spent a night away from home anywhere, especially in a room with a total stranger. Would she wind up with someone she couldn't stand and have to live with them for the entire two weeks? She supposed if things got too awful, she could insist the camp let her call home and her father would come and pick her up. But that would make her seem like a baby, and she was no little kid; she was almost a teenager! No, whatever befell her, she would have to deal with it somehow. At least there would be enough activities during the day that if she _did _wind up detesting her roommate she would only have to put up with her at night and during meals.

She caught a movement out of the corner of her eye and looked up nervously as a tall, muscular-looking light-brown haired girl came and stood in the doorway to stare at her curiously. She watched as the girl swaggered into the room and walked up to face her. "I want that bed," she said curtly in a deep voice as she threw her wheeled luggage onto the mattress Kaylee was sitting on and she jumped in response. "You go over there."

"But… But my folder was on _this_ bed…"

"So?" the other girl countered. She picked up Kaylee's folder and threw it onto the opposite mattress as she snickered, "Now it's over there. MOVE."

Kaylee swallowed a nervous lump in her throat, forcing the tears back; she was _not_ going to start crying like a little sissy, even though she was missing her father, her home, and her cats at home terribly. This was _not_ what she had envisioned when her father had talked her into coming here. The room smelled like Pinesol and lacked air conditioning, which meant she would be sweating profusely before too long; worst of all, she was going to have to endure staying in a room with a potential bully on top of it. She wordlessly rose from her bed and walked over to sit down on the opposite bunk as the other girl promptly snatched her own folder and vest from her assigned bed and sat down on the other bunk Kaylee had initially occupied.

"Can't they come up with better camp vests then these again?" the girl complained as she picked up her vest from the other mattress with two fingers as if it were a dead animal. She gazed around the 8 X 10 room that was primitively decorated with a couple of dime-store landscape scenes of a waterfall and trees; two matching wooden dressers were the only other pieces of furniture in the room besides the two twin-size beds pushed up against opposite walls. "Haven't they ever heard of changing the room décor around here?"

She glanced over at Kaylee's dresser, observing a small makeup case lying on top. The girl, who was apparently named Sandra from the name badge she reluctantly attached to her vest, snorted. "Afraid you're not going to be pretty enough when we all get down and dirty tomorrow, Princess?" She eyed Kaylee intently, raking her gaze from the girl's thick, flowing blond hair and smooth, pale skin down to the designer clothes she was wearing. "Well, we'll just see how good you look after the tug of war competition tomorrow. At least you'll get a mud bath out of it," she added with a laugh as she stood up, apparently with the intention of leaving to Kaylee's great relief. "Break a leg, doll-face," she chortled as she walked out of the cabin.

Once she was gone, Kaylee finally allowed the tears to fall as she covered her face with her hands as she sat on the edge of the bed. "I want to go home," she whispered to herself, feeling decidedly homesick for the comforts she had surrendered. Lying down on her bed, exhaustion and the excitement of the day finally overwhelmed her as her blue eyes closed and she fell into a fitful sleep.

* * *

><p><em>Same Day - Early Evening – Chicago<em>

"More wine?" Alex called from his loft's kitchen.

Justin stood at the tall windows of the other man's residence, mesmerized by all the lights of downtown Chicago winking back at him. No matter how many times he looked at the nighttime skyline of the Windy City, he would never grow tired of it. There seemed to literally be thousands of twinkling stars splayed out below him. Of course, with Alex living on the 24th floor of his apartment building – a former hi-rise hotel that had been converted to apartments a few years ago – the view was always spectacular. But as he stood there, he wasn't really concentrating on the view below him. He was more concerned with his daughter and how she was doing.

He knew Kaylee had been hesitant about going to the camp, but he had eventually talked her into it. It would be the first time he and his daughter had been separated from each other for any length of time since she had been born and he couldn't help worrying about her. Before now, any time away from each other had consisted of either a sleepover with one of her school friends, or an occasional weekend visit with his mother. She had never been out of his sight for this long, though, and he found himself inexplicably concerned for her. After all, she was still a young girl; to him, she would always be his baby, always vulnerable and always needing his protection. Sometimes he thought she was so obsessed with makeup and fashion because she felt like she could put on a different face from who she really was and escape into some sort of illusionary world. It wasn't that his daughter was unhappy or by any means unattractive – she was absolutely beautiful, even if he _was_ partial – but it was almost as if she needed to escape occasionally into some sort of make-believe world of what could-have-been. Was it because she had been brought up not knowing who her other father was? Was it because she had never really had a mother full-time to help her grow into a young woman? As he stood there, oblivious to everything and everyone around him, he fervently hoped that his daughter would have a good time at camp. Because above all, he placed her happiness above his, and it was the most important way he could validate his place in life, even above his success with his art.

God knows he hadn't been around for his _other_ daughter to make sure SHE was happy, though; that fact would haunt him forever. The only thing that comforted him was that even though he couldn't be with his other daughter, he had faith that Brian was ensuring that Katie was growing up happy, at least as happy as she could be with just one father to raise her. Did she ever think about _him_, though? Did she ever wonder where her passion for drawing came from? He liked to think she had gotten that love of art from him, but would he ever have the chance to see her and share that passion _with_ her? Would he ever get the chance to tell her that he loved her – had never stopped loving her – ever since the day she had been born? He sighed sorrowfully as he held his wine glass in his hand and he hugged his arms around his chest. Even now, after all these years, he continued to have second thoughts about what he and Brian had done, about the painful decisions they had been forced to make. Would he have done things differently if he had been given the chance? Perhaps. _But what differences did it make NOW?_ he thought scornfully. _It's too late… _Eight years – in a month, it would be exactly eight years since he and Brian had last seen each other. Where had the time gone? And why did his heart still beat faster when he merely thought of Brian's name? More importantly, why was he still in love with a memory?

He jumped slightly as he felt a pair of arms encircle him from behind and slide around his waist; he had been so preoccupied he hadn't even heard the other man's approach. He felt Alex place his chin to rest on top of his head, just like someone _else_ used to do… He closed his eyes as the memories washed over him. So many times – so many occasions when Brian had done this exact same thing with him. But he knew the feelings, the emotions he had felt by that simple action would never feel the same with anyone else.

"You didn't hear a word I said, did you?" the dark-haired man whispered above him. Alex slowly loosened his hold to turn Justin around, his dark-blue eyes staring inquisitively into Justin's as if he were trying to read his mind.

Justin smiled apologetically. "Sorry. I was thinking about Kaylee." He didn't even consider mentioning the _other_ person he had been thinking about; Alex knew Justin had been involved with someone for several years prior to their meeting, but Justin had chosen not to go into a lot of details regarding Brian. He knew it made Alex inordinately curious about this other man who had played such an important role in his life, and it also made the other man jealous. But Justin for whatever reason chose to guard the details of his and Brian's relationship close to the vest – and close to his heart, the feelings even after all this time still raw and too painful to discuss openly with his current boyfriend. He peered into the other man's eyes to explain, "This is the first time she's been away from me for more than a couple of days."

Alex gazed down into the beautiful, pale face; from the first moment he had set eyes on the artist who had created the new murals for the downtown exposition center a few years ago, he had been absolutely smitten. Not only was Justin attractive with his golden hair, blue eyes, and pale skin – not to mention his other physical attributes he was to discover more intimately later – he was passionate about his work, intelligent, and had a wicked sense of humor. The two had been introduced to each other by the CEO of the center and Alex's heart had been lost immediately. Justin had agreed to meet him for dinner the next night to discuss final plans for the design of the new exposition center being constructed and their initial friendship had slowly evolved into a deeper relationship over the years to where they now saw each other exclusively. It was a comfortable, compatible relationship that Alex had been looking for and he enjoyed it immensely. He even admired Justin for his devotion to his daughter, and he knew any future with Justin had to include her as well. It wasn't the ideal arrangement for him – he had never really envisioned being a stepfather to another man's child – but he supposed Kaylee was a decent kid and if it meant he could be with Justin, who he had fallen hopelessly in love with soon after they met – he was resigned to at least being polite around her for the sake of being with the man he was currently holding in his arms.

"I'm sure she's fine, Justin," he told his companion with a reassuring smile. "As long as they have makeup and fashion classes there, she'll be happy."

"She's not some airhead, Alex," Justin countered defensively, finding himself a little miffed at the other man's insinuation. "She's on the cheerleading squad at school, for instance; that takes a lot of coordination and skill nowadays – it's not some popularity club anymore. And don't forget – she makes excellent grades in school and wants to be a vet when she goes to college." Kaylee had two cats back at their loft; she had taken instantly to animals when she was younger, dragging Justin to the zoo every chance she got, and she had persuaded him a few years ago to adopt two kittens from the local animal shelter that she loved ferociously. Truth be told, Justin hadn't put up much of a fight when she had suggested the kittens – if it hadn't been for Brian's adamant refusal to ever let anything with fur into the loft (with the exception of fur-lined handcuffs), he would have had at least one cat well before now, so she didn't have to really twist his arm to bring pets into their home. Now he couldn't imagine life without Picasso and Dali as part of their family.

Sighing, Alex let go of Justin and brushed one long-fingered hand through his hair. "I didn't mean anything by that, Justin," he told the blond in a soothing tone of voice. "I was just joking; I know she's a very intelligent young lady." He shook his head as he placed his hands on Justin's shoulders. "I'm just trying to get you to lighten up, _Dad_," he teased softly. "She'll be fine – you said the camp had a great reputation and has never had any safety violations since it had begun operations twenty years ago. She'll have a great time, you'll see! You said you went to the same camp when you were around her age and enjoyed it." That was at least one thing Justin had volunteered about his past life.

Justin peered up into Alex's eyes contritely, realizing that Alex was only trying to take his mind off his daughter. "I'm sorry… I know you didn't mean anything by that. I know I'm being silly, but I can't help it. That's what Dads do," he explained with a small smile of explanation. "I can't get her out of my mind."

"Well, maybe I can help get your mind on something else."

Justin's eyes narrowed in puzzlement. "What do you mean?"

Alex smiled as he slowly stroked Justin's biceps. "Well, since your daughter will be gone for the next two weeks, I thought we could take advantage of that. I took this week off."

"You did?"

Alex nodded. "Yeah… I thought we could go away for at least this first week, just the two of us. What do you say?"

Justin frowned. "Where?"

"How about Canada?"

"Canada?"

Alex smiled. "Yeah… Windsor. You always wanted to see the art gallery there. We can take the firm's jet up there and see the sights. There's also the casino – we can try our luck there at the slots at night and explore the town during the day." His voice softened as he gazed into Justin's eyes. "This is the perfect chance for us to get to know each other better and be alone for little while, Justin," he whispered persuasively. "We might not have this chance again for a long time, what with our jobs and you taking care of Kaylee. It's too good an opportunity to pass up. What do you say?"

Justin bit his lip in indecision. He knew communication with his daughter would be limited while she was at camp, and he would have his cell phone in case of any emergencies. He supposed it would be a good opportunity, then, to get away for a few days with Alex; one advantage of being an artist was the ability to have a flexible schedule, so that wouldn't be a problem. So why was he feeling less than enthusiastic about the idea? He really did like Alex – the man was intelligent, driven, and responsible and treated him well. He even accommodated Justin's schedule when it came to his daughter, understanding that she had to come first. So what was the problem? Perhaps it was because there wasn't a lot of _anticipation_ that emerged from the idea of being alone for a week with Alex – it would be nice, predictable, and comfortable. Sort of like an old, well-worn shoe, he thought dryly. Was he expecting too much, though? After the fire and passion he and Brian had shared, would any other subsequent relationship ever compare? Was he being fair to Alex, comparing him to Brian? Was it realistic to expect to feel that mind-shattering feeling again with any other man? As he stared up into the familiar eyes of his lover, he decided he at least owed Alex a chance. He nodded. "Okay… Sounds good."

Alex beamed at him in pleasure. "That's great!" he exclaimed as he leaned down and placed a brief kiss on Justin's lips. He broke off their embrace to walk over toward the kitchen counter where his cell phone was located. Taking a quick sip from the wine goblet he had left next to it, he told Justin, "I'll give Rob a call and let him know I'll need the jet for this week."

Justin nodded as he, too, took a sip of wine and stared pensively once more down at the twinkling lights of downtown Chicago far below. He could hear Alex speaking animatedly to his other firm's partner about their plans as he found himself thinking back several years ago to another loft he had known well; one that looked out upon the streets of Pittsburgh below. One that had held a special place in his heart for so long – that _still _did even now. Sighing in resignation, he finally returned to the present as he turned and walked over to Alex, who smiled at him as he continued to talk on the phone. For better or worse, this was his world now – it was time he accepted that.

* * *

><p><em>Next Morning – Camp Pineland – 7:00 a.m.<em>

The shrill sound of a whistle split the silence of the early-morning hour as Kaylee bolted upright in the bed at the noise. For a few seconds, she was disoriented as she gained her bearings. As she looked over at Sandra's form huddled under her bedspread on the other bed, however, the reality of where she was hit her and she fell back onto the bed and softly sighed.

After waking up from her short nap yesterday afternoon, she had proceeded to the dining hall and had managed to fortunately strike up a conversation with another girl sitting next to her. Unlike the bully she was being forced to room with, this girl, who she discovered was named Brittany, was pleasant and friendly; at least that helped make her evening more bearable as she found herself taking a small tour of the grounds with her after dinner until it was close to bedtime. By the time she had returned to her cabin, she discovered to her enormous relief that the other girl was miraculously already asleep.

Now, as she lay there, she wondered if Sandra would ever emit another word to her; if she didn't, though, that would actually be all right with her. She had decided she would try as hard as she could to simply stay out of her way and leave her alone; hopefully the other girl would merely ignore her for the rest of the time period and she could occupy herself with the camp's activities during the day.

She heard Sandra stirring in her sleep as the bedcover rustled. She stole a quick glance over to her left, noticing her bunkmate flinging the covers aside. She closed her eyes and lay still, hoping the other girl would think she was still asleep. She could hear the other girl pulling out a dresser drawer and putting her clothes on, cursing under her breath about having to wear that "fucking, butt-ugly" vest again. A few minutes later, she could hear the thud of shoes on the floor. She heard the other girl walking over to the door to open it and was about to breathe a sigh of relief when she heard her growl, "Better get your lazy ass out of bed, Sleeping Beauty, I'm not getting a demerit for our cabin because of YOU being late! Get up!"

Kaylee gulped down a nervous lump in her throat as she slowly raised her upper body in the bed to see the other girl glaring back at her, hands on hips. Sandra huffed in aggravation and stared at her for a few seconds before she was convinced Kaylee was getting out of bed and finally turned to open the door and stomped out.

Kaylee groaned, wondering what she could do to get a new roommate. The thought of living with this ogre of a girl for the rest of camp was weighing greatly on her mind. Knowing she had to hurry, though to make it in time for breakfast, she quickly got out of bed and found her clothes to wear, frowning at the wrinkles in her linen shirt that had been folded in the top drawer. Growling about the lack of hangers and no iron in the cabin, she grudgingly put on her green camp vest and Abercrombie and Fitch jeans and hurried to slide her feet into her new, white sneakers. Quickly applying some lip gloss from a tube on top of the dresser, she pushed a brush through her hair to try and smooth it down before, huffing in disgust at the lack of proper grooming facilities, she rushed out of the cabin for breakfast.

* * *

><p><em>Two Hours Later<em>

"Listen up, girls!" Perry Winters blew on his silver whistle and clapped his hands to get the campers' attention from his place on the wooden performance stage; the camp volunteers were gathered to either side of him on the ground below, ready to lead their groups in the day's events. The raised platform, surrounded by curved wooden benches, was used for acting classes as well as the closing ceremonies at the end of the girls' stay. It also served as the coordinating point for the start of each morning's activities as it was being used today.

"I have the list of today's activities in my hand," he announced to the girls. "Earlier this morning after breakfast you all had a chance to sign up for what interests you the most; we will be breaking up shortly into groups based on what you signed up for. But first, we like to begin the first full day of activities with a little team-building exercise." He smiled at the girls mysteriously as he instructed, "I would like for you to all line up with your assigned volunteer from last night. Your leader will be taking you to the location of this exercise. When I blow my whistle, then, I want each row to break up into your assigned groups, starting with the first row to my left here."

He blew a single, short toot on the whistle as all the rows of girls stood up and the first group moved to join the volunteer that they had first encountered last night when they had been given their cabin assignments. It took approximately ten minutes before each row was disbursed to join their respective group.

Katie followed along with her bunkmate, Christina, a few minutes later as they trudged along a dirt path around the outskirts of the cabins and the dining hall; it led them toward the lake's perimeter and then wound back into a heavily-wooded area. The level pathway, only wide enough to walk single file, finally emerged into an unexpectedly large clearing ringed with pine trees. As the girls in Katie's group came to a stop, they gazed curiously at a structure in the center of the clearing: it was a similar to a wooden plank bridge, only it had the center planks missing. Below the structure was a shallow pool of water.

The girls, who had been animatedly talking during their short walk, grew quiet as they wondered what they were about to participate in. Their counselor, a tall red-head female with green eyes and freckles, smiled at them. "We're waiting for the other group to get here before we start. I'll explain to both groups what we'll be doing once they arrive."

Several seconds later, the second collection of girls arrived, speaking excitedly as they emerged into the clearing; Katie found herself standing behind Christina and two other taller girls and strained to look over their heads at the other group but from her vantage point she was unable to see anything but legs and arms.

"Listen up, Ladies!" she heard her volunteer leader, a woman in her twenties named Laura, call out to both groups. "We're going to see which group can work best together! This is not only going to involve teamwork but also strategy!" Katie noticed the redheaded woman walking up onto one side of the bridge, grasping the largest rope in her hand that she had ever seen and she groaned; this must be the infamous tug of war game Christina had mentioned to her yesterday. As if she had read her mind, her bunkmate leaned over and whispered, "Here it comes – hope you like mud!"

Katie winced; no, she could handle dirt or sand when she played sports, but she detested anything gooey or slimy, including Jello, cottage cheese, and raw chicken, but mud had to be at the top of her list. "Do we have to do this?" she implored softly to her friend.

"You want to look like a wimp?" Christina shot back. "Trust me – it's better to just take your lumps. Maybe we'll get lucky and actually win; then you won't wind up in the mud hole," she added encouragingly, trying to be optimistic but having a hard time as she glanced over at some of the chunky-looking opponents standing several feet away from them. Her eyes widened as she spied a petite girl with long blonde hair looking out of place among the larger campers; she glanced from the girl back at Katie and opened her mouth to say something before she was interrupted by their volunteer camp counselor's instructions to line up on either side of the bridge and appoint a leader for their first activity.

The two groups each chose who they hoped was the strongest and tallest of their group to lead the charge for their side as the campers walked, single-file, up to either side of the bridge. The other camp counselor – a muscular-looking, dark-haired man with a small mustache – deftly tossed one end of the thick, braided rope over to the opposite side of the bridge as a burly-looking, short-haired blonde by the name of Emily, the appointed leader of Kaylee's group, smirked at their opponents on the other end. "Get ready to take a fall, losers!" she shouted over to the other girls.

"We'll see about that!" Katie's leader, a tall, sturdy-looking blond named Jessica, yelled back. "Ready, girls?" Jessica shouted to her group as the rest of her side screamed in response. "Plant your feet as far apart as possible," she told them, having been through this exercise in previous years. "and hold on tight when they start to pull!"

Laura, the camp volunteer, held the whistle in her hand and stood to the side of her group of girls. "Get ready, everybody!" she shouted over the increasing din. "The team with the last person still standing is the winner and gets to go swimming first!" she called out as an added incentive. She glanced over at the other camp counselor to make sure his team was in place; as he nodded, she raised her whistle to her lips and gave it a loud blow; she stepped back a little farther as the girls on both groups immediately planted their feet firmly on the ground and began to tug with all their might to gain supremacy.

From her position far back in the line, all Kaylee could see were the backs of the girls in front of her. As their side of the rope lurched forward, she almost lost her balance and felt her back wrench from the struggle to stay upright. She could hear the girls in front of her yelling to pull harder; she wrapped both hands tightly around the rope and felt it burn as it began to slip out of her grasp. As she heard the sounds of campers shouting and the tell-tale, splashing sounds of the girls in front of her being thrown into the muddy water below, her hands felt like they were on fire as she tried valiantly to keep the rope from inching forward. She felt the back and forth parrying between the two groups of girls as they gained some ground and then lost it, her hearing threatening to go deaf from the excited shrieks of the opposing groups trying to maintain control over their side of the rope.

Finally, her feet began to slide forward involuntarily as she felt herself being pulled closer and closer to the center point of the bridge; she knew it would be just a matter of time before she found herself in a big, muddy, gloppy mess below as she tried to prepare herself mentally for having not only her hair soaked in mud, but all of her favorite designer clothes as well, including her brand-new sneakers.

"Hold on!" she heard a girl in front of her yell; she could still only see the backs of the girls in front of her as she tried without success to keep her feet planted on the ground. An unexpectedly strong tug of the rope from the other side jolted her, however, and she once more found herself sliding closer and closer to the pit below.

* * *

><p>"Don't let go of the rope!" Christina yelled back at Katie. "They're getting tired - we're winning!" she told her excitedly as she glanced back at her friend; she and Katie had wound up toward the end of the line, so at least they would be some of the last ones to fall in if they weren't ultimately successful.<p>

"My hands are burning," Katie shot back at her. "I don't think I can hold on much longer!"

"Yes, you can!" she admonished her. "They've only got three girls left! Pull harder!"

"I'm trying!" she yelled back as the other campers continued to shout and grunt from their efforts. "But I can't get any traction!" She knew it was inevitable that soon both she and Christina would wind up flat on their backs down in the muddy pit like two pigs writhing around in ecstasy, except she had a feeling she would not be enjoying it nearly as much as they would be.

She watched as Christina's feet slowly inched forward against her will and she slowly ticked off an estimation of how long it would take for them to reach the end of their side of the bridge. "Brace yourself!" Christina yelled to her as she felt herself dangling precipitously close to the edge. Katie winced as she watched her bunkmate hurdle into the murky water below with a distinctive splat and felt drops of muddy water splatter all over her face. She blinked the droplets out of her eyes and slowly raised her face to confront her opponent who was standing a few feet away from her on the other side of the bridge.

Sandra, who was now in the front of the line, lifted her gaze to smirk at the mousy little girl peering back at her, knowing she was no match for her strength. Her eyes widened somewhat in surprise, though, as she got a look at the other girl's face. "What the…?" She quickly turned around to look at the other girl standing directly behind her and unknowingly loosened her hold on the rope, which allowed her smaller opponent just enough time to give it a yank. Sandra's eyes flew open as she felt her feet reach the edge of the bridge and felt nothing but air beneath her. She let out a curse of fury just before her body hit the water below with an earth-shattering smack and she stood up sputtering in an attempt to get the mud out of her mouth and eyes.

"Way to go, Roomie!" Christina yelled at her in glee from her place on the ground below; she had managed to escape from the muddy water just before Sandra unceremoniously fell into the same predicament she had just experienced. "Way to go!" She stuck her tongue out at Sandra, who glared at her in hatred as she struggled to get up.

Katie risked a small smile at her friend; perhaps their fate wasn't sealed after all – it was now down to just two girls on each side. "Pull some more – you got this licked!" Christina encouraged her friend as other members of the two groups began to root for the remaining members of their team. Katie nodded as she raised her eyes to look at the next girl who was her new adversary now that Sandra had been handily dispatched. As she locked eyes with the blonde staring back at her however, her face paled in astonishment; except for the hair, she could have been looking at a mirror.

All thoughts of winning their game instantly vanished as she let go completely of the rope and promptly fell into the muddy pit below. A few seconds later, she barely escaped being hit by the force of the other girl also hurtling into the murky water with her. At that moment, however, neither girl cared about their appearance or about some silly game of comeuppance, because they were too busy staring at each other, wondering if this was real or their imagination.


	5. Twin Conspiracy

Now down to one girl on each team, the sounds of excited, shrieking voices were totally forgotten as Kaylee and Katie stared at each other dumbfounded, neither caring that they were bathed from head to foot in oozing, dark-brown mud. Even though both girls had the substance in their hair and all over their faces, there was no way to mistake their uncanny resemblance to each other.

Only the voice of Katie's roommate Christina yelling excitedly at her was enough to rouse one of the girls from their stupor. "MOVE, Katie!" the other girl cried over to her. "They're about to fall in!" The brunette had noticed that the remaining competitors were teetering on the edge of their respective side of the bridge and knew it was just a matter of seconds before both girls in the mud pit were likely hurt by the two bodies that would soon be falling on top of them. "Get up!" Christina added as she cupped her hands around her mouth, her voice high-pitched with fear as the two girls above began to lose their balance. "MOVE! NOW!"

Coming out of her frozen state of shock, Katie struggled to rise from her slippery sitting position and, using one arm to brace herself, she managed to rise to her feet. Looking up above her and noticing with alarm that the two remaining girls were about to join them, she reached down and grabbed Kaylee under one of her shoulders. "Get up!" she shouted authoritatively to the other girl as she gave her a yank and pulled her to her feet. She managed to shove them both up onto the bank just in time to avoid being hit by the two larger girls now lying in the muddy pit where they had been only moments earlier.

They heard a shrill whistle sound nearby and the female counselor's voice calling out from a megaphone, "Tie! We have a tie! Everybody to the lake for swimming!" But both girls were only vaguely aware of the other participants around them, shouting and clapping their hands over the exciting culmination of their teambuilding exercise as they rushed to head over to the lake to clean off all the now-caked mud on their bodies and their clothes.

Within a couple of minutes the voices of several preteen campers slowly diminished until the two girls were left alone in the quiet, only the occasional sounds of a nearby hawk or song sparrow permeating the unexpected stillness now. The two blondes sat almost in identical poses, each sitting with their legs bent in front of them and their hands wrapped around their shins as they stared at each other intently and contemplated this amazing, unbelievable turn of events.

At last Kaylee found her voice enough to make the obvious observation that didn't even need to be said. "You, you look just like me….except for the hair." She stood up and wrinkled her nose as the drying mud began to cake all over her skin, mourning the new shirt and jeans that were now irretrievably ruined due to their tug-of-war game. Reaching her hand down to Katie, she waited somewhat impatiently as the other girl eyed her suspiciously before she placed her hand in hers to allow her to help pull her upright.

Dropping her grasp on her, Kaylee's discomfort over being draped from head to toe in drying mud evaporated as the two girls continued to stare at each other in disbelief. How was this possible? She had heard that everyone in the world had a twin somewhere, but to have this person show up at the same summer camp at the same time she was there? What would be the odds?

"Who _are_ you?" Kaylee asked the other girl who had remained mute up until now, except for a slight grunt as she had helped her to her feet.

Katie tried to wipe her hands clean on her thighs as she stared over at the other girl who, except for the longer hair, was the spitting image of her, mud and all. "Who wants to know?"

Kaylee snorted. "We're going to play that game, are we?" she said sarcastically. "Well then I'm Taylor Swift, don't you recognize me? Who are YOU? From your haircut I'd say you're Jason Dolley, but you're not that cute."

"I look just like YOU," Katie retorted in her defense. She frowned, her annoyance dissipating the longer she stared at her mirror image standing next to her. Deciding to be truthful, she softly replied, "My name's Katie. What's yours?"

Kaylee eyed her intently, at once unable to turn away from this astounding reflection of herself but also almost afraid to acknowledge her. What was happening here? "I'm… I'm Kaylee," she whispered as she licked her lips nervously. She shook her head. "How can you look so much like me?" she wondered aloud to the other girl, who shrugged her shoulders helplessly.

"I… I don't know," Katie told her honestly. "Even your name is like mine. How did you get here?"

"My dad brought me in the car," Kaylee replied. She wrinkled her nose. "He thought it would be _fun_." She glanced down at her mud-soaked clothes and body. "Some fun. I'm having a really cool time so far."

That produced a small smile from the other girl. "Yeah… Me, too; just what I always wanted, to have mud dripping all over me." She glanced over at the path back toward the main part of the camp. "We'll have to get back to the lake soon or they'll come looking for us."

Katie nodded but neither girl seemed anxious to part. There were way too many questions floating around in their heads over this unbelievable meeting. "My dad brought me here, too; said he thought I would like the art classes here. Do you like art?"

Kaylee shook her head. "Not really. But my dad is a really good artist; that's what he does for a living."

Katie frowned. "He does? That's what my other dad does, too." She had certainly heard enough about her other father through her grandmother Jen's stories to know that the father she longed to see was a very talented artist.

Kaylee swallowed the lump in her throat; this was getting downright spooky. "You said _your other father_?"

Katie took a deep breath; here it comes. Whenever she tried to explain her rather unorthodox family situation about having _two_ fathers, most people she met either turned their nose up in disgust or thought she was out of her mind. She didn't care, though – she had gotten used to it and she wasn't ashamed of it. To her it was normal. "Yeah," she told the other girl firmly. "I have two fathers – the one I live with… And the other one I haven't seen in a long time, not since I was a baby."

Kaylee's eyes widened at that revelation. "Oh, my God," she whispered. It was just like her own story. Was it possible? This was way too much to be a coincidence. "Who're your fathers?" she asked, holding her breath for the answer but somehow already knowing what she would say. Her quest to hear the other girl's response out loud, however, was stifled as they were rudely interrupted.

"Ladies! There you are! I've been looking all over for you!"

Both girls cursed inwardly as the female camp counselor came trouncing up to them in a huff. "Did you not hear my whistle to depart earlier? All the other girls are back at the lake washing off!" The woman stared in surprise at the two brown bookends covered in dried mud; there could be no doubt these two were twins, even though this was the first time she had seen both girls together. "Now you sisters get your butts over to the lake _now_! We have strict rules where we have to account for every camper. Get going! Classes start in one hour!"

She stood there, hands on hips, until the two girls locked gazes on each other and reluctantly began to walk silently back to the camp, all sorts of questions swirling through their heads. Five minutes later, the trio arrived at the lake where the two teams of girls who had participated earlier in the tug-of-war competition were enjoying themselves in the water, relishing in the opportunity to indulge not only in washing all the mud away but also the chance to cool off under the quickly-warming sunshine.

"You have one hour of leisure time to wash off and go change your clothes afterward at your cabins before classes begin," the counselor told them as she hurried away to break up a fight occurring at the end of the boat dock. "Girls, girls!" she could be heard admonishing two other campers as she took off, leaving the girls relatively alone once more.

Kaylee turned to the other girl, desperately wanting to learn more about her, but she was prevented from speaking by another camper, who came running up to greet her roommate.

"Katie!" Christina cried in exasperation at her roommate. "I was _wondering_ where you had gone!" She turned to stare at Kaylee, who was standing next to her, and her mouth hung open as she immediately noticed the astonishing similarities; even with both girls still decorated in dried mud and sporting different hairstyles, their likeness was incontrovertible. "I didn't know you had a sister here," she stated, no hint of doubt in her voice as to who the other girl was.

Kaylee opened her mouth to reply, but as she turned to stare at Katie, she wasn't quite sure what to say. "I… I didn't, either," she finally said, unable to deny what had to be the truth – this was no doppelgänger double or mirage… This had to be her sister – her _twin_ sister. There could be no other explanation.

Katie peered back at her in tacit agreement, not understanding how it was possible for this to happen, but knowing this other girl had to be right.

Christina scrunched up her face in confusion as Katie's odd response sunk in. "What do you mean, you didn't, either?"

Katie shook her head as she turned to look at her new friend. "It's a long story; I'll have to explain later," she muttered, still trying to come to grips with what her brain and her eyes were telling her. She huffed out a frustrated breath. "We have to get cleaned up, though, before classes start, or I'm sure Periwinkle will have our hide."

Kaylee giggled. "_Periwinkle_?"

Katie grinned. "That's our nickname for him," she explained as she continued to stare at her double.

Kaylee nodded her head; there was so much they needed to talk about and she was dying to find out exactly what was going on, but for now – for just a few minutes – it would have to wait.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm burning up and my skin is itching like crazy," Katie declared. With that statement, she turned and began to run toward the lake's shoreline. "Come on!" she shouted to her sister.

Kaylee shrugged her shoulders; at this point she figured she couldn't ruin her designer duds any more than she had already. "Nice meeting you!" she shouted to Christina as she promptly ran off after her sister, her legs splashing in the waves as she rushed helter-skelter into the water. Despite her appearance, she sighed in contentment as the warm water enveloped her and she dog-paddled in place next to her 'twin.'

Katie playfully splashed a small amount of water in her face as she turned to face her.

"Hey!" Kaylee grumbled at her. "What'd you do THAT for?"

"Just trying to wash off some of the mud on your face so I can see it better," she told her as she continued to tread in place next to the other girl.

"So do I still look like you?" Kaylee asked somewhat flippantly as she quickly dipped her head all the way back into the water before coming back up again and shaking her long hair from side to side to dislodge some of the water sprinkled on her face. She eyed the other intently as she waited for her reply, but she already knew the answer.

"Yeah… Even more so," Katie told her seriously. She remained quiet for a couple of seconds before reminding the other girl, "You didn't answer my question before about your fathers."

Kaylee bit her lip momentarily before deciding she had to trust this other girl. Taking a soft breath to steady herself, she responded quietly, the excited sounds of the other female swimmers nearby fading into the distance, "The father that I live with is Justin Taylor-Kinney; my other father who I haven't seen since I was a baby is Brian Kinney." Even now, even though she hadn't seen her other father in years, just the sound of his name on her lips filled her with sadness at the thought that he was out there somewhere and she hadn't had any way of finding him. At least until now; as she looked over at Katie, something told her that might be about to change…

Katie nodded as her heart pounded; it was just as she thought – it could have been the only answer. "I know," she whispered, as her feet hit the bottom of the lake's surface and she stopped treading in the water to stare back at who she now knew for sure was the sister she didn't even know she had. How could her father have not told her about this? "They're _MY_ fathers, too." She swallowed the lump in her throat as she said, "You're my _sister_." She could barely believe it – the thought filled her with a mixture of nervousness and trepidation, along with a sense of excitement. She smiled tentatively over at the other girl, still finding it hard to believe that she wasn't dreaming this whole episode up. "_Sister_," she repeated in wonder, trying it out on her tongue as Katie nodded back at her with a soft smile of her own.

Katie asked, "Want to come back with me to my cabin so we can talk?"

Kaylee slowly nodded. "Yeah… Yeah, I would." There were so many questions that needed to be answered, so many things she wanted to know; her head was almost dizzy from the realization. But she couldn't wait to find out exactly what was going on and learn more about this unknown twin.

Katie nodded back at her. "Okay, then. Let me go get changed and I'll meet you back at your cabin in a few minutes. Which one is it?"

Kaylee hastily shook her head, imagining the two of them being disturbed by Hurricane Sandra. "No, let me come to _your _cabin," she quickly offered. "My roommate is a big bully," she explained, a little surprised that she was confiding in this relative stranger.

Katie's brows narrowed. "She is, huh?" As Kaylee nodded, she told her, "Well, we'll have to see what we can _do_ about that," she told the other girl sternly, a little surprised at how protective she was feeling toward her already. She had seen enough of that sort of behavior in school and on-line, though, to know that she didn't like it. And her grandma Jen had told her how her father – the one her sister was living with – had been tormented when he was in school because of his sexuality. No, she didn't like bullies one little bit – especially ones that involved her family, no matter _how_ new they were to her.

Kaylee's eyes widened at her sister's declaration; she didn't care for Sandra at all, but she would have never been comfortable with taking care of the problem on her own. But with her sister at her back? She pursed her lips – maybe, just maybe there was something that could be done about it. She would definitely enjoy finding out what her sister had in mind regardless, as well as deriving a certain amount of pleasure out of exacting some poetic justice on her surly cabin roommate.

"Okay, then – You come to _my _cabin," Katie told her. "I'm in Number 12 down that way." She pointed over to the left of the large meeting building as she began to lumber toward the shoreline. "I'll meet you there in ten minutes."

Kaylee nodded as she began to follow her out of the water, observing that most of the other campers had left already, also, no doubt to change into dry clothes and prepare for their selected classes or activities. As the two of them went their separate ways, Christine hurrying up to catch up with Katie, she let out an anxious breath, still not quite believing what had happened. She didn't understand any of it – how she had a twin sister she didn't know about, how her grandmother had never told her, and perhaps more importantly, how and why her own father hadn't told her that she had a sister. A _twin_ sister. How could he have kept that from her? She bit her lip as she felt the tears rising to the surface. Angrily chastising herself silently for being such a baby, she hurried toward her cabin, eager to learn more about this stranger who looked exactly like her. She was upset with her father, but there would be time later to confront him about what he had hidden from her.

A couple of minutes later, she timidly opened her cabin door, feeling a rush of relief when she peeked in to find it empty; apparently her burly roommate had come and gone already, at least she hoped so. Hurrying over to her dresser, she quickly pulled out a fresh pair of faded, well-loved Diesel jeans and a cranberry-colored tank top, looking with distaste at the camp vest still soaking wet and now lying on the wooden floor. Remembering what she had been told earlier, she finally decided to carry it with her as she pulled out a pair of flip-flops to slide her feet into and hurriedly reapplied some lip gloss to her lips. She sighed in disgust as she looked in the mirror – her face was already beginning to get splotchy and slightly red from being in the sun too much without her sun block. Quickly she opened the top drawer to find her spray sun block and spent a few seconds generously applying some all over her bare skin. Another object caught her eye in the opened drawer as she put the container back, and her heart stopped in her throat – she never went anywhere without it and this was no exception. Making an impromptu decision, she reverently picked it up and, sliding it carefully into her jeans pocket, she quickly turned to make her way out of the cabin.

A few minutes later, she found Cabin No. 12, noticing Katie standing on the front stoop, waiting for her; her newly-discovered sister was apparently as anxious to talk to her as she was. She noticed the short-haired girl wearing a faded pair of jeans, also, although baggier in nature, along with an orange and green swirl tee shirt with a peace sign prominently displayed on the front. Her face was bare of both makeup _and_ mud now as she nodded at Kaylee's approach.

As Kaylee walked up to her, she saw her dreaded roommate out of the corner of her eye – she turned to get a better look, just in time to observe Sandra give a petite, dark-haired girl with glasses a push, shoving her to the ground as she and a couple of other girls laughed at her antics. She sighed in disgust as she walked up to Katie and nodded her head over toward them. "See that tall girl in the green top? That's my wonderful roommate," she advised sarcastically. "The bulldozer."

Katie turned to stare at the tall, brown-haired girl was who now walking away from the object of scorn toward the canoes waiting down at the lake. "Figures she'd like canoeing," she observed. "She's certainly _built_ for it – like a tank with arms and legs."

Kaylee couldn't help giggling at her description as Katie grinned back at her.

"Well, I think she needs to be knocked down a peg," Katie declared, filing that promise away for a later time. For now there were much more important matters to discuss, and she reckoned the two of them had thirty minutes at best before the camp counselors would come looking for them when they didn't show up for their activities. "Come in," she said, opening the door.

Kaylee noticed the room was pretty much identical to the one she shared with Sandra as she sat on the bed opposite her sister's. She glanced over at the other bed as Katie sat down, immediately recognizing a sketchbook, very similar to what her father carried around with him all the time. "You draw?" she asked, steering her gaze back to Katie.

The other girl nodded. "Yeah… Just like Daddy does, right?" She couldn't wait to find out more about the man who she had apparently inherited her artistic skill from; for so long she had prayed for the chance to talk to him, to compare each other's works, to tell him her most fervent hopes and desires – to be a successful artist, just like she heard he was. She craved the opportunity to glean advice from him, to find out what it took to be a good artist; but most of all, she yearned for his love and his praise.

Kaylee nodded back at her. "Yeah… He's really good, too," she said, unable to keep the pride out of her voice. Despite her being upset presently with him for not telling her about her sister, she still couldn't help feeling proud about how successful and talented he was. She glanced over at the sketchbook lying closed. "Can I see?" she asked a little uncertainly, not sure what the other girl's reaction would be.

Katie licked her lips a little self-consciously, suddenly finding it important that her newly-discovered sister approve of her talent; after all, she felt like she was competing against her father's enormous skills and creativity, and it made her extremely nervous. She finally nodded in agreement as she reached over to retrieve her book and handed it to her. She watched anxiously as she observed the other girl open the spiral-bound cover and begin to slowly leaf through what she had drawn so far; there were sketches of her home – Britin, the horses she adored riding with her father, a couple tentative, quick charcoals of the camp with the surrounding pine trees and mountainous terrain, and near the end, some sketches of her fathers – both the one she lived with and the one she yearned to know.

She hear Kaylee gasp softly as she came to the one showing Justin that she had drawn. "This is _him_," she marveled as she lifted her gaze to meet her sister's. "Daddy." She bit her lip and frowned. "I thought you had never met him."

Katie shook her head. "I haven't." She stood up and walked over to her backpack lying against the dresser on the floor and plucked out the photo she had found of her two fathers that day in the library. "I used this to draw him. Dad also has a picture of him in his office at home," she explained, " and Grandma Jen gave me some pictures of him. But I like this picture better." She preferred it because it showed her two fathers the way she wanted them to be – together and happy, and it was the only photo she had of the two of them together.

Katie walked over and sat down next to her sister, the much-loved, faded photograph cradled in her hand. Kaylee's eyes widened as she stared at the old photograph. "Where did you get that?" she asked in shock, her voice breaking with emotion.

"I… I found it in the library one day. In an art book. Dad doesn't know I have it," she confessed softly, "but I had never seen a picture of the two of them together before. And they looked so happy in it," she said. "I usually keep it under my mattress when I'm at home," she went on to explain as Kaylee looked at her silently. "But I didn't want to leave it there when I came to camp." She looked down, suddenly embarrassed that she had felt the need to bring a silly photograph with her like some sort of security blanket. But in a way that's what it was – it provided her with a sort of comfort while she was here, a promise that maybe, just maybe one day, her two fathers would be together again the way they should be. That alone filled her with a sense of protection and love while she was separated from the home she knew and it made her not miss everything quite so much. As she stood there with her head bowed, something appeared just inside her peripheral line of vision and she was the one to gasp this time.

"I've had this for the longest time," she heard Kaylee whisper as she stared in stunned shock at the object in her sister's hand. "I always wondered what the rest of the picture looked like, but I was glad it at least had my other father in it so I could look at him. Now I know what the other part looks like."

It was the same exact picture that Katie had found in the library book, only it appeared to have been raggedly torn in half, with only Brian's part of the photograph intact.

Katie couldn't believe it. "Where did you get yours?" she asked as she turned to stare into her sister's eyes that were so like her own.

"From Grandma Jen," she explained. "We were going through some old family pictures one day and I asked her whether she had any of my other father. She told me she didn't have any good pictures of both of them together, but she had this one picture of him that was damaged." Her eyes clouded over with tears as she added more softly, "I asked her why it looked like that and she just got this really sad look on her face; she gave me the picture but never _did_ explain why. I guess I knew the answer already, though. Something had to have happened to cause them to break up, even though Dad told me he still loves him."

"Yeah," Kaylee murmured as she stared at the two side-by-side photos, one complete and one rendered apart, just like their fathers' relationship had been. But why? And why not tell them about each other? What purpose had that served? A sudden thought occurred to her. "You said Grandma Jen? You know about her, too?"

Katie smiled a genuine smile. "Yeah, sure…she _is_ my grandmother. I see her on the weekends a lot when I go over to visit her. She only lives about a half-hour away."

Kaylee sighed. "You're so lucky," she said. "I see her, too, but not that much. My dad and I talk to her on Skype quite a bit, though, and she comes out to visit when she can. But it's not too easy with her job and my dad's."

Katie frowned. "Where do you _live_? In another country or something?"

Kaylee shook her head as she snorted softly, her long hair flying out behind her. "Might as well, though. We live in Chicago."

Katie nodded. "How long have you lived there?"

"Most of my life. I think since our two dads split up." She got this faraway look in her eyes as she tried to recall actually experiencing life with her other father, but at 18 months old she really couldn't remember him, at least not without the photograph as a crutch. She turned to look at Kaylee. "I think I sort of remember you in a way – I can remember this other girl that I used to play with when I was really young, but my dad never told me about you. Why would he do that?"

Kaylee shook her head sadly as she stared down at the photograph of the two together, looking so young and so in love. "I don't know," she answered honestly. "He never said a thing to me about you. He never really wants to talk about Dad, either. Whenever I try to ask about him, he gets all quiet and says something like he's busy or _not now_." She sighed. "There never seems to be a good time to ask him. But I have so many questions about him." She looked at Katie wistfully. "Tell me. What is he like?"

Katie harrumphed softly. "He's strict," she told her sister. "He makes me go to bed at ten o'clock on school nights and I have to tell him where I am all the time, like I'm a baby or something." Kaylee nodded at her sympathetically, giving her the silent encouragement to go on. "And he's always asking me if I really want to play sports, like he's forcing me or something! He knows how much I like sports, though. And he gets really weirded out sometimes –he gets this strange look on his face whenever I ask him for new art supplies or if I remind him to get me a box of Cheerios for breakfast at the grocery, and sometimes when he looks at what I draw he gets this sort of faraway expression on his face." She sighed herself now. "It's like he thinks I'm always going to get hurt or something. He can be so over protective sometimes." She smiled, however, as she added, "But he has some really neat friends, though, that we hang out with, like Emmett and Debbie. They're so amazing! Emmett dresses really cool and tells the funniest jokes; and Debbie – she's so weird but in a good way; she's kind of like another grandma. She lets me eat anything I want at the diner where she works, and she takes me to movies and to soccer practice when my dad can't do it. And then there's the horses we ride back home – I LOVE to go riding with him around the grounds, it's so much fun!" Her eyes sparkled animatedly as she mentioned them – her most dearest companions in addition to her trusty sketchpad.

Kaylee's eyes widened. "You have _horses_?" She always wanted to learn how to ride horseback, but living in a condo in a concrete jungle didn't make it very convenient for owning – much less riding – horses.

Katie nodded. "Yeah… Dad bought two for us to ride. It's great!" she exclaimed, her eyes wide and expressive. "Gus rides with me sometimes, too, when he comes down to visit," she added almost as an afterthought.

Kaylee frowned. "Gus?"

"Yeah… Gus." She stared at her sister for a few seconds until the realization exploded abruptly in her head. "Oh, my God! You don't know about him?"

Kaylee shook her head in confusion. "Who's Gus?"

Katie couldn't believe it. Her own sister didn't know about _him_, either? "He's my big brother," she explained to Kaylee's astonishment. "OUR big brother," she corrected. "He lives in Toronto with his two moms, but he comes down to visit whenever he can – and I go up to see him with Dad quite a bit, too. He's a great big brother," she said with a smile. Gus always made time for her, whether it was putting up with her cravings for chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream at the local Creamy Whip, taking her to a pre-teen movie he normally wouldn't be caught dead seeing, or just window shopping at the mall there, which was huge compared to the one back home in the Pitts. He could be spending his time with his own friends instead, and even got a ribbing from them whenever he begged off hanging out with them at the local skate park or playing Frisbee golf, two of his favorite activities in the world, when he chose to just be with her – and she loved him all the more for it.

Kaylee's head was spinning – was there no end to the information about her family that she didn't know? "Brother?" She managed to utter. "Two mothers?" Was she talking about their _own _mother if Gus was their brother?

Katie nodded. "Yeah, Melanie and Lindsay. Aunt Lindsay was one of Dad's best friends in college. A few years before we were born, she asked our dad to help her get pregnant. Not the usual way," she hastily added as Kaylee blushed at the thought. "He just provided the means for it," she explained, not wanting to get too graphic. Her father had sat her down and explained it to her in enough detail that she understood the mechanics of it, but she didn't feel the need to necessarily go into great specifics about it at the moment. "So I guess he's really our stepbrother," she explained, although to her that was a minor detail; she loved her brother deeply and didn't care if they shared the same mother or not.

Kaylee couldn't believe it – she had come to camp quite apprehensive about being in an unfamiliar place and not really knowing what to expect, only to find out she not only had a twin sister but a stepbrother, too? "I… I can't believe it," she murmured to Katie. "Why? Why would Daddy not tell me about this? About us?"

Katie whispered, "I don't know." Her newly-found sister looked so confused and miserable over this incredible information that she found herself reaching over to grasp her hand in comfort; oddly enough it somehow felt natural to do so, even though they had just met. It was almost as if a part of her had been missing all this time and she had finally discovered it. "I don't know," she repeated helplessly.

"Do you remember anything about before? When they were still together?" Kaylee asked her softly.

Katie shook her head. "Not really. I think I can remember my other father holding onto my hands while I tried to learn to walk – at least I have these dreams some times that I do. And sometimes I think I can remember him singing to me." She sighed as she looked into Kaylee's blue eyes. "But that's all. I think we both look like him, though." She was quiet for a few seconds before she confided, "I want to get to know him so badly. Is he a good father, too?"

Kaylee smiled. "Yes," she said as she bit her lip; just the thought of her father made her suddenly feel homesick. "Sometimes he gets impatient with me when I take too long to get ready to go somewhere, and he doesn't always understand how I feel. But he tries to. And sometimes he's too overprotective of me, too. He makes me keep in touch whenever I'm away from home, even when I'm just staying at a friend's house. But he loves me. He listens to what I have to say and he always shows up at my cheerleading competitions no matter where they are. And he's a great cook – he makes the best homemade soups in the winter when it's so cold out! And of course he's such a good artist - he can draw practically anything! You ought to see my room!" Bowing to Kaylee's love of reading fantasy novels, Justin had drawn a giant mural of wispy, ethereal winged fairies in pastel colors flying all over one of her bedroom walls, complete with a Elizabethan-type renaissance village nestled before a range of mountains and puffy clouds. The details of the village, including numerous types of beautiful flowers, butterflies, and merchant businesses that were included, were astounding in their intricacy and imaginative flair. "He also helps me with drawings for the school newspaper. The other kids on the paper think he's great! He even draws caricatures for the students at the school carnivals."

Katie's eyes misted over as her sister described the father she longed to get to know better. "He sounds wonderful. You're so lucky."

Kaylee nodded. "What about _your_ father?" It sounded a little odd referring to her other father that way, but it was the only way she could think to say it. "He bought you horses. And you sound like you live in a wonderful house. And you get to see Grandma Jen all the time. Tell me more about him," she beseeched softly, thirsty for the same type of information as her sister. "What does he do for a living?"

Katie smiled. "Well, he owns the largest advertising agency in Pittsburgh," she said proudly. "It's called Kinnetik, named after our last name. Grandma Jen told me once that our other father had come up with the name for it."

"He did?" Kaylee asked, surprised. She had never heard this before, or even what her other father's job was. Grandma Jen had simply told her that he was a successful businessman.

Katie nodded. "Yeah… That's what she told me anyway. He works a lot of hours sometimes, but he always manages to come to all my soccer games. And we have a standing date," she said giggling. "At least that's what he calls it, every Saturday morning for our horseback rides. It's so much fun! I love our horses," she said, sighing wistfully as she looked over at her sister intently. "Have you ever ridden a horse, Kaylee?"

Her sister shook her head. "No… I've seen them at the fair a couple of times. They're huge; they kind of scare me," she admitted.

"Well, they don't scare ME," Katie told her smugly. "They're nothing scary about _OUR_ horses. They're very gentle." Noticing her sister eyeing her skeptically, she asked curiously, "Do you like animals?"

Kaylee smiled. "Yes," she verified. "My daddy and I have two cats at home – Picasso and Dali."

Katie giggled at the artsy names. "I really wanted a cat, but Dad didn't want one in the house," she told her sister. She rolled her eyes as she added, "Says he didn't want a smelly, flea-ridden beast inside," she told her sister giggling. " He doesn't really like animals, but I kept begging for one for so long he finally gave in and bought our horses."

Kaylee opened her mouth in hopes of asking some more questions, but they were interrupted by the blare of an air horn, signaling they were due to report to their first scheduled activity of the day.

"Shit!" Katie unexpectedly cursed in true Brian Kinney style, receiving a pair of raised eyebrows from her sister in response. "We'd better go," she said. "What are you doing this morning for your activity?"

"I'm going canoeing," she told her sister. "I just hope I don't get matched up with Satan's sister."

"Huh?"

"Sandra," Kaylee replied in contempt. She shuddered. "She is so mean to me," she told Katie. "I haven't done anything to her, but from the moment she walked into the cabin, she's been pushing me around for no reason. She even made me change bunks with her because even though they're just alike, for some reason she liked mine better."

Katie huffed, her eyes flashing, "Well, I think it might be time to teach this Sandra a lesson. I can take care of her."

Kaylee eyed her as if she were crazy. "Have you seen how big she is?"

Katie smiled. "Just makes them easier to shove." She stood up. "Come on, I have art class coming up. Let's go."

Kaylee nodded as she rose to join her. "What time do you have lunch?" she asked. Now that she had found out about her twin sister, she didn't want to part with her – there was so much to say and to discover.

"I have 1st lunch at 11:30. How about you?"

Kaylee smiled happily "So do I!"

Katie grinned back at her. "Good," she responded as the two bookends walked toward the cabin door. Just before she opened it, she turned to stare at her twin thoughtfully. "Kaylee?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think there's any chance our two dads could get back together? Dad told me he stills love Daddy, you know."

Kaylee shrugged her shoulders, her face sobering. "I don't know. Daddy's got a boyfriend now."

"He does?" her sister said with a sinking heart. Had he fallen out of love with her father, just as she had once feared her own dad had done? "Does he love him?" she asked softly.

Kaylee stared into the pair of identical blue eyes for a couple of seconds until, to Katie's great relief, she slowy shook her head. "I think Alex loves _him_, but I don't think Daddy feels the same way. I think he just gets lonely sometimes for company." She had no doubt that her father loved her deeply – he told her and showed her all the time in his words as well as his deeds – but she _also_ knew that he needed companionship. Her father simply had too much love in his heart not to find someone special to share his life with. She still didn't understand what had happened to separate her two fathers from each other, but this man who was trying so earnestly to win her father's heart didn't appear to be succeeding – at least not yet. And while he was civil enough to her, that was just it; there wasn't any affection or fondness for her in either his tone of voice _or_ his actions – she wasn't stupid; she knew he was simply tolerating her in hopes that it would help him win over her father. Well, as long as she was around and there was any hope at all that her two fathers could reconcile, that wasn't going to happen. And now she had an ally at her side…

Kaylee squared her shoulders and told her sister firmly, "No… I don't think Daddy loves him at all."

Katie's mouth, which began as a wisp of a smile, broke out into a full-fledged, radiant one, so characteristic of the father she hadn't seen in so long. "Good. Because we're going to try and get them back together."

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Kinnetik<em>

Brian idly played with the gold-colored pencil in his fingers like some miniature baton as he leaned back in his office chair. He should have been working on tweaking the Castle Electronics account – having been given the go-ahead by its CEO to publish some print ads for them in PC Weekly and Techno Geek magazine once he had made some minor changes – but he was finding it impossible to concentrate. At least on what he _needed _to be concentrating on, anyway. Of course, every year he had the same problem when the day of Justin's prom rolled around; he figured he would be ninety some day and it would still flash in his head the moment 12:01 a.m. occurred. Today was no exception – just like every year before, as soon as he realized what day it was, the moment that would be forever etched in his mind began as a vivid dream and persisted throughout the day in his head while he was awake.

After a fitful night's sleep, just like he did in years before he arose to take a much-needed shower and gulp down a couple cups of coffee in hopes it would sharpen his mind enough to come into Kinnetik and be productive, but of course like always his efforts were unsuccessful. Oh, he could plaster on a face of casual, professional indifference, exhibiting that slight sneer that let everyone under him know that he was the best at what he did and whatever he said went, and that nothing was different from any other day. But inside his mind would be roiling with the events of that magical, awful, fateful night, how it had cemented his feelings for Justin irretrievably in his heart and how he had finally come to grips with the amazing realization that he was falling in love with this irresistible, persistent, fiery twink despite his best efforts at avoiding it. How he had experienced the heights of exhilaration and the depths of total despair when Justin was seriously hurt. So much had transpired since that night – some things wonderful, and other things painful. If he was given the chance to start all over again and change events after that night if he knew what the consequences would be, would he do that? Would he? _No_, he decided at last. At least nothing up until he had let Justin – and Kaylee – walk out of his life, maybe forever.

"No," he whispered aloud. "I won't let that happen." At the very least he knew he would have access to Kaylee when she turned eighteen, but that was several years into the future. Why in the fuck did he ever let his damn lawyer talk him into that provision? It definitely made it more difficult to talk to Justin until then, either, although truthfully he hadn't really tried to contact him out of deference to what he thought Justin's wishes were in the matter. His ex-partner had been so angry, so hurt over what he had done – no, perhaps _sad_ was the most accurate word – that after several attempts to reach him initially, he had finally given up, depending solely upon what little Jennifer would tell him to keep track of how Justin was doing. That and the numerous rave reviews he seemed to frequently get regarding his art work. He wasn't surprised by that, though – Justin was so talented that he knew eventually it was a foregone conclusion that the rest of the world would discover that as well.

He sighed heavily, the melancholy mood permeating his office as he continued to twirl the pencil between his long, manicured fingers. "Damn it," he muttered helplessly. He could understand why his thoughts would travel toward Justin today of all days, but truthfully it wasn't just today – the anniversary of his ex-partner's bashing simply heightened his memories of all the wonderful moments they had shared together. Until Justin had entered his life, he had never experienced the emotions that he had made him feel, despite his attempts at remaining distant from them. He had never had any real role model on how you went about loving another person to where you wanted their happiness above yours, except for what he learned from Debbie, Vic, and Michael, and of course, Gus, who just seemed to naturally evoke those tender feelings in him.

No, until Justin broke through his artificial façade of indifference and apathy, no one had managed to stir such strong feelings in him before; no one before and no one since. Other than satisfying his physical urges from time to time – and never at Britin out of respect for his relationship with Katie – he had never found anyone else to give his heart, nor did he want to actually; once he had lost his heart to Justin and to their daughters, there really could be no one else who would ever rise to the same level. Justin had been his soul mate; once he was gone the light went with him. Thank God at least for Katie – she provided him with unconditional love and a reason to persevere through his gloom and self-pity. Because she _needed_ him – Gus loved him, definitely, but did he _need _him like his daughter did? No, he had Mel and Lindsay for that purpose. Katie, on the other hand, was at once a delight and joy to him as well as a painful reminder of what he had lost. He couldn't imagine living without this miniature version of Justin, though; she grounded him and made him a better person.

"Bri-an…"

"Huh?" Brian's concentration was broken by the unexpected sound of Cynthia's voice near his desk; he hadn't even noticed her coming in. "Uh.. Yeah, Cynthia," he said casually, plastering on his nonchalant, business-like visage as he slowly lifted his eyes to meet hers.

Clearly aware of what day it was, also, Cynthia pretended to not notice the faraway look in Brian's eyes as she stated, "Mr. Stewart is here for his 10:30 meeting. Shall I put him in the conference room or you want to meet him in here?"

Brian huffed out a small breath to break the tension in his shoulders. "Put him in the conference room," he decided. "I'll be right out."

As Cynthia nodded and turned quietly to leave, Brian glanced over at the corner of his desk where he kept a 4 x 6 photo that had been taken long ago showing Justin holding two small, rosy-cheeked babies swaddled in pink Power Puff girl blankets in either arm. He was looking at Brian with one of his trademark, exuberant smiles, the joy apparent in the sparkling blue of his eyes that were focused directly at him, his face radiating the deep love he felt for him. It had been – and still was – one of his favorite photos, but it evoked both joy and pain at the sight of it. Sighing forlornly, he slowly placed the pencil down and rose to join his client in the conference room.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Chicago<em>

"Ready to go?" Alex called out from the living room of Justin's brownstone. "We're supposed to be at the airport in thirty minutes." He sighed softly. Justin had gone into his bedroom fifteen minutes ago to grab some last-minute items; what was taking so long? If he didn't know better, he would get the distinct impression that the other man wasn't quite as keen on their trip to Canada as he was. He took a deep breath and counted silently to twenty, determined not to jump to conclusions or appear frustrated. He finally had convinced Justin to go away with him for a week – and without his daughter present – and he intended to take advantage of it. First, though, he had to get his boyfriend out of his apartment and to the airport. Only when they were finally safely nestled inside his company's private plane would he breathe a little easier and be assured that Justin wouldn't back out.

Justin had seemed to be preoccupied all through their dinner last evening, supposedly fretting over Kaylee being away from him for an extended period of time, something that had never occurred before. But was that all there was to it? If it was, why did he feel this knot of dread in his stomach? He couldn't pinpoint it, but there was something else bothering Justin; he could sense it. And Justin never _was_ very good at masking his emotions – normally you could read them all over his beautiful face; no, something else was bothering him. Whether he would reveal what it was to _him_, though, was open to debate. As he tapped his foot slightly in an effort to calm himself while he leaned against the living room wall, he decided for now it was best not to press him. Once they were alone, however, perhaps there would be time to delve into his thoughts and find out what was really going on.

Just then he heard Justin respond, "I'll be right out," and, resigned to waiting a little longer, he finally plopped down on the overstuffed, beige couch to wait for him, idly fingering the strap of his suit bag. He figured Justin might wonder why he was bringing such dressy clothes with him on the trip, but he had at least one very special dinner in mind for them once they got to Canada. He only hoped the dinner would go the way he planned… That would be up to the other man, though, the one that he was anxiously waiting for. He glanced down at his Rolex. "Come on, Justin," he implored softly. "Help me out here."

* * *

><p>Justin scooped up his toiletry kit from the bathroom vanity and did a quick perusal of the bathroom to make sure he wasn't forgetting anything. Satisfied he had everything he needed there, he walked out into the master bedroom to do a quick sweep of that room as well. He covered his mouth as he let out a huge yawn; he had tossed and turned all night long and had gotten at best only a few hours sleep. It hadn't been that long ago that he could perform adequately on only a few hours sleep and just simple adrenalin, at least when he and Brian had been together.<p>

He sighed at the thought of his former partner. That had mainly been the reason why he couldn't sleep last night. Thoughts of him – the two of them – kept swirling around in his head, even though the reason behind it remained off limits to him. Oh, he knew well that it was the anniversary date of his prom that Brian had wound up attending, and he certainly knew the subsequent events that had transpired afterward, but the actual dance he and Brian had performed together – and the whole wonderful, amazing experience between the two of them, at least before Hobbs had stepped into the picture – remained closed off like some impenetrable, emotional wall. The seemingly perfectly choreographed dancing, the looks of yes, _love_ that passed between them – at least in Daphne's opinion – and the hot, scorching, fuck-you kiss they had shared on the dance floor; all that remained simply someone else's memory, not his. Not his to cherish or his to mourn – it simply wasn't there. That didn't mean he could forget about it, though, at least not forget about what it had been like to be with Brian all those years, to be happy and in love with him. That is, until that terrible day it all came crashing down at his ex-partner's office. He shook his head and bit his lip, determined to force all of that from his mind. He and Brian were over; Brian was his past. The man waiting somewhat impatiently for him out in the living room was now his future, and he owed him at least the courtesy of his full attention.

Taking one more look around the room, then, he hurriedly picked up his suit bag and small suitcase and walked out of the bedroom toward the living room. As he came into Alex's line of sight, he met the other man's gaze and smiled at him apologetically. "Sorry," Justin told him sheepishly, his hair somewhat tousled from rushing around. "I wanted to make sure I had everything I'd need," he explained.

Alex nodded as he felt his heartbeat quicken; even in his slightly annoyed state, he still couldn't help thinking how fucking beautiful this man was. Justin had this habit of making him forget why he was aggravated with him whenever he entered the room. Despite himself, he found himself smiling back at him reassuringly. "It's okay," he told Justin softly as he rose from the couch. "But we really need to go. The pilot will be waiting for us, and he gets antsy if you show up late." Of course, the fact that Roger, their pilot, was so fastidious about time schedules was what made him such a great pilot, too – the man was anal about not only his scheduling but also his recordkeeping and jet maintenance.

Justin nodded as he walked up to Alex. "I'm ready," he told him as Alex picked up his own suitcase and bag. As the two of them turned to go, Justin's gaze swept over the brownstone one last time before, with a resolved exhale of breath, he followed the other man out.

* * *

><p><em>Early Afternoon – Camp Pinewood<em>

"Where did you _get_ that?" Kaylee asked her sister as they sat inside Katie's empty cabin; the other girl had managed to persuade her roommate to sneak into late lunch rather than the early session, explaining that she had something important to talk to her sister alone about – which was the truth. She just neglected to tell the other girl that until today, she didn't even know she _had_ a sister. Now, however, they had some extremely pressing business to take care of.

Katie held up the simple camera cell phone in her hand. "Shh," she warned her as she grabbed her arm. "Keep it down! You want someone to hear us?" The windows were presently open to allow some of the nice lake breeze to blow in; without any air conditioning, keeping the windows open to circulate air on the less hot and humid days was the best option for comfort.

"No," Kaylee whispered softly as she glanced over at the front windows to make sure no one was peeking in. She stood up and hurriedly walked over to close the gauzy, sheer curtains to provide them with some privacy before turning around to face her twin. "You know that's against the rules."

Katie shrugged. "So? You think I was going to be stranded out here with no way to make a call just in case I hated the place? Besides, I wanted some way to take pictures of different things so I could use them to draw from later. As long as I don't get caught, what's the big deal?"

"You could get _thrown_ out, that's the big deal!" Kaylee hissed fretfully. She had just met a sister she didn't even know she had and didn't want to jeopardize being separated from her again. She had no idea how they would stay reunited with both of them living so far apart, but now that she knew about her she was intent on never letting her go again.

Katie smiled at her. "I'll be careful," she promised. "I keep it inside my backpack when there's anyone around. Christina won't tell on me," she assured her. "We need this anyway."

Kaylee frowned. "What are you up to?" she asked. "Are you going to call our Dad?"

Katie snorted. "No way. We need a plan first. But I DO know someone that I think might help us."

"Who?" Kaylee asked curiously. "Our mom?" Their mother was a good friend of her father's and certainly must be familiar with her other father as well, so she might be a logical choice. But could they be sure she would support the idea of trying to bring both fathers back together?

"That might be an idea," Katie responded. "But not just yet. First things first." She quickly punched in a number as her sister stared at her intrigued. Her unspoken question was answered soon afterward as her sister greeted the person on the other end.

"Grandma? It's Katie. I need to talk to you."


	6. Is It Too Late?

_Debbie and Carl's House – One Hour Earlier _

"Ma…"

"Come on. Just one more, Honey, or I'll just have to throw it out!" Debbie leaned over her son's plate at the round, Formica kitchen table, poised to slide the last pancake onto his plate, even though Michael had already eaten four of them already.

Michael rolled his eyes in barely-restrained irritation. "I'm stuffed, Maw!" His mother pursed her lips tightly together as if she had been severely insulted for several seconds until her son sighed in resignation, knowing this was a fight he couldn't win.

"All right, all right," he grumbled at last as his mother smiled and deftly tilted the platter to plop the still-warm pancake into her son's plate. She promptly placed the empty platter down on the table in an empty spot as she took a seat opposite her son, automatically pushing him the plastic bottle of imitation maple syrup over to his side of the table as he took a stab of butter out of the tub with his knife and began to slather it on top of the pancake.

"So business has been good lately at the shop?" Debbie asked. She was actually enjoying a little quality time with her son; Carl had already gone to the police station a few hours earlier, and she wasn't scheduled to come to work at the diner until around 11:00 for the lunch crowd.

She eyed her son with concern, wondering if he had lost some more weight. Ever since Ben had died a few years ago, unable with his weakened immune system to combat the pneumonia he had unfortunately contracted that winter, she had watched her son plunge into a severe depression. It had taken at least a year afterward, mainly with Brian's help, before her son had finally emerged from his grief and morphed into a semblance of his former self. Thank God he had had his comic book and collectible shop to occupy his time with; if he had not been kept busy keeping his livelihood afloat, and hadn't had his best friend's companionship and support to lift his spirits, Debbie hadn't been sure if the sensitive, caring son she had known previously would ever re-emerge; but he had, and for that she was thankful. She knew Michael had loved his husband deeply, and she knew his and Ben's son Hunter tried to bolster his spirits as much as could from his remote location in Florida, but it wasn't easy to do being so far away. Michael, though, had insisted Hunter had his own life and he didn't want him disrupting that; he was now married to a wonderful woman who was as passionate about helping others as he was (Hunter was now a full-fledged social worker specializing in helping teen runaways and his wife was a child psychologist), and they now had a baby on the way. Michael adamantly told him that he did not want him negatively affecting his own life just to help him cope with his own problems.

Debbie had to give Brian credit, then; he had been instrumental in eventually pulling her son back from the brink of emotion desolation. Actually, she always knew deep down there was a loving, sensitive side to her 'second son' – she had certainly seen it from time to time where Michael was concerned and it had definitely surfaced clearly when Justin had come into the picture – but once he and Justin had gone their separate ways, she had been afraid that the old Brian would come back with a roar – the one with the cavalier, outward, _I-don't-give-a-fuck _attitude; the one that seemingly only cared about himself and his own personal pleasures. It appeared, though, that between Justin's influence on him and subsequently having to take care of his new daughter on his own that Brian had matured for the better. From what she had gleaned from Michael and from the conversations she overheard between the gang at the diner, Brian only occasionally went out now to go clubbing, to Woody's, or to any of his other typical hangouts; it seems that his daughter took up a lot of his time and amazingly he seemed to be quite willing to sacrifice his own interests in deference to her. In essence, Brian had actually become a responsible parent, even though there was never any real doubt that he loved his daughter deeply, as much as he did Gus. He actually showed up at her sporting events for school, and was known to even – heaven forbid! – attend the occasional father-daughter dances there. Debbie still found it hard to believe how much Brian had changed, but in her opinion he had certainly become a better man for it.

It hadn't _all_ been good that had resulted over the years, though, because she had _also_ noticed some of the light in Brian's eyes go out the day that Justin and Kaylee had left. Oh, he maintained the stoic upper lip he always did – outwardly acting like it was no big deal, that their relationship was doomed to fail eventually anyway, but Debbie knew better. She could see it in Brian's face when he thought no one was looking and she could hear it sometimes in the soft sighs he breathed out when he thought no one could hear; fortunately, however, having to take proper care of Katie had managed to prevent him from falling back into his old destructive cycle of drugging, drinking, and fucking; she would still catch glimpses even now of the swaggering, moody and irritable side of Brian at the diner from time to time, but he never seemed spaced out on E or smashed out of his mind on Beam anymore. He didn't leer openly at every semi-attractive trick possibility that entered the diner like he used to do, and from what Michael had told her, he rarely even visited the backroom of Babylon anymore; that is, when he took the time to go there, which he now did infrequently and only when his daughter was visiting Justin's mother or having a sleepover with a friend. The way the 'new' Brian handled his pain and loneliness so differently now could only be attributable to his adorable daughter who both she and Brian absolutely doted upon. Of course, it was also ironic that the beautiful girl had that effect on her father because Katie was the spitting image in so many ways of her biological father – same button nose, same lips, same eye color, even the same blinding smile when she was delighted with something, and almost the same golden-colored hair, just a shade darker than Justin's, no doubt due to Daphne's influence. Debbie actually felt sorry for Brian sometimes, because despite hearing what he had done to Justin to drive him away, not only had he lost the only man he loved but he constantly had to live with the painful reminder of it every day when he looked at his daughter.

"Ma… Did you hear what I said?"

Debbie started as she realized she had been holding onto her coffee mug and staring off into deep space for several seconds; she looked over sheepishly at her son. "I'm sorry, Honey… I was just thinking about something. What did you say?"

Michael huffed out a small breath of aggravation as he stabbed a couple bites of the pancake with his fork and lifted it to his mouth. "I was saying that the workers should be able to start the expansion into the old corner food mart next week. Isn't that fantastic?" The small store, a staple of the Liberty Avenue area for several areas, had finally fallen victim to the poor economy and the ability of the big-box grocery chains to undercut its prices and had been forced to close about six months ago. The store owner's loss, however, had been Michael's gain, because he had been cramped in his rather small space for a couple of years now next door and had desperately been seeking more room. The ability to buy the adjoining property for a song had been a fortuitous happenstance – the owner wanting a fast closing on a sale – and he had jumped at the chance to buy it before it even officially went on the market. He had had to take out a small mortgage loan to afford the purchase, but he was confident that at the rate his business was going and the added sales he was hoping to generate from the expansion he would be able to keep up with the monthly payment easily.

"That's great, Honey!" Debbie exclaimed excitedly as she reached over and gave her son's shoulders a delighted squeeze. "I'm so fucking proud of you, Michael!" She studied the beaming smile on her son's face and was amazed with the transformation. He really _had_ changed in the past year; gone was the constant sorrowful, hound dog look on his face since Ben had died; there had been some sort of transformation in Michael lately for the better. She couldn't quite put a handle on what had happened – whether it was the excitement over expanding his business or he was just simply coming normally out of his depression at last – but she was thankful for the dramatic improvement because she finally had her old son back. "You sound like my old Michael again," she observed aloud as she stared over at him. "I've missed him. What happened to change you? Is it because of the shop?"

Michael smiled back at her mysteriously. "Oh, that's part of it," he told her as he picked up another bite of the pancake. "Let's just say that things are looking up and I'm seeing my life in a new light now."

Debbie frowned. "What the fuck does _that_ mean, Michael? _Seeing your life in a new light_? Sounds like Em when he thought he needed to go straight – you're not going to tell me the same thing's happened to YOU, are you? Have you 'seen the light'?"

Michael snorted and shook his head as he laughed. "No way, Maw… Please, it's nothing like that; you might even say it's just the _opposite – _I am completely and utterly gay as the day is long." He stood up as Debbie opened her mouth, prepared to ask another question; now she was _really _confused as well as curious.

"What does THAT mean?"

Her son shook his head in dismissal as he wiped his mouth with his maroon cloth napkin picturing a rooster on it before he hurriedly scooted back from his chair and placed it down on the table. Picking up his orange juice glass to take a last, quick gulp, he leaned over and placed a quick kiss on his mother's cheek. "I gotta go, Maw," he said as he rushed toward the door, leaving his mother's question unanswered. "I'll see you Sunday for dinner."

"Michael…" Debbie called to her son, but the screen door had already banged open and he was out the door. _What the fuck_? She shook her head as she, too, rose from the table and began to carry the dishes over to the sink just as her garish-colored, banana yellow wall phone rang nearby. Placing the two breakfast plates into the warm, soapy water she had already run earlier, she wiped her hands on her crocheted dish towel before walking over to pick up the phone. "Hello?"

"Grandma, it's Katie. I need to talk to you."

Debbie's face broke out into a delighted smile of surprise. "Katie! Sweetheart! How _are _you, Honey?" She was so glad that Brian had made her his daughter's 'unofficial' second grandmother; it filled her with such pride to be accorded that honor and she had instantly fallen in love with the adorable, beautiful miniature version of Sunshine when she had first laid eyes on her. Of course, she deeply missed both Justin and their other daughter, Kaylee, too. Not a day had gone by that she hadn't thought about them. At first, it had hurt her deeply when Justin had cut off all ties to her; she had thought of him as one of her sons and loved him just as much as if he were her own blood, as well as her other missing 'granddaughter,' and it had felt just like a part of her arm had been cut off when Justin and Kaylee had left town. Jennifer had eventually explained to her, though, that Justin thought it was best to make a clean break with his old life, except for keeping in touch with his mother, even though it pained him greatly to do so. He had, though, raised no objection to Jennifer keeping her apprised of how he and Kaylee were doing, and he had told his mother that he hoped one day he could be free to return to the Pitts to see everyone he loved and missed. Jennifer did her best to show Debbie through videos and photos how Justin and Kaylee were doing, and while it helped ease her pain somewhat, she still couldn't quite forget the young man whose smile would light up a room and whose sweetness and passion for life would energize everyone he came into contact with.

She thought back briefly to when Justin and Brian had first brought the girls into the diner to show her the day after they had been born; they had been so fucking proud and overjoyed by the birth of their two beautiful daughters and couldn't wait to show her. Each man had been tenderly holding one of them cradled in their arms, both wrapped up in identical pink knit blankets, only their shock of sun-kissed blond hair poking out from under their matching pink caps. Both Brian and Justin had had these wondrous looks on their faces as if they were still coming to terms with the fact that they were the proud, new fathers of two baby girls, but they also had these soft, loving looks on their faces as they each leaned down to kiss their new babies' foreheads and hold their faces against their own cheeks as they breathed in the fresh, sweet scent that only newborn babies seemed to have. It had been so touching, seeing how deeply affected they had been and how much in love they were as they looked into each other's eyes and smiled. How had all of that gone so horribly wrong?

She soon had discovered the reason why, though after the separation – Michael had eventually told her what had happened. She would never really understand how Brian could have risked everything and reverted back to his old habits – she knew how deeply he loved Justin and how happy he was to be by his side as they waited anxiously for news about the births of their twins, and he had been so wonderful as a new father to both girls, taking them for walks in their stroller and from what Michael had told her, even taking turns with Justin feeding, bathing and changing them. How could he have thrown that all away for just another nameless fuck? She would comprehend how he could do that – she only knew that that one, seemingly minor indiscretion had cost Brian something very dear to him – something he apparently would never get back. On the outside around others, Brian seemed the same as always – assertive, confident, and even a bit cocky when it came to business and to his impeccable looks; still dressed to the nines and at the top of his game when it came to advertising. But in his eyes, in the poet's windows of the soul, she could tell – he was a broken man now. She turned her attention back to her granddaughter as she heard her reassure her, "I'm fine, Grandma, but I need your help."

Debbie frowned as she suddenly remembered where she was and her blood ran cold with fear. "Honey, are you at camp right now? Where was it – yeah, somewhere up in the wilds of Michigan. Your grandma Jen told me you wouldn't have access to a phone unless there was an emergency. Are you all right? Were you not able to reach your father? What's going on?" The words came out in a torrent of concern.

"I'm fine, Grandma," the girl assured her again as Debbie crossed herself in relief. "It's just… I needed help and I wasn't sure where to turn."

"What _is_ it? You can tell me. It must be pretty important if you're not supposed to be using a cell phone up there. How are you calling me, in fact, if you don't have access to a phone?"

She could hear a soft sigh from her granddaughter. "I… I sort of stashed my cell phone away in my suitcase before I left," she admitted before hastily explaining, "Just in case I needed it. And right now, I really need it. But first you have to promise me that you won't tell Dad what's going on."

"Well, I can't do that, young lady, until you give me some idea of exactly what we're talking about," Debbie responded emphatically. She didn't want to be a tattletale when it came to her granddaughter – the two of them had shared many a secret among themselves, just the two of them; after all, there were some things that were best left said among girls. She knew at Katie's age that telling her father about such things as being concerned over needing her first bra or being worried about one of her friends not liking her anymore was best kept between just the two of them. And truth be told, it made Debbie feel special to know that her granddaughter felt comfortable confiding in her, and she would never want to lose that sense of trust between the two of them. But on the other hand, there were some issues that arose from time to time that Brian, as her father, needed to know. Without knowing any details, then, it was hard to make that promise to Katie sight unseen.

"Katie, Honey, I want to help you," Debbie began softly. "But if you're in some kind of trouble…"

"No, Grandma, I'm _not_ in trouble," the girl maintained as she sighed heavily. "Please, though, promise first that you won't tell Dad what I'm about to do; it's for his own good, I promise. You'll see."

Debbie bit her lip in thought over her granddaughter's intentional hedging; she trusted her granddaughter – she was a good kid; to his credit, Brian had raised a self-sufficient, independent, albeit sometimes headstrong daughter, much like _he_ was. And she had proven to be responsible – she took care of their two horses by herself, for instance, faithfully performing her weekly grooming and feeding chores her father had given her; Debbie didn't have any reason to doubt her words. Was it a good idea, though, to make a promise on something she knew nothing about? Deciding she had to take a leap of faith, though, she finally responded, "Okay, Honey, I promise. But _only_ if it won't hurt you or be dangerous in any way."

Katie breathed out a sigh of relief as she glanced over at her sister sitting next to her on the bunk bed. "I promise, Grandma, I promise," she vowed softly. "It's nothing like that."

"Okay, then," Debbie answered as she leaned her right shoulder up against the wall nearby and restlessly played with the cord of the phone; she cocked her ear when she thought she heard someone whispering to Katie over the phone. "Is someone there _with_ you?" she asked sharply. "Katie? Your Grandma Jen told me cell phones were prohibited up there – if someone catches you using it…"

Katie sighed again, deciding to take the direct approach. She placed her hand firmly over the receiver portion of the phone as she held it out to her sister. "Here… Say something. It's Grandma Debbie."

"What? You mean the red-haired weirdo?" Kaylee shook her head nervously as she held out her hands in a defensive posture.

"Katie? You'll have to repeat what you said – I didn't hear you."

"Not YOU, Grandma," Katie told her as she uncovered the phone's lower portion and spoke up. "Hold on a minute." Debbie shook her head as she heard a rustling noise on the other end. _What in the fuck? _

Kaylee's eyes widened in dread when Katie looked over at her expectantly as she continued to hold the phone out to her, her hand wrapped around the lower end again so Debbie wouldn't overhear. "What do I _say_?" she asked her sister. "I don't even know her."

"Well, you're going to soon," her sister told her emphatically. "Just say hello."

"But…" What was her sister talking about – _she was going to soon_? She had just met Katie and now she was wanting her to talk to a grandmother she had never ever met?

Katie's eyes flashed impatiently; _they had no time for this_! In less than an hour they were due back at the activity center or someone would come looking for them and then they'd _really_ be in trouble. "Just _do_ it," she commanded as she shoved the tiny phone against her sister's chest, "We're running out of time!" She bobbed her head at her in encouragement and waved her free hand out in front of her as she hissed, "Go on – say _something_, ANYTHING for crying out loud!"

Kaylee took a deep breath as she slowly raised the phone to her ear. She cleared her throat and looked over at her sister who rolled her eyes in aggravation. "Hello?" The one word greeting came out raspy and tentative as she cleared her throat. This time her next word was a little louder and clearer. "Grandma?" She held her breath as she waited for the stranger on the other end to respond.

She didn't have long to wait as the woman's voice boomed loudly back at her. "Katherine Elizabeth Taylor-Kinney! What kind of game are you playing here? Now I want to know exactly what is going on up there or I'm going to call your father right now and tell him what you're doing!"

"No, Grandma, don't do that!" Kaylee pleaded, a little startled by the intensity in the woman's voice; she certainly had no problem hearing her loud and clear, and from the expression on her sister's face, neither did she. She was fortunately spared having to try to explain to a total stranger exactly who she was when her sister grabbed the phone out of her hand.

"Shit," Katie muttered in disgust. "Let me have that!" She quickly brought the phone up to her ear. "Grandma, that wasn't me just now," she tried to urgently explain, realizing at once how crazy that must sound, though.

"Excuse my French, young lady, but what in the fuck is going on there? You've got thirty seconds to give me a reasonable explanation before I hang up and call your father!"

"Grandma, listen to me…" Katie huffed in desperation; sometimes her grandmother was so quick to jump the gun and she was beginning to wonder if her plan – and getting Grandma Debbie involved with it – was a good idea or not. "Just give me a minute and I'll tell you… Okay?"

There was several seconds' pause where Katie wondered if her grandmother was still there before finally she heard her say, "You got one minute, Katie."

Katie placed her cell phone on speaker mode and held it slightly away from her face so Kaylee could hear the other side of the conversation clearly; her sister bit her lip anxiously as she simply said, "It's about Kaylee... My _sister._" Katie thought the word 'sister' still seemed a little odd rolling off her tongue as she said it aloud; even now, even with Kaylee sitting next to her and looking almost exactly like her, it was still hard to believe she even HAD a sister. She heard a gasp on the other end followed by an expletive, however, and knew without a doubt that there could be no question about whom this other girl was; her grandmother had just confirmed it.

Debbie's breath caught in her throat. _Kaylee_? "My God," she whispered back once she had regained her speaking voice. "Honey, you know about Kaylee?" Her hand gripped the phone's receiver so tightly her knuckles were white from the effort as she turned and walked over to a nearby kitchen chair for support. Pulling it out, she slumped into it as her granddaughter's words began to make more sense. "Are you trying to tell me that Kaylee is there at CAMP with you? THAT'S who I was talking to just now?"

Katie felt her sister place her hand on her upper leg as she leaned it to listen to what her grandmother was saying. She turned to give Kaylee a reassuring smile as she nodded, even though she knew her grandmother couldn't see them. "Yeah," she said. "That was Kaylee."

"Sweet Mother of…" Debbie muttered, her mouth agape at the knowledge she had just spoken to her _other_ granddaughter she hadn't seen in over eight years. "How?" she managed to inquire. "How did this happen?"

"That's a good question," Katie replied curtly. "We just found out about each other this morning. Dad flew me up here and Daddy brought Kaylee here in their car. I have no idea how they both managed to come up with the same idea, though; somehow I don't think it was intentional. Neither one of our dads said anything about the other sister being here. This can't just be a big coincidence, though," she stated firmly. If both of their fathers had gone to great lengths to hide their existence from each other all this time, why would they wait until now for them to find out on their own? It just didn't make sense they would do that.

Debbie was in shock; how many times had she thought of just this moment when the two girls who had been separated at such a tender age were reunited again? She had prayed so hard for this day, so very hard. But every time she had, she had also envisioned both the girls AND their fathers together again as one big, happy family, kind of like when Brian and Justin had proudly brought them into the diner that first day. She had never envisioned it happening _this_ way, though. She tended to agree with Katie; she couldn't imagine after all this time that Brian and Justin had set the girls up to meet; that just didn't make sense to her at all. Besides, Jennifer had told her how they were bound by their custody agreement not to divulge the other girls' existence until they were adults.

"No, I don't think it is, either," Debbie replied, shaking her head incredulously. "My God. I still can't believe it! Both of you together… Well, I know maybe I shouldn't say it, but I for one am _glad_ you know about each other now; no sisters should be separated from each other, I don't care WHAT happened."

Katie turned to stare at her sister, who nodded; it was as if the two were reading each other's minds as Katie asked the question they both wanted to know so desperately. "What _did_ happen, Grandma? Why _were_ we never told about each other?"

Debbie closed her eyes and placed one manicured hand up to her mouth; damn it. She shouldn't have said that; she should have known that would be the automatic follow-up question. Now she really felt like she was in a quandary. She hated the two girls being separated as much as she hated the idea of her two boys being apart, because she knew deep down that both stubborn men still loved each other; a love as deep as Brian and Justin had shared couldn't have been rendered apart that easily. And she hated having to be evasive; she and Katie's relationship was built on brutal honesty between the two of them – her granddaughter was comfortable coming to her with subjects that little girls didn't always feel comfortable talking about with their fathers. But when all was said and done it wasn't her place, either, to disclose the reasons behind their breakup to their daughters – that was their fathers' job.

She took a deep breath before replying, "Katie, Honey, I wish I could tell you. I do know some of the reasons why, but it's not for me to say. You need to hear that from one of your fathers. I'm sorry, Sweetheart, I really am. You can ask me anything else and you know I'll give you the God's honest truth, but this is between you, your sister, and your very headstrong and bullheaded fathers."

Katie groaned in frustration and aggravation. "But why, Grandma? You've always been honest with me – at least I _thought _so. How could you hide this from me – from Kaylee?"

Debbie closed her eyes as she sat at the table, her elbows propping her up, the painful question hard to hear. She could understand why Katie was so upset; this was a huge secret to keep from her. She had hated having to do it, but she felt she had no choice. "Honey… It's complicated. I want to tell you and Kaylee everything, I really do. I _hated_ having to keep that secret from you. But I made a promise to your Dad that I wouldn't tell, and there's a good reason why no _one_ could." She sighed sorrowfully. "I know that's not a great explanation. But when your father talks to you I'm sure it will make more sense. You haven't talked to your father about this yet?"

"No," Katie told her, glancing up over the door at the clock; they were quickly running out of time and she hadn't even gotten to the real reason why she had called her grandmother. Of course, when she dialed her number she didn't realize how much it would all hurt – the fact that such a big secret had been kept from her and her sister all this time. She took a deep breath before she responded, her voice full of resolve, "But you can bet that I _will_ be." She glanced over at Kaylee before continuing. "If you can't tell us the reason why we weren't told about each other, or why our fathers broke apart, the least you can do it try to help us all get back together then."

Debbie's eyes widened. "Get back together?"

"Yeah. Will you help us, Grandma?"

There was a pause on the other end. "I don't know, Honey… How do you think _I_ can help? Your father never wants to talk about your other Dad; it's too painful for him, even now."

The two girls shared a mutual look as if they were again reading each other's minds before Katie asked the question she was almost afraid to ask, but they had to know. "Grandma – do you think Dad still loves my other Daddy?" Kaylee reached over to take Katie's free hand as the two intertwined their hands together tightly for support as they waited for Debbie to answer. She knew what her father had told her on the plane, but she had to make sure.

They heard the woman huff out a breath; both girls sighed with relief as they heard her say, "Yes, Honey. I _know_ he does. I know your father and I know Justin, and I know he's never stopped loving him."

Kaylee smiled through the tears forming in her eyes as they heard what they desperately needed to know. Katie smiled back at her sister and nodded. "Well, Kaylee thinks Daddy never stopped loving _him_, either. So you have to help us fix everything."

Debbie grasped the front of her red, short-sleeved t-shirt inscribed with the words _Proud as A Peacock_ _PFLAG Mother_ nervously as she said, "Let's say I agree to help you 'fix everything.' What exactly do you have in mind?"

Katie took a deep breath and let it out in relief as she glanced over at her sister. "Okay, here's what I need for you to do." Kaylee beamed a smile at her in return as her sister began to explain their plan.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Windsor Suites Hotel <em>

Alex watched quietly from a rust-colored, overstuffed, antique Queen Anne chair as Justin stuck the tip of his tongue out in concentration , his hand slowly flying back and forth over his sketchpad; the hotel room was situated in a busy intersection of Windsor, overlooking a variety of small, unique artisan shops and a large park with massive shade trees, a circular cement walking trail and a huge bronze fountain with massive lions' heads spouting gushing water out of their open, sharp-toothed mouths that was located in the middle. Justin was sitting on a window seat in their suite overlooking the picturesque view, making a preliminary sketch for possible use later as an eventual painting. As Alex watched him draw, he found himself fascinated by how Justin could take practically anything he had seen and make a virtual masterpiece out of it no matter what it was. It was the other man's determination, passion, and drive that he found quite attractive in addition to Justin's obvious physical qualities when they had first met.

As if he could feel Alex's gaze on him, Justin stopped what he was doing and raised his head to peer over at the other man, who smiled at him softly. He started to return his smile before he shook his hand slightly all of a sudden, wincing as he realized he had overused it; it was beginning to throb now as he stretched his fingers apart and then closed them into a fist, trying to put some more circulation back into them as he attempted to ease the cramping spasms shooting down his fingers and into his wrist. "Fuck," he muttered as he balled his hand tightly together and cradled it with his other, unaffected one.

Alex gazed at him sympathetically from a few feet away, feeling helpless to know what would ease Justin's pain. His boyfriend had told him the basic details of why his hand acted up occasionally; he couldn't help feeling a stab of resentment that Justin's ex had been at least the indirect cause of his boyfriend's pain each time Justin suffered as a result of it. Of course, Kinney remained the white elephant in their relationship no matter _what_ they discussed. Justin had been noticeably evasive about his long, apparently tumultuous union with his ex, but Alex knew enough to know that the man still seemed to have some sort of hold on him. It wasn't so much what Justin said – in fact, his boyfriend seemed very hesitant to discuss him at length, merely telling him his relationship with Kinney was in the past and that's where it needed to remain – but it was more the expression that Justin wore when he talked about him and in the change of the tone of his voice. When he mentioned Kinney, it was with a mixture of melancholy, regret, and something akin to tenderness. The inflection in his voice was softer and Justin's eyes took on this faraway look on the rare occasions when he divulged any information at all about him, and it simply filled Alex with a mixture of jealousy and curiosity as a result.

"Hand bothering you?" he said, tilting his head at Justin's right hand that he grasped in his left.

_Well, duh_, Justin couldn't help saying silently. Out loud, though, he merely nodded and answered, "Yeah, a little. Would you mind getting me some aspirin out of my toiletries bag?" Alex nodded as he rose and walked into the bathroom. Justin sighed as his mind involuntarily went back years ago to how another man had helped ease his pain when this sort of thing happened; how he longed right now to feel Brian's long-fingered, warm hands grasping his and gently massaging it until either the pain subsided after a few minutes or his attention was diverted to more pleasure matters. Invariably, once Brian had begun gently stroking his hand it led to stroking _other _things: his shoulders, his cheeks, his nipples, his forearms, his belly, and then eventually his much-neglected ass and cock as the two of them moved on to making love. Even on those rare occasions when his partner's attempts at easing the pain in his hand failed, Brian always succeeded in taking his mind off his pain in some other way. And who would have ever thought massaging a person's hand would be so fucking sexy? But it wasn't just the physical touching – that was certainly a part of it. It was also Brian's loving, tender voice of concern and the compassionate look on his face as he tried to alleviate his suffering that had made his heart skip a beat; the fact that his lover was trying to ease his pain was what made it so sexy to him and it was one of the things he had loved about Brian. As he waited for Alex to return with the aspirin and some water, he closed his eyes momentarily as the truth assailed him; who was he fooling? He _still_ loved Brian, he supposed he always would. But they just couldn't be together; you could love someone deeply, but that still didn't mean you could trust them.

He sighed softly in resignation as he opened his eyes to see Alex returning. "Thanks," he replied softly as Alex held out a couple tablets and a stout, round glass of water toward him. He took the glass and quickly tilted his head back and swallowed a couple of gulps and the pills before he set the glass down on the ledge and Alex joined him on the window seat. He winced once more as another flare of pain shot through his hand. "Damn it," he whispered in disgust; he was so tired of this happening after all this time. He knew the therapists and doctors had cautioned him that due to the partial brain damage he had sustained he could expect this to happen on occasion for the rest of his life, but deep down he was still hoping that eventually it would disappear altogether. Apparently that was not going to be the case, though. For a brief second, he allowed himself a small degree of both self-pity for his predicament as well as loathing for the asshole prick who had caused it, but he quickly swallowed both down; neither emotion would do him any good and he wasn't about to allow Hobbs to rule his life – he wouldn't allow him that satisfaction and it was totally non-productive.

He turned his head as he felt Alex place his hand on his left shoulder and give it a brief squeeze. "It'll be okay," he told the architect, letting out a breath to try and calm himself. "Just give me a few minutes."

Alex bit his lip, unsure what to do to help Justin. At the time Justin had revealed to him the cause of his flare-ups, he had been aghast that something so heinous had been done to someone who was merely trying to enjoy an event that any typical high-school student would have engaged in, but while it was a horrible attack and he had been surprised to learn that Justin had been the victim of a baseball bat assault, he sadly wasn't totally shocked by it. He had certainly experienced his share of at least verbal attacks or ridicule due to his sexual orientation himself – both at work and while out on the town. But still, as he looked at his companion's face contorted in pain, he couldn't help feeling hatred for the punk who had inflicted this injury on him.

"Is there anything else I can do?" he asked Justin, who shook his head no. "Ice pack?"

Justin shook his head again. "No… It's getting a little better," he assured him. He swallowed hard and took another breath as he tried to take his mind off his pain as he asked instead, "What did you want to do today?"

Alex smiled; he had some definite ideas in mind, the most important event being later tonight when he and Justin had dinner together. "Well, I know you're intent on seeing the art museum; how about we go there first and then just do some sightseeing until dinner?"

Justin nodded; at least the pain in his hand was slowly subsiding now. He stood up, reaching over to grab his sketchbook. "Okay," he said, smiling slightly as he tried to sound more enthusiastic than he actually was. He couldn't quite figure out why he felt that way; Alex was a decent enough man – stable, successful, responsible, and good-looking. He was patient, reliable, and treated him well enough. So why did he continue to feel like something was missing in their relationship? Was it because he was continuing to compare him to someone he could never compete with? We he being unrealistic that anyone could ever take the place of his former partner? Was it even fair of him to expect that? As Alex walked over to grab a lightweight jacket from a nearby chair, Justin took the opportunity to study the other man. What exactly did he feel for him? And where exactly was their relationship going? He knew Alex well enough by now to know that eventually the other man would expect more from him, more of a commitment. Was he willing to do that? He reminded himself that it wasn't just his feelings that were relevant here, though; he had Kaylee to consider; in fact, she was the most important factor of all.

As his boyfriend turned to face him, Justin pushed all those philosophical thoughts aside; there was no rush to worry about it now. He smiled again at Alex before he followed him over to the door to leave.

* * *

><p><em>Camp Pineland – Same Time <em>

Katie glanced around the lakeshore, making sure none of the girls participating in the canoeing were there yet; she and Kaylee had broken up a few minutes ago with the intention of meeting up in the reception hall with their respective groups before their activity began. She had made up a quick excuse that she needed to go to the bathroom and that she would meet her sister for lunch later before she hurried around to the back of the restroom/shower stalls and dashed over to a nearby maintenance shed where she located what she needed.

Looking furtively around her, she tucked her precious equipment under her camp vest as she walked down to the water's edge where the canoes were lined up together, lying on their side waiting for use by the assigned campers. She bit her lip in thought as she quickly surveyed the area, knowing she was quickly running out of time and her absence would be noted soon. _It has to be here somewhere…_

As she looked over at the camp's wooden events board nearby, she smiled in triumph as she realized there was an 8 ½" by 11" white piece of paper with the names of each girl and the canoe they were assigned to tacked onto it. Walking quickly over to it, she scanned the list, locating the name she was looking for. _Sandra McKenzie – Canoe No. 8. _

"Thank you, Jamie," she murmured, referring to the maintenance man who often visited Britin to perform repair tasks for her and her father. She had become fascinated with several tools and pieces of equipment the man frequently brought with him, and after a lot of pestering by her, he had finally showed her how to use some of them, even letting her help out from time to time. He had even eventually allowed her to help repair one of the deteriorating stalls at Britin for one of their horses and she had actually become quite proficient at using the same type of cordless drill that she was currently holding hidden in her hand.

Taking one more glance around the lakeshore, she hurried over to Canoe No. 8 and proceeded to get to work.

* * *

><p><em>ReceptionDining Hall – Early Lunch Period _

"Katie! Over here!" Kaylee waved her hand back and forth enthusiastically as she spotted her sister arriving at the lunch hall and bounced up and down restlessly in her seat; she scooted over slightly on the wooden bench as her sister walked over with a hard, plastic, mint-colored lunch tray and sat down next to her near the wall. Her sister's face was aglow with barely contained excitement as she told her, "I am SO glad you're here – you are NOT going to believe what happened this morning down at the lake!"

Katie hid the smile that was threatening to appear on her face as she asked innocently, "What?"

"Remember my roommate, Sandra? The awful bully?"

Katie snorted. "How could I forget? I saw her in action earlier, remember?" She picked up a nearby, red plastic Ketchup bottle and squirted a large glob of ketchup onto an empty spot on her lunch tray.

Kaylee nodded, her eyes large and expressive as she said, "Well, you won't believe what happened to her! We all went down to the lake for our canoeing lesson. The camp counselor started out by giving us a lesson on the right way to use our canoes to move around in the water," she explained. "I could hear Sandra mocking her behind her back while she was demonstrating how to do it," she reported as she leaned over toward her sister, making sure that the other girls nearby weren't listening in; fortunately, though, there was so much chatter at the moment from everyone congregated together that she had to speak up just to be heard over the din and no one seemed to be paying them any particular attention. Just to make sure, however, she spoke directly into her sister's ear as she said, "Well, the counselor let us drag our canoes out toward the water and get in them. We all started paddling out from the shore and a few minutes later, I heard Sandra shouting and cursing a blue streak!" Kaylee's mouth broke out into a beaming smile so like her father's as she saved the best part for last. "Her canoe had a leak in it; she sunk faster than a lead balloon! She was flopping around in the water like a fish trying not to get reeled in! It was hysterical! She was SO mad – her face was red as a beet! And when she got out of the water, she just stood there like a sopping wet statue with her arms hanging out from her sides, and she had this sort of algae hanging all over her! Oh, my God, Katie, you should have _been_ there! She looked like this swamp creature!"

Katie grinned. "Yeah… I should have. I'm sorry I missed that." _If you only knew…_

Kaylee sighed as she shook her head and smiled. "It was so great! It almost made up for how mean she's been to me."

Katie huffed. "Well, it's about time someone… I mean, some_thing_ knocked her down a peg or two; serves her right." Kaylee nodded as her sister surveyed the contents of her tray and scrunched up her nose. "What are you _eating_?"

Her sister looked over at her questioningly. "Just some tuna salad and bottled water."

"That's what I _thought_ it was… I could smell it coming from a mile away. How can you _eat_ that stuff?"

Kaylee narrowed her brows as she looked at her plate-sized tuna salad loaded with romaine lettuce, tomatoes and a hard-boiled egg. "What's _wrong_ with it?" she asked in confusion. "I eat this all the time at home."

"You've got to be kidding me!" Katie retorted. "You LIKE eating all that healthy food?"

"Of course I do," her sister said just a little defensively. "Protein's good for keeping you alert and gives you lots of energy. I need it for my cheerleading moves." She eyed the French fries and cheeseburger her sister was currently munching on; a carton of chocolate milk sat next to her plate. "You know all those empty carbs will make you weak as a boneless chicken if you keep that up. Didn't you tell me that you played sports? How do you do that with that kind of food? Do you eat like THAT at _home_?"

"Well, sometimes I have pizza or fried chicken instead," she pointed out. "My dad doesn't like it very well, though. He eats more like YOU do; if that's how you eat at your home, you and he would get along just fine." She picked up a fry loaded with ketchup and promptly plopped it into her mouth.

Kaylee shuddered with revulsion. "I can't believe you put that kind of garbage in your stomach." She quickly stabbed a bite of lettuce and egg and placed in her mouth as her sister smiled at her and gobbled up another French fry. "All that greasy food doesn't bother your stomach?"

Katie shook her head. "Nah... I have some Oreos and milk every night before I go to bed, too; that helps me sleep."

Kaylee was astounded as she stared at her sister in disbelief. "You sure eat differently than I do. Our dad _loves_ junk food, though; he's as bad as YOU are."

Katie stared at her a little wistfully at the mention of her other father, the one she didn't really know but longed to. "What kind of food does he like?"

Kaylee grinned. "The greasier or sweeter, the better. Danishes and donuts for breakfast, Snickers bars for snacks, Vanilla and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ice Cream after dinner for dessert while we watch t.v." She glanced over at her sister's almost devoured meal to add, "He loves cheeseburgers and French fries, too, just like you; and pizza! The more meat on it, the better!" She smiled. "He's very lucky, you know, because he has to have a high metabolism. I mean, he's constantly on the go with his art and all, and he loves to bicycle ride with me, but he doesn't really work out and never seems to gain an ounce!" She sighed. "I hope when I get older I take after him when it comes to _that_."

"Oh, I'd _love_ that!" Katie cried, thinking of spending time with him and getting to know him better. "It's funny that we both like the same kind of food." She pursed her lips together to hold back the tears that threatened to spill from her eyes. "Kaylee… I want to meet him so badly."

Her sister smiled back at her. "I know – me, too; I mean, our _other_ father." She stared into her sister's eyes. "Do you really think this will work?" Kaylee bit her lip thoughtfully. "No, it _has_ to. You already told me that Dad told you he still loves our other father, right?"

Katie nodded her head. "Yeah, he told me he did on the way up here, and I've seen how he gets when I bring him up. He hasn't forgotten him. Sometimes when he doesn't know I'm there, I'll catch him staring at this photo of him on his desk at home. He gets this sort of dreamy look on his face, but kind of like he's in pain." She stared into space for a moment before she turned to look at her sister, her jaw set. "No, he still loves him; I can tell he does. What about Daddy, though? You said he had a boyfriend."

Kaylee grimaced. "Yeah… _Alex_," she said, emphasizing his name with disdain as she contorted her face in disgust. "Big shot architect; he always acts so lovey-dovey around me when he knows Daddy can hear him, but when he's out of the room he barely acknowledges me."

"That's terrible!" Katie told her. "Have you told Daddy about that?" When Kaylee shook her head, she asked, "Why?"

She looked at her sister a little apologetically. "I think Daddy gets lonely sometimes. Alex at least keeps him company and they seem to like each other. I don't want Daddy to get hurt or upset if I tell him that Alex barely talks to me when he's not there."

Katie huffed out a heavy breath of disbelief. "But he needs to _know_! What if they get serious with each other? I mean, how serious are they _now_? That guy could ruin all our plans!"

Kaylee shook her head firmly as she took a quick sip of her water. "No… Daddy doesn't love him."

"How do you know? You can't be around them all the time. Maybe he's told him he loves him when they're alone and you just don't know it."

Kaylee stuck out her chin, her jaw set with resolution. "No, I can just tell; he likes Daddy a lot better than Daddy likes _him_. He's always trying to get Daddy to go on vacation with him and Daddy always tells him no. And he doesn't look at Alex the way he would if he was in love with him."

Katie snorted. "How would YOU know what that looks like? Have you ever been in love with a boy?"

"Of course not," Kaylee told her as she rolled her eyes. "I think boys are obnoxious. But I don't need to have personal experience. All I have to do is look at that copy of the picture of the two of them together that you have to know what being in love is. And all I have to do is listen to the way Daddy talks when he mentions him – his voice gets all soft and choked up. He _never_ does that when he's talking about Alex."

Katie slowly nodded as she thought back to the photo that she had found in the library of their two dads together. She couldn't argue with her sister – the two men in that photo had been deeply in love. But what about _now? _She knew her father still loved her other Dad – he had told her so. But did her other father feel the same way? "Are you sure about him and Alex, Kaylee? REALLY sure?"

Her heart leapt when her sister nodded firmly. "I'm sure," Kaylee told her. "But that doesn't mean that Alex won't be trying to push our Daddy into something he may not want to do. I told you Daddy was lonely for company – he just may be lonely enough to do something stupid before we have a chance to get them back together. I don't trust that other man."

"It's only a week away," her sister reminded her. "What could happen before then?"

The two sisters rose to take their lunch trays over to a dishwashing employee that was stacking the dirty trays into a large, industrial rack. As they placed them down on the stainless steel surface, Katie turned to her sister and gently grabbed her arm. "All I know is that we need to get started right away. We need to tell each other everything we know about each other's lives or this won't work at all."

As Kaylee nodded at her in agreement, her sister added, "And there's one more thing, you know."

As they walked outside and stood near the entrance, Kaylee frowned at her, noticing that her sister looked distinctly uncomfortable for some reason. "What?"

Katie hesitated for a couple of seconds before she dropped the bombshell she knew her sister would be dreading. "You're going to have to get a haircut."

* * *

><p><em>Later That Evening – Windsor, Canada <em>

Justin studied his appearance in the bedroom dresser mirror; he felt way overdressed in the only expensive designer suit he owned, especially after he and Alex had spent the day at the Art Gallery of Windsor and the Caesar's Casino earlier, dressed casually in jeans and button-down cotton shirts and loafers as they leisurely strolled through the different wings of the museum and then tried their luck at the nearby casino's slot machines. Alex had wanted to try out the blackjack tables as well, but Justin had declined, choosing instead to sit in the hotel lobby and people-watch the variety of patrons coming in and out of the adjacent casino with his sketchbook; an hour later, his boyfriend had emerged with a grin on his face and $200 to the better, telling Justin he would use his newly-found wealth to splurge on a really nice dinner for them that evening.

As he studied the way the dark-blue Armani suit hugged his body perfectly, he sighed; he always _had_ hated getting dressed up like this, but he knew it was necessary at times in order to make a good impression, mainly at art gallery showings for his work. He normally wouldn't go to so much trouble to get this dressed up for _any_ dinner, choosing instead to opt for a more business casual outfit, but Alex had specifically asked him to wear this particular suit for their dinner this evening, telling him how beautiful he looked in it.

He could remember vividly the day that someone _else_ had told him he looked beautiful in a different suit; it had been the one that he had intended on wearing for his wedding to Brian. He could still remember how his face had broken out into a giant smile of delight as Brian had told him how beautiful he looked in front of _another_ mirror; his heart had skipped a beat and his face had warmed as Brian had breathed out that single, unbelievably romantic word; it was so seldom that Brian ever said anything that even remotely bordered on sentimental or sappy, so when he did say something like that, it struck his heart like an arrow aiming straight for him and made his entire body warm in response. It was the same type of feeling he had felt when Brian had unexpectedly told him that day that he had bought a house "for his prince" because he was "taking a chance on love."

He sighed as he came back to the present; why did he keep doing this to himself? Why did he keep conjuring up images from the past? What's done was done; he couldn't change it, no matter how much he might like to. He had a daughter and a different man who cared about him now – one that he knew he could trust and wouldn't let him down. Wasn't that enough?

"Justin? Almost ready?"

He heard Alex calling him through the closed door. "Yeah… I'll be right out." He smoothed his rebellious hair down with his hand and straightened his suit jacket with his hands before he turned and walked over to the door. As he opened it, he noticed immediately that the room lights were dimmed considerably; the main light in the room was now coming from several pillar candles flickering in every corner of the living area. The round, glass-topped dining room table was covered now with a white, linen tablecloth; two elegant, crystal place settings with matching white napkins were placed on top with silver dome lids covering them, along with another pillar candle in the middle and a silver bud vase holding a single, huge red rose. A matching silver champagne bucket was sitting on the kitchen counter nearby with two matching tall, crystal flutes with gold trim next to it, and soft jazz music was playing in the background. The sun was setting low just beyond the tall windows of the suite, casting a rainbow of colors throughout the entire room.

Justin's eyes widened in shock as he took it all in before he finally looked over at Alex, who was standing by the table with a smile on his face; if Justin thought HE was overdressed, Alex was even more so; he was wearing an unbuttoned black tuxedo jacket and matching black pants with a crisp white shirt, ivory-colored tie and matching silk ivory vest. Justin had to admit as he stood there studying Alex's choice of dinner apparel – with his boyfriend's darker coloring and his more muscular body frame, he looked extremely attractive in the body-hugging, tailored outfit.

Alex smiled back at him as he gazed at the beautiful face of his lover. God, every time he saw this man his heart did flip-flops, but right now in his Armani suit, Justin looked like a sexy wet dream. The dark color of the suit contrasted perfectly with his pale skin and golden-colored hair as he stared back at him in shock.

"Alex? What is _this_? I thought we were going out."

Alex smirked. "I think it's called dinner, Mr. Taylor." He walked over to the other man and, placing his hands on his upper arms, he leaned in to give Justin a short kiss. "I thought we'd eat here instead, if that's okay with you. I wanted us to have complete privacy."

Justin couldn't help blushing at the tone of Alex's voice and his words. "How did you manage all this?" he asked in wonder.

Alex smiled sheepishly. "Actually, I arranged it before we got here," he admitted. "I wanted to surprise you with a special dinner." He grinned. "The extra money I won earlier today just helped me fancy it up a little more. You like it?"

Justin shook his head in amazement. "It's… Incredible," he said at last as he glanced around the room once more to soak it all in. "You did all this while I was getting ready?"

Alex grinned. "I work fast," he said. "The hotel delivered the food and champagne a few minutes ago, and I had already arranged to have the candles here in the closet before we got here. I just had to put it all together and get dressed in the other bedroom while you were getting ready. I AM an architect, you know; I specialize in quick design construction."

Justin laughed. "I can see that. I'm impressed you managed to do all this in such a short period of time! But Alex, you really didn't have to go to all this trouble..."

Alex gazed into Justin's eyes as he slowly stroked his upper arms. "Yes, I did," he said softly. "I wanted to show you how much you mean to me, Justin. And I wanted this night to be a memorable one."

Justin licked his lips, a little self-conscious to be the center of so much attention. "Well, you certainly did it up big, Alex," he told the other man as Alex smiled at him. "I don't know what to say except thank you."

Alex nodded as he kissed Justin on the cheek and let him go. "Would you like some champagne?" he asked him as he walked over to the ice bucket holding the bottle of bubbly.

"Sure," Justin responded as he walked over to join his dinner companion. Alex deftly pulled out the top and, tilting one of the flutes, poured some of the liquid into each glass and handed one to Justin. "To new beginnings," he said softly as he clinked his glass with the blond's.

Justin eyed him curiously as he slowly raised the glass to take a sip. "It's good," he said appreciatively as Alex nodded, staring at him intently. Justin cleared his throat, a little uncomfortable at the intensity of the other man's gaze. Trying to lighten things just a bit, he asked with a smile, "So what's for dinner, Mr. Architect?"

Alex walked the few feet over to the dinner table and pulled out a chair. "Have a seat and I'll show you," he said. Justin nodded and walked over to join him, sitting down in the proffered chair and scooting it in toward the table; Alex took the chair directly opposite his.

"You first," he told Justin as the blond slowly lifted the silver domed lid to reveal a perfectly-prepared New York strip steak, a huge baked potato topped with butter, sour cream and chives, mixed steamed vegetables and a homemade dinner roll tucked inside. He knew it was Justin's favorite meal and he had gone to great pains to duplicate it for tonight; he wanted this night to be a perfect one for both of them.

"Alex," Justin said as he smiled over at him. "You certainly know what I like."

Alex grinned back at him, pleased at Justin's response. "I've got a special treat for you later, too," he mentioned as he saw Justin's eyes light up. "But only if you finish your dinner first."

"No hints?" Justin smiled back at him playfully. "Not even one?"

Alex shook his head in amusement. "No… You have to wait," he said mysteriously. "But I guarantee it'll be worth it."

* * *

><p><em>Forty-Five Minutes Later<em>

"More champagne?" Alex held the bottle up as Justin shook his head.

"Hell, no," Justin told him firmly. "I've already had three glasses; if I don't stop now, you might take advantage of my virtue."

Alex laughed. "Well, we couldn't have that. How was the dinner?"

Justin smiled as he looked down at his empty plate. "You really have to ask?" he asked as Alex grinned. "I'm stuffed but it was really great. I could get used to this treatment."

Alex stared at him intently. "You deserve it," he said softly as Justin blushed again slightly. He stood up and pushed his chair back. Picking up his dinner plate and placing it over on the nearby portable room-service cart, he teased, "Well, you must not have room for dessert, then, if you're full." He walked over and picked up Justin's empty dinner plate, too, as Justin grabbed his forearm before he had a chance to leave.

"Like hell I'm not!" he retorted. "I _always_ have room for dessert. This treat wouldn't by chance have anything to do with chocolate, would it?" he asked hopefully. After Alex had provided him with his version of his favorite meal, the only other thing that would make it absolutely perfect was if he had also managed to come up with his favorite dessert – chocolate bread pudding with lots of ooey, gooey dark chocolate syrup and tart cherries.

Alex looked down in amusement at his boyfriend's vise-like grasp on his arm and chuckled, knowing that was the response he would get. "If I said it'll be the most memorable dessert you'll ever have, will that be sufficient to release me?"

Justin twisted his mouth in contemplation for a few seconds, deciding whether that response was good enough.

"Well?"

Justin grinned. "Well, since the main course was so good, I'll have to take you at your word." He began to release Alex's arm before he tightened his grip once more to add, "But I'd better see my dessert NOW or I may change my mind."

Alex smiled, clucking, "Uh, uh, uh... No dessert before I get at least one dance with you first."

"Alex…"

"No dance, no dessert, Taylor." He arched his eyebrows in challenge as Justin mock glared back at him for several seconds until, finally, Justin rolled his eyes in acquiescence. "The things I have to do just to get something sweet."

"But I thought _I_ was…"

Justin laughed. "Don't even go there," he said as Alex grinned back at him. He sighed. "Okay… Just one, and then you have to fulfill YOUR part of the bargain."

Alex laughed and nodded as Justin released his grip on him. He took Justin's hand and slowly pulled him up from the chair to walk with him a few feet further into the living room area where there was more room. As they reached an open area, he slid his arms around Justin's slender waist and gazed down into the soft blue eyes that were reflected in the candlelight's flickering glow nearby. In the dark-blue suit that accentuated his skin and his eyes so perfectly, Alex's heart skipped a beat as he thought of how beautiful this man was, inside and out. He couldn't help voicing that same sentiment aloud as Justin placed one hand at the back of his neck and the other, palm down, on his chest as they slowly rocked to a Kenny G song, the saxophone sounding a sensual beat around them. "You look incredible in that outfit, Justin," Alex whispered as he stared into Justin's eyes. "You should wear it more often. It's my second-best outfit on you."

Justin colored at the compliment and inherent promise of more to come later as Alex's gaze slowly lowered to take in the full, plush lips before they came together for a soft kiss; Alex's tongue poked out after a few seconds to silently request to deepen it but for some reason Justin seemed to resist slightly, breaking off their kiss instead to nuzzle his neck, one of his favorite erogenous zones. Of course, when it came to Justin, he was happy with anything his boyfriend initiated and his initial disappointment at being rebuffed was quickly forgotten. Justin was a skilled lover and he was so physically attracted to him, he could practically do anything and it would make him sigh in pleasure. He had never felt this strongly before toward any man, and even now after the two years they had known each other, it still engendered a sense of wonder in him at the emotions he aroused in him. Justin's lips traveled from his neck to his collarbone as he arched his head away from him to allow better access. After a few seconds, he took Justin's head in his hands and lifted his face back up so he could stare into his eyes before he gently kissed the soft lips once more.

As they broke apart, he whispered with a smile, his fingers slowly stroking Justin's cheeks, "I'm so glad you agreed to come up here with me so we could be alone, just the two of us. How about you?"

Justin peered into his boyfriend's dark-blue eyes. It _had_ been a nice day today; he had enjoyed strolling the streets of Windsor, taking in the exhibition wings of the Art Gallery and studying so many artworks of the painters that he admired. He always received a lot of inspiration from doing that and it provided him with ideas on how he could improve upon his own style of painting. And he had actually enjoyed watching the myriad different types of people that had walked by his bench in the casino's lobby; even now after all these years he could literally spend hours just watching the sights and sounds of someplace new, sketching out all sorts of possible ideas for new artwork. All in all, it _had _been a very nice day. But perhaps that was just it; it had been _nice_, sort of like getting together with all your relatives once a year for a family reunion, or sitting on a grassy knoll on a blanket at night, listening to the local symphony playing a free concert in the park, or petting a Persian cat with long, soft white hair. It had been _nice_. How he longed, just for once, to have the type of explosive relationship he had had with someone else. It was sort of ironic in a way; he had always longed for a stable, reliable, responsible relationship. Now that he _had_ one, though, he was finding it just a little TOO predictable… _Where was all the excitement? Where had it gone?_

Somehow, though, as Alex stared back at him, waiting for his reply, he didn't think that particular response would go over too well with him. Instead, he replied out loud with a soft smile, "Yeah… This has been a nice change of pace." _There… At least THAT was honest… At least as far as it went…_ So why did he feel so badly about it?

Alex nodded, however, and smiled, seemingly none the wiser as the music ended. "I told you it would do you good to get away," he softly chided him as the two broke apart. He placed his hands on Justin's shoulders and stole one additional, quick kiss before he asked, "Okay… I guess you've lived up to your part of our agreement; ready for your dessert now?"

Justin laughed, almost relieved their dance was over. "You have to ask?"

Alex grinned and shook his head no as he took Justin's hand and led him back over to his seat. As the blond sat back down and waited for his promised final course, Alex picked up Justin's dinner plate and placed it alongside his own on the serving cart as he tried his best to keep a neutral expression on his face; inside, though, his stomach was doing cartwheels and butterflies were running rampant around his gut as he turned and placed the other soiled dish on the room service cart. Walking over to the oven where he had their dessert warming, he opened the door and, snatching a potholder hanging nearby on a hook, he picked up the matching crystal dessert plates and walked back into the dining area, placing one of them down in front of Justin as he bowed formally with the upper part of his body. "Does this meet with Picasso's approval?" he asked, tongue in cheek.

Justin's eyes lit up at the sight of the familiar, decadent dessert. "Oh, yeah," he nodded approvingly with a grin, observing the abundant chocolate syrup and plump cherries swimming in the bottom of the bowl. "This is just _fine_." Alex laughed as he took his own dessert over to his side of the table and sat down; he picked up his fork as Justin did the same, but he couldn't bring himself to take a bite. He was too busy observing his boyfriend devouring the dessert in the bowl, waiting until his true intentions were discovered and watching expectantly for his reaction. His idea to bring Justin up here on a vacation to get away, just the two of them, wasn't simply so they could visit the art museum his boyfriend had been desiring to see or try their luck at the slot machines; no, his push to get Justin here was about to culminate in this one, particular moment…

"This is great," Justin told him with an appreciative smile as he swallowed the first bite and looked over at Alex, who was holding his fork suspended in mid-air as he gazed back at him strangely. "What's wrong?" Justin asked with a slight frown. "Why aren't you eating _yours_?" Despite his own obsession with chocolate desserts, he knew his dining companion was a close runner-up when it came to adoration of all things chocolate: Alex had a secret staff of double-stuffed Oreos in his office desk at work, and he always ordered a dark-chocolate latte mocha at the coffee shop down the street every day before he went into his office.

Alex shook his head slightly in dismissal and smiled slightly as he gazed into the beautiful blue eyes looking back at him inquisitively. "Nothing," he said softly. "Just enjoying the view first." He noticed Justin blushing back at him – he always did think that was such an adorable trait in him – as he added, "I'm glad you like it. I had it made especially for you."

Justin nodded with an appreciative smile as he dug back into his dessert, unable to resist the sticky, sweet, over-the-top concoction. He took a bit of the bread pudding and swirled it in the chocolate sauce, noticing a sort of swirled design underneath all the syrup as he did so. The two men sat there in companionable silence as the jazz music continued to play softly in the background.

Alex sighed softly as Justin continued to eat, making sure he didn't hear his expression of trepidation and anxiety; inside, however, his stomach was tied up in knots. It wasn't like he did this a lot; in fact, he had NEVER done anything like this before. _How long would he have to wait_? he wondered, as he finally took a small bite of his own pudding and placed it in his mouth, stealing frequent, surreptitious glances over at his dining companion as he waited for Justin's reaction.

Justin couldn't help the 'mmmm' that erupted almost involuntarily from his mouth; the combination of the dark chocolate syrup, cake-like pudding, and the tart, tangy cherries on his tongue was incredible. "This is soooooo good," he murmured with a smile to Alex as he licked his lips. "You can fix this for me every day."

Alex laughed nervously as he watched Justin take his fork and stab another bite of the pudding, swirling it once more around the thick syrup on the bottom. The way Justin was attacking his dessert he had to be getting down to the bottom of the bowl, didn't he?

Justin frowned as he pushed the bread around the syrup to gather up more of the sticky-sweet topping; the so-called swirling pattern on the bottom of the bowl was coalescing, instead, into actual flowing, scripted words. He could now distinctly make out the word _**ME**_ in the bottom of the bowl. It had to be more than just a coincidence that what he had initially thought was just a fancy sort of design pattern actually spelled out a word now. He bit his lip, the remains of his dessert quickly forgotten, as he took his pudding-laden fork and pushed aside more of the syrup at the bottom of the bowl, trying to make out what the message says. "Alex…" he began tentatively, keeping his gaze downward in concentration.

The architect's heart stopped in his throat as he realized that Justin was finally beginning to uncover exactly what was at the bottom of his bowl. He remained silent as Justin continued to stare down at his dessert; silently, he reached inside his jacket pocket to retrieve what he knew he was about to need and slowly rose to his feet quietly as Justin continued to stare, perplexed, down into the brown, soupy-covered container.

Justin slowly pushed the left side of the syrup aside as another word painstakingly revealed itself underneath: **_M… A… R… R… Y. Marry ME._** He gasped softly in shock now as he realized what the message said; _my God – why had he not somehow seen this coming_? His eyes slowly lifted upward as he heard Alex walking around to stand by his side; he watched as the other man slowly knelt down in front of him and took his left hand in his.

Alex took a deep breath, his heart pounding in his chest as he said the words he had rehearsed silently for some time now. "Justin… We've been together for a couple of years now, long enough for me to know that I want to spend the rest of my life with you." He huffed slightly in confession. "Hell, I think I knew that from the second I laid eyes on you that day; God, you were so amazing in so many ways. You still _are_," he added even more softly as Justin continued to stare at him silently, his light-blue eyes dilated and his mouth hanging open in disbelief. He cleared his throat nervously, feeling like this was harder than the time he had had to pitch a new design to a convention room full of people last year; he had wound up winning that contract for a new hotel, though, and he was intent now on winning this much more _important _pitch, too. This, though, would be the most important pitch of his entire _life, _so he had to get it right. "Justin… I want to go to bed with you at night and wake up with you every morning; I want to support you and comfort you, whether it's in good times and bad. I want to grow old with you, experience all life has to offer with you. You are my soulmate, Justin, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you." Alex took another deep breath as he relished the soft, warm skin under his touch; he wasn't sure if it was his hand trembling or Justin's as he thought to himself, h_ere goes…_

He slowly revealed the gleaming, gold wedding band he had kept hidden in the palm of his right hand; a rainbow of colors reflected off it in the candlelight as he gazed into Justin's expressive eyes and asked softly, "Justin Taylor… Would you please do me the tremendous honor of marrying me?


	7. Some Plans Started, Some Hopes Dashed

_A/N: Justin and Alex discuss their future together; the Grandmas band together to prepare for Kaylee's arrival in town. More turmoil at camp ensues and the girls draw closer together._

* * *

><p><p>

The remnants of his dessert were quickly forgotten as Justin placed his fork down on his plate and stared into the eyes of his boyfriend; he should have realized this was going to happen. Alex was a conventional sort of person who believed in a lot of the same things he did – home, responsibility, and stability. The two of them had been seeing each other exclusively for a couple of years now, and unlike Brian, this man was a firm believer in monogamy and settling down. When Alex had unexpectedly suggested they take a trip to Canada, then, he should have figured out there was more to it than just an opportunity to see a renowned art museum. Even if he did agree to marry him, though, did he really think that he would just up and marry him right now?

"Alex," he struggled to say as the other man slowly caressed his palm and gazed up into his eyes hopefully. "I… I don't know what to say." His thoughts were in a dizzy whirl; he really did care for Alex – he was a kind, decent man and he knew the man loved him. But was it enough?

"It's very simple, Justin. Make me a happy man and say _yes_." Alex bit his lip anxiously as he waited for what seemed like an eternity for Justin's response; he adored this man and knew with his beauty, passion, and intelligence he could have a pick of any man he wanted. But Justin had chosen to be with _him_ for the past two years; that must account for something. His proposal was a natural progression of their relationship and he knew Justin believed in marriage just like he did; the subject had come up from time to time during the course of their conversations and Justin had indicated he wished for all the trappings of a home, including marriage. So why was he sensing reluctance on his boyfriend's part? Was it because he had been burned before? To his consternation Justin had always been rather tight-lipped about what had happened with his ex; it made him both curious but also hesitant at the same time in his wish to know exactly what had happened, but he _did_ know one thing: Justin must have been deeply hurt by whatever had occurred to make him so skittish. How could he convince him that he would never hurt him the way this other man had? What more could he do than put his heart on the line?

Justin took a deep breath and let it out, his emotions warring inside him. He loved Alex for how reliable he was, how he could depend on his support for his art shows – the man never failed to show up for a single one in all the times they had been together. He was without a doubt one of his staunchest supporters of his work and was the kind of man you could always count on to be there when you needed him. He laughed at his jokes, enjoyed a lot of the same passions that he did, and he was romantic and well-established in his field. He felt secure and comfortable when he was with him, and with Alex there were no unexpected quirks in his personality, no bumps in the road that he couldn't foresee and handle. But was predictable and reliable _enough_? Did he love Alex, the man, or the things that he symbolized? "Alex… This is a surprise," he finally weakly managed to utter.

Alex sighed softly; that was not exactly the fervent, positive response he had been hoping for. "Justin… This couldn't have been _that_ big of a surprise," he gently chided him as he squeezed his hand slightly, causing the blond to swallow hard. "You know how I feel about you." _The question is, though… How do you feel about ME?_ "I can't see me spending the rest of my life with anyone but you."

Justin gazed down into his dark-blue eyes; the other man's wish for what he desired being broadcast loud and clear. Why couldn't it be that simple? For just a brief moment, he thought back several years ago to when _another_ man had proposed marriage to him; at first, he had thought the whole idea had been ludicrous. Brian Kinney didn't do romance and he certainly didn't do marriage, either; he had simply been spooked over that horrific bombing. But the second time – when he had in typical Brian Kinney fashion gone out and bought a fucking mansion to prove his point, in addition to putting his loft and the club up for sale – he had gotten his attention that time. The man 'who didn't do romance' had gone out and bought a house 'for his prince.' Even now, at the mere memory of those unexpected words from his ex-partner's lips, he could clearly remember how he had practically melted right then and there, his insides doing a flip-flop at the sound. But right now, with _another_ man's proposal, he merely felt torn.

He sighed softly. "Alex… Even if I _did_ agree to marry you, surely you're not suggesting we do it while we're up here in Canada?"

Alex pulled Justin to his feet and placed his hands on the blond's upper arms. "Would that be so bad, Justin?" he asked softly; that was precisely what he had had in mind. He had researched the marriage laws thoroughly before they had left and had determined to his delight that all they needed were two forms of identification and a personal appearance at one of the Justices of the Peace at City Hall; Canada had no residency or blood work requirements. If Justin wanted a more elaborate ceremony, though, he was fully prepared to follow through on whatever type of nuptials he preferred. "All we basically need to do is show up. You tell me what kind of ceremony you want and I'll see that you get it."

Justin gently extricated himself from his boyfriend's arms and turned his back to walk over toward the window overlooking downtown Windsor; he folded his arms across his chest and gazed down at the thousands of twinkling lights below, lost deep in thought. How did things get so complicated? He turned around to observe Alex standing where he had left him; he felt the pangs of remorse and guilt washing over him, but he wasn't about to impulsively jump into such a long-term commitment. He had learned the hard way what could happen when you put your heart – and your faith – on the line. And besides, there was a lot more at stake here now. "Alex, even if I did agree to marry you, I couldn't do it now."

Alex sighed, disappointed. "Why not if that's what we both want? It IS what we both want, isn't it, Justin? I still haven't heard either a yes or a no to my original question yet."

Justin worried his lower lip with his upper teeth. "It's not that simple, Alex; it's not just you and me here. I have _Kaylee _to consider, too."

"What about Kaylee?"

Justin stared at him in disbelief; he could hear the slightly sharp tone to Alex's voice, clearly indicating he wasn't happy with his response. Well, that was too bad; his daughter had to come first, and any man he married would have to respect that. Didn't Alex realize that? _Shouldn't _he have? "Alex, if I did agree to marry you, I would have to discuss it with Kaylee first. We're a package deal. She would have to be happy with my decision, too, and she's not even here to talk about it with me. There's no way I could marry you now and then go back to Chicago with that kind of news. What if she didn't _want _me to get married?"

Alex huffed out a breath of aggravation now, not even trying to disguise his displeasure. His idea of arranging a private, romantic dinner with his lover in preparation for his marriage proposal wasn't going the way he had hoped. "Justin, who's the adult here? I'm not asking Kaylee to marry me; I'm asking YOU. She's the child and you're the father; she should abide by whatever decision you feel is the right one." He could see Justin bristling at his statement and hastened to smooth over his rather caustic remark. "Justin," he began softly, "I know how much you love your daughter and I respect you for that. But she's way too young to realize what's best for her; it's up to you as the parent to determine that."

He slowly walked up to the blond and placed his hand under his chin; Justin kept his arms firmly crossed over his chest as his lover gently but firmly forced his chin upward to look him in the eyes. "I know you're only looking out for your daughter's best interests, my love, but somewhere in there you need to look out for _yourself_, too. You deserve to be happy, Justin; don't you think that's what Kaylee would want, too?"

Justin slowly lifted his gaze to stare into Alex's face; it was one he had studied countless times over the past couple of years and he knew it well. He _also_ knew that Alex was a masterful communicator and quite adept at manipulating his words to their greatest advantage when the need warranted it. It was times like this when he wondered how sincere they were, especially when it came to his daughter. His boyfriend was polite and cordial enough around Kaylee but not overly so; just how much did Alex care about his daughter's happiness, too? Was he being sincere when he spoke positively about his daughter or merely saying whatever he thought Justin wanted to hear to get what he wanted?

Alex curled his hand lightly around Justin's cheek as the blond told him, "Alex, I can't do anything without talking to Kaylee first, and she can't even be reached by phone right now while she's at camp. Besides, I would want to discuss this with her personally, not by long distance. Surely you can understand that."

Alex dropped his hand to his side, clearly frustrated by the disappointing response. "Justin…" he pleaded softly. He had hoped once they were alone together that he could persuade his boyfriend to see reason and realize how important it was to make an official commitment to each other - what he saw as the logical progression to their long-term relationship.

Justin sighed, however, before he had a chance to continue, uncomfortable with the way their conversation was heading. "Alex, I _do _care about you…" He began tentatively.

"But…," Alex prompted a little curtly, hating it when someone began a conversation with those dreaded words. "What's your decision, Justin?"

"Don't push me, Alex," he answered sharply as he brushed his right hand through his hair in agitation, suddenly feeling trapped. "I just need some time to think about it and to discuss it with Kaylee; I don't think that's too much to ask, is it?"

Grasping at a slight glimmer of optimism but realizing he was not going to get what he wanted – at least not in the near future, Alex responded softly, "Does that mean you're at least not turning me down?"

"Yeah, I guess that's what it means," Justin finally decided to Alex's relief. Feeling a bit regretful over his abrupt tone earlier, he added a little softer, "Look, I'm sorry if I'm being a little too blunt here, Alex. But this all came as a surprise to me, despite what you think. You know how much I love my daughter; I just need some time to think it over and talk to her about it. Maybe while I do, though, you need to consider whether you're really prepared to take on a ready-made family yourself."

Justin's mouth twisted up in one corner wryly. "It's not easy raising a daughter, you know, especially one that's about to go through puberty; trust me." Many a night Justin had lain in bed, worrying over anything and everything when it came to Kaylee; would she have the proper female influence to discuss 'girly' things that she didn't feel comfortable discussing with him? Would his sensitive daughter be able to handle the inevitable cliques that always seemed to be created when you entered junior high school and find acceptance by the students there? Would she be able to avoid all the dangerous traps that were prevalent among her peers such as drug abuse, alcohol, and cigarettes? He had fortunately kicked those habits that Brian had bestowed upon him a long time ago – he had never really liked smoking, taking drugs, or getting drunk out of his mind anyway; he basically just went along with it because Brian did at the time and he wanted to fit in. And her college education; it was so fucking expensive now to send a child to college, and he wanted Kaylee to have every advantage possible, including additional schooling if that was what she wanted. Would he be able to afford to send her when the time came? He was quite comfortable financially by now, due in part to his success in the art world and some wise investments he had made along the way, but would it be enough? He knew only too well how much worry and sleepless nights one little girl could cause – was his lover prepared for all that?

"There's a lot more to raising a child – especially a girl – than I think you realize, Alex; are you sure you're ready for that responsibility? Because if we DO marry, you would have to make a commitment to being involved in HER life, too. Are you prepared to do that?"

Alex considered that question; WAS he prepared to take on the responsibility of a sometimes moody, fashion-driven little girl who seemed more concerned about her appearance at times than anything else and who at best was cool toward him in her father's presence? He didn't know the first thing about being a father, nor had he ever really wanted to. But he DID want Justin – he loved him too much to let him go, and if it meant playing the role of the doting stepfather in exchange for the opportunity, he would just have to bite his tongue and deal with it. "Yes," he told his lover firmly, hoping his words sounded truthful. "I can do it, Justin… With your help. And as disappointed as I am, I'm willing to wait for now. Will you give me that chance?"

Justin brushed his hands idly over the back of the couch for several seconds, deep in thought, the soft sounds of a Kenny G jazz song the only sound in the room. Finally, he took a deep breath and lifted his gaze to look into Alex's eyes and nodded; he supposed he owed his boyfriend that much, and perhaps in time he would come to the conclusion that marrying Alex was the right thing to do. "Yeah… I will. But I'm not promising anything, Alex, you DO understand that?"

Alex sighed, not quite happy about Justin's noncommittal answer but finding a bit of solace that he hadn't been turned down outright. He walked over to place his hands on either side of Justin's neck, feeling the rapid pulse underneath his fingers as his lover's arms slid tentatively around his waist in response. Encouraged somewhat, he leaned down to capture Justin's lips in a soft kiss; as he pulled back slightly, he whispered against his mouth, "Yeah, I understand… But be warned, Justin Taylor, I'm going to be _very _persistent about this, just like I _always_ am when I want something this badly."

Justin pulled back to gaze into Alex's determined eyes and nodded, his face warming under the serious, intense look. "Okay, then, just so we're on the same page here." He looked over at their dinner, long forgotten, deciding to change the subject before things got too complicated. "Now if you don't mind, if I recall correctly I think I had part of my dessert left over."

The tense moment broken, Alex grinned slightly in relief as he shook his head in amusement over Justin's typical concern about his food. Releasing Justin from his embrace, he placed his hand around the slender waist. "Spoken like a true chocaholic; good thing for you, bread pudding doesn't go bad very easily. Why don't you finish the rest of your dessert and then we can take a walk around town?" He figured any opportunity to be alone with Justin and talk, perhaps in a less structured setting, would move his goal that much closer to reality.

Justin nodded in agreement as the two men wandered back over to their neglected final course, one man pondering what his ultimate decision should be and the other one hoping he wouldn't have to wait too long to get the answer that he wanted.

* * *

><p><em>Liberty Diner – Same Time <em>

Debbie glanced up and beamed as the diner's newest patron walked in. "Betty… I'm taking my break now, okay?" As the other woman nodded, she hurried over to Jennifer, who smiled warmly at her friend in return.

"Debbie," she greeted her a little breathlessly as she rushed up and gave the other woman a quick hug. "I'm sorry I'm running late; I had a closing that ran longer than expected."

Debbie popped a large bubble with her gum as she shook her head and pulled back to look into her friend's eyes. "No problem," she answered with a smile, barely able to hold in her excitement over what she needed to discuss with the other woman. She steered Jennifer with a hand on her elbow toward a booth near the back of the room where they could have more privacy, even though at this late, post-dinner hour the diner was fairly empty. She didn't want to take any chances, however, as she slid in the booth's seat across from Jennifer. "Want some coffee or tea? Soda?"

Jennifer shook her head. "Maybe just some water; if I have caffeine now, I'll be up all night long."

"Hey, Betty!" Debbie shouted over toward the counter. "Can we get a couple of waters?" A few seconds later, the other waitress placed the two waters down on the table as Jennifer eyed her friend curiously, waiting for her to speak. Normally when Debbie needed to talk to her about something, they either did it in the solitude of each other's homes or over the phone. For some reason, however, when her friend had called her earlier today, she had insisted they meet here at the diner as soon as possible, as if she had something urgent to discuss.

She noticed Debbie hesitating now, remaining inexplicably quiet until the other waitress had left. Waiting impatiently for Debbie to speak, the redhead finally opened her mouth to divulge the reason for their hastily-scheduled meeting.

"I got a very interesting call this morning," she began mysteriously.

Jennifer raised her eyebrows. "You did?"

Debbie nodded. "Yeah, I sure did; from Katie. Or should I say... Katie AND _Kaylee_." She stared into her friend's eyes, noticing them widening almost imperceptibly until her face flushed slightly in understanding; it was almost unnoticeable but just enough for Debbie to pick up on it immediately. "Seems both girls wound up going to the same camp up in Michigan and just _happened _to run into each other there; what a stupendous coincidence, wouldn't you say? Oh, by the way... You wouldn't by any stretch of the imagination already know something _about _that, would you?" Debbie remembered Brian mentioning to her one day whose idea it had been to send Katie to camp and it hadn't taken long after her conversation with both girls earlier to put two and two together. She had to hand it to Jennifer, though; the only question she had with the idea was wondering why she hadn't thought about doing something just like it earlier.

Her suspicions were confirmed when she heard Jennifer gasp in amazement and say excitedly,"It worked!" She was unable to keep a smile from appearing on her face as she promptly gave herself away.

"Ah, hah!" Debbie crowed, her eyes blazing as she waggled a red-lacquered fingernail at her friend. "I KNEW you were behind this! Jen, what were you _thinking_?" she chided her loudly, her tone serious; she quickly lowered her voice as she noticed some of the patrons looking their way curiously. She suddenly grinned, however, as her expression changed to one of amusement. "And why didn't _I_ think of something like that myself? I must be slipping..."

Jennifer let out a huge whoosh of relief. "I was afraid you were really mad at me there for a few seconds," she admitted. "To tell you the truth, I was pretty terrified the whole thing would blow up in my face, but I had to do it. I'm tired of these girls being apart and those two stubborn men being apart, too." She shook her head at the irony. "Knowing what I thought about Brian at the beginning, I can't believe I'm saying this, especially after what he did to Justin, but those two still belong together, Debbie. And it's time someone did something about it."

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Debbie asked her from across the table, glad Jennifer had taken the initative but still concerned about the possible ramifications. "You know about the court order…"

"_Fuck _the court order," Jennifer retorted brusquely to her surprise; she was fed up with having to tiptoe around the judge's decision to keep her two granddaughters separated. "It's not right to keep two sisters – two _twins –_ apart from each other. Justin and Brian may have had to agree to it as part of their separation, but _I_ didn't. And if the two girls just happened to go to camp at the same place and just happened to find each other, well then…" She shrugged innocently.

Debbie grinned at her. "…Then it was meant to be, wasn't it?"

"Damn straight it was," Jennifer growled. Her eyes sparkled at her friend as she eagerly asked, "So tell me what the girls had to say to you."

Debbie leaned across the table. "Well, I talked to Katie first and then Kaylee. Although I didn't know at the time that it WAS Kaylee. They sound SO identical on the phone!"

Jennifer smiled. "I know – and wait until you see them _together_! If it wasn't for their hair, you wouldn't be able to tell them apart."

Debbie grinned from ear to ear. "Well, we're about to _test_ that theory."

Jennifer frowned. "What do you mean?"

"They called me because they needed a favor."

"What _kind _of favor?"

"Well," Debbie said quietly, "it seems our granddaughters have the same idea that YOU do; they not only want to be together now that they know about each other, but they want their _fathers_ back together, too. And they want you and me to help them make that happen."

Jennifer beamed. "Debbie, that's wonderful!" She cried out enthusiastically. This was more than she had hoped for. Her main goal had been to at least have the girls meet and hopefully bond. It appears that was going so well that they wanted their fathers back together, too. "That's what I've been wanting, too! This is great! What do they want us to do to help?"

"Now hold on a minute, Jen," Debbie warned, causing Justin's mother's face to sober. "It's not going to be that easy; Sunshine was really hurt by what Brian did to him." Debbie knew all the sordid details of how Brian had gone back on his promise to Justin to be faithful only to him; she knew how much the young man she loved as a son had counted on Brian to always be honest with him and not make empty promises, and his breaking of that promise had hurt him deeply according to Jennifer. Surely she hadn't forgotten that. Was it irrevocable, though? She _also_ knew that Brian was hurting as well; HAD been hurting ever since they had separated. You just didn't love someone the way that Brian had given his heart to Justin without being in pain, regardless of him being the cause of it. Could they find a way to work through their difficulties and count on their abiding love to reunite them somehow, along with a couple of determined daughters they both loved deeply?

Jennifer sighed as reality reared its ugly head. She knew all too well how hurt her son had been by what Brian had done. "I know," she admitted. "For a long time afterward, he wouldn't talk about what had happened. And even now, he won't even say Brian's name out loud as if it's too painful to utter. I'm not even sure he's told _Alex_ what happened between them." She covered her mouth briefly with one slender hand. "Oh, my God! Alex! That's a whole OTHER problem. What about _him_?"

Debbie's eyes flashed. "What _about_ him?" _Justin's boyfriend was certainly no Brian Kinney, at least not in Justin's eyes… Was he? _

"Debbie, he's Justin's boyfriend and has been for the past two _years_! We can't just dismiss him totally. Maybe Justin feels more toward him than I realize; that's a pretty long time to be together exclusively."

Debbie huffed out an exasperated breath. "Come on, Jennifer! Do you really think that – what was he – architect? Do you really think some architect can compete with Brian in your son's eyes?"

Jennifer wrung her hands in front of her on top of the table as she gazed over thoughtfully at her friend. "I don't know," she answered honestly. "I know my son well, though, and I know deep down he still loves Brian. And I know he dearly misses being in Katie's life. But Brian really hurt him, in the only real way that he _could_ hurt him; by breaking a promise to him. It's going to take a lot to get them back together, despite what they both might still feel for each other and what we all want for both them and the two girls." She recalled what Debbie had said earlier. "About this 'favor.' Just what do they want you – us – to do? We can't _make_ Brian and Justin get back together."

"No," Debbie told her with a smile. "But we can help the girls give them a little push, though." She leaned over closer to Jennifer and said confidentially, "They want to switch places when it's time to come home from camp."

"What?" Jennifer cried out in shock, unmindful of the stares they were receiving. "Are you _kidding_ me? That won't work!"

"Why not?" Debbie asked, her blue eyes boring into her friend's. "Even YOU said if the hair was the same, they'd look exactly alike. Well, that's about to happen, if it hasn't already. By the time you get the chance to see them together, you won't be able to tell them apart."

Jennifer's eyes widened as she nervously played with the straw in her water glass, still unable to believe what she was hearing; she knew Kaylee wasn't some one-dimensional, shallow little girl - she had a lot of interests and ambitions in her life - but she _also_ knew how concerned she always was about her appearance, and her hair had always been her crowning glory. "Kaylee's agreed to get her hair cut off? You're kidding, right? She would no more cut off her hair than one of her _fingers_!"

"Well, get out the new rule book, Grandma, because that's exactly what she's agreed to do," Debbie informed her.

"I don't believe it," she murmured in amazement. "Kaylee _loves _her hair long. Every time Justin even hints at getting it _trimmed _slightly, she has a major adolescent tantrum and Justin has to back down."

Debbie smiled at her pensively. "Well, apparently she loves her other father more than she does her vanity, because according to Katie that's _exactly_ what she's agreed to do. By the time you see Kaylee masquerading as Katie, she will have her hair cut just like her sister's."

"This is _incredible_, Debbie!" Jennifer replied, her heartbeat picking up at the thought that not only had she succeeded in getting the two girls back together, but apparently they were determined to get to know their other father and perhaps do something to reunite them. There was an inherent danger in that, however. "Debbie… What if the girls switch places and their entire plan backfires? I'm assuming they're doing this in hopes of forcing their two fathers to meet."

Debbie nodded. "Yeah – the way _I_ look at it, they'll _have_ to meet – they can't just hold onto each other's daughter forever, and you know the girls are going to have to confess eventually. That's the impression I got from Katie, too; they want to switch places so they can get to know their other father better, but their ultimate hope is that their fathers will come to their senses and realize they still love each other, that they've never _stopped _loving each other and that they'll decide they want to be together again; one, big happy family." She peered into her friend's eyes with concern as she observed Jennifer's silence. "You don't really think Justin could actually be in _love_ with this Alex guy, do you?"

Jennifer bit her lip for a few seconds contemplatively before shaking her head firmly. "No… I think Justin respects him and cares about him, but does he love him the way that he loved… _Loves _Brian? No, I don't believe that; whenever I go to Chicago to visit Justin and he happens to be there, I've noticed he never looks at Alex or talks about him to me like he did with Brian. Justin was really hurt by what Brian did to him, don't get me wrong, but I don't think for a minute he ever fell out of love with him."

Debbie nodded in agreement and smiled. "I was _hoping_ you'd say that." She sighed at the memory of Justin spending so much time with her at the diner and at her home; those had been such delightful times, even when things were difficult, and she treasured them. "I miss seeing and talking to Justin a lot, Jennifer; I love him like a son, too, but I don't have to tell YOU that. And I want to get to know my other granddaughter again, too." Merely finally getting the chance to talk to Kaylee on the phone had only cemented her feelings about missing the other granddaughter she had never really gotten to know, and she was determined to help them in any way that she could. She was thrilled beyond words to get the chance to finally see Kaylee again and learn more about the young woman she had become during her absence.

Jennifer nodded sadly. "I know, Debbie, and he knows how you feel about him; it's hurt him a lot not to be able to keep in contact with you, too. He's missed all his old friends terribly, and it's been hard on him having to shut off all contact with you and everyone else. He just thought under the circumstances it would be better with Brian and Katie both still in Pittsburgh and so entrenched in their friends' lives here to avoid contact with pretty much everyone except for me and Daphne. There's been so much hurt to go around for everyone."

"You're fucking _right_ there's been," Debbie growled. "He's not the _only _one that's been hurting all this time. That's why we have to give the girls' plan a chance, Jen; YOU were the one who put this in motion for them to begin with – now give them a chance to make it work. Who knows? Maybe a couple of stubborn boys will have their lives turned back around for the better, because I happen to believe those two _belong_ together. That whole _family _belongs together."

Jennifer lifted her gaze to look into Debbie's determined face as the redhead added, "They've got a lot of questions that need to be answered by their fathers, though. They were asking me all sorts of things that I didn't feel comfortable answering myself; that should be up to Justin and Brian. But they deserve to be told what happened and to be reassured that none of this was their fault. They're wondering why their fathers split up in the first place and why they were never told about each other. Those are some really huge questions for a couple of innocent little girls to carry around on their shoulders."

Jennifer's face betrayed her worry over their plan; when she had broached Daphne with her idea of hopefully bringing the girls together, she hadn't fully considered what all the consequences might be. It wasn't going to be a simple matter of the two bonding and living happily ever after with their fathers; it would take a lot more than that, including a willingness for both men to admit their love for each other and an ability for both of them to push aside their stubborn pride and move beyond the hurt that had been caused.

"You're right, Debbie," she told her friend at last. "There's going to be some hard questions that have to be answered. But both girls are very mature for their age; I think they can handle the truth. It's _time _they're told the truth. And it's time my son and Brian face up to the consequences of what they did to tear those two girls apart." She let out an anxious breath. "Now tell me what our part in this is going to be."

Debbie nodded. "Here's what they have in mind…."

* * *

><p><em>Camp Pineland – Late Evening<em>

Kaylee cried out as she was unceremoniously dumped from her twin bed onto the hardwood floor. Fully awake now, she glared up at her tormentor. "What was _THAT_ for?"

She rubbed her now short-haired blond head where it had hit the hard surface; her initial anger at the other girl's actions, however, dissolved into apprehension when she observed the look of fury on her bunkmate's face. She had gone to bed earlier after enduring an impromptu haircut at the hands of her sister, hoping that by being asleep when Sandra had returned she wouldn't be disturbed; unfortunately, she had turned out to be wrong.

"My canoe sprang a leak today," Sandra informed her, her eyes flashing as she crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. "The camp counselor said someone had deliberately drilled a hole into it to make it sink. And I think YOU had something to do with it."

"I did NOT, Sandra, I swear!" Kaylee cried out as she stared, fearful and wide-eyed, at the larger girl looming over her. "I wasn't anywhere _near_ the lake today, and I don't know _anything_ about using a drill."

The larger girl snorted and kicked her slightly with her sneakered foot in the side as Kaylee scurried back slightly to avert it. "You think I'm just going to take your word for it, Blondie? You'd like nothing better than to cause trouble for me, wouldn't you?" Sandra had come from a poor family on the outskirts of Milwaukee; her family had scrimped for every penny they could to enroll her in the camp. They thought they would be helping to 'enrich' her life by sending her here, but the fact was she _hated_ it. She hated all the pretense, she hated all the snobbery, and she hated being laughed at like she was earlier today. And this blond fashionista staring up at her with her designer pajamas, neatly-manicured nails, and new short hairdo that she somehow managed to obtain out here in the midst of nowhere merely accentuated the difference to her between the haves and the have nots and infuriated her even more.

"Well, I don't believe you!" she snarled down at her. "If you didn't personally do it, you must have had someone who _did!_ And if I find out that you DID, you won't be able to sit down for a week! I can't stand the fucking _sight_ of you! Get out of MY cabin before I THROWyou out on your prissy little ass!"

"But…"

"You've got ten seconds to get all your stuff, Miss High and Mighty!" The other girl continued to rant, not giving Kaylee a chance to rebut her accusation. "This is MY cabin from now on!" Kaylee watched as the other girl yanked open the drawers to her dresser and began to throw all her belongings onto the wooden floor. "Now pick up your designer shit and get out of HERE!" she roared, her face red with rage.

Kaylee unsteadily rose to her feet, careful not to get too close to the other girl, and hurriedly reached for her suitcase with shaking hands to begin stuffing her clothing and other items inside, not mindful at the moment as to how wrinkled they might get. For once she was more concerned with making a hasty retreat before things escalated with her bunkmate. As she placed the last of her belongings into the suitcase and quickly zipped it shut, she had just a couple of seconds to grab her makeup bag before the other girl began to approach her. Not bothering to look behind her to see if she was leaving anything behind or to determine if the other girl was about to make good on her threat, she had just enough time to hurriedly pull open the cabin door and rush out before she heard it slam violently behind her with a litany of cursing audible through the open window.

Trembling from her close encounter with the camp bully, she stood there, unsure what to do. Biting her lip, she felt the sting of tears in her eyes and angrily wiped them away. "Stop being such a big baby," she berated herself. But she had to admit – in the inky darkness of the new-moon night, she was scared. She was in a place that was unfamiliar to her, terrified and alone. No, that wasn't quite right; she wasn't _totally _alone, she told herself with a sniff; not any more.

Walking down the pathway toward Cabin #12, she noticed to her extreme relief the soft glow of a light coming from the room. Quietly approaching the structure, she stepped up onto the small, square-sized landing and knocked on the door. A few seconds later, the door opened.

"Kaylee!" Katie cried out in alarm, knowing her sister had left about an hour earlier to go to bed; she noticed immediately the look of fear on her sister's face and the suitcase in her hand. She tugged on her arm to pull her into the room. "What happened?" she asked as she led Kaylee over to her bed to sit; Christina, her roommate, was sitting cross-legged on the opposite bed, staring at her curiously.

"It's okay," Katie assured her as she glanced over at Christina warily. "She knows all about you – and Sandra. This has something to do with _her_, doesn't it?"

Kaylee swallowed hard and nodded. "I was sleeping," she stammered out, her heart still pounding from her encounter. "And she yanked the covers off, grabbed my legs and threw me off the bed! She thinks _I _was the one who caused her canoe to sink! She said there was a hole drilled into it, and she thinks either _I_ did it or I told someone else to!" She felt Katie's hand squeezing hers as she tearfully admitted, "I was so scared, Katie! Her face was all red and blotchy like she was going to explode any minute! She even kicked me a little with her foot while I was lying on the floor!"

"What!" both girls cried out angrily in unison, their shock clearly displayed on their faces.

Katie was livid; her face reddened and her eyes narrowed in fury. "She _kicked_ you? That, that... _Asshole_!" She began to rise determinedly from her bed. "Well, I'm going over there right now and kick her big, fat ASS."

"No, Katie!" Kaylee beseeched her as she grabbed her sister's wrist tightly, her eyes wide with fright. "Please don't go over there! You'll only make it _worse!_ Give her time to simmer down. Please!" she begged, afraid her sister would wind up getting seriously hurt if she followed through on her vow for revenge.

"But she can't get away with that!" Katie retorted, her blue eyes flashing in rage over her sister's mistreatment; inside she was feeling mixed emotions of both anger and guilt over her being the cause of her sister being tormented and accused of something she had nothing to do with; it seems her stunt with the canoe had wider consequences than she had realized. "Who does she think she IS?" She snapped indignantly.

She stood there, her body rigid and stiff, as she gazed down into her sister's terrified eyes; eyes that were fearful over her wellbeing. She was torn between giving Sandra the bully a taste of her own medicine and bowing to her sister's desperate plea. She peered into her sister's eyes, so identical to her own, before finally she let out a breath of resignation and slowly sat back down, hearing her sister let out a sigh of relief in response.

"She's not going to get away with this," she told her sister as Christina nodded silently in support. "She can't just throw you out of your own _cabin! _What a _jerk_! What is she even DOING here?_" _

Kaylee licked her lips, her mouth suddenly dry. "I don't know," she whispered painfully, her eyes still glistening with tears over her predicament. "What am I going to do _now_? I can't go back there."

"No, you can't," Katie agreed firmly. "You're going to stay here in OUR cabin tonight; we can bunk together." She looked over at Christina, who nodded and smiled back at her congenially.

_Thank goodness SOMEONE has a decent roommate_, Kaylee decided. "Are you sure?" she asked them, still feeling out of place and just a little shaken up over her close encounter in her own cabin.

"Of course we're sure, Kaylee!" her sister retorted as if that was the most ridiculous question in the world. "Don't be silly! We'll handle King Kong tomorrow." _Count on it_, she thought to herself. _No one messes with my sister and gets away with it… _She smirked to herself; her long conversations with her brother Gus over pranks he used to pull on senseless idiots at his _own _school may just come in handy here at camp, also. In fact, an inspiration suddenly hit her, one that would require immediate action while a certain other camper - and the camp counselors - were fast asleep...

Katie glanced over at the small travel clock she kept next to her bed, noting it was past 11:00. "We'd better get to bed," she advised the others. "They'll be coming around in no time for the lights out check, and the last thing we want to do is have to explain why there're three of us in here." That was a flagrant violation of camp policy, even though her sister had ample reason for being here. There would be plenty of time later afterward, however, to bestow proper justice on what Sandra was doing to Kaylee and provide her with her own special brand of a wake-up call. She reached over to pull the covers back at the head of the bed. Standing up, she told her sister, "Come on – let's get to sleep. Try not to worry about anything – everything's going to work out just fine, you'll see."

Her sister eyed her skeptically, but she decided Katie was right; she certainly wasn't going back to her own cabin, and there was nothing that could be done tonight. Exhausted, she nodded her agreement, then, as she stood up to allow Katie to pull the sheets back further in the bed. Walking over to slide under the cool sheets, she scooted over against the far wall to allow her sister room to join her.

"Good night, Christina," Katie told her roommate as she turned the small knob on the dresser lamp to bathe the cabin in blackness. "Thanks," she added softly, grateful that she at least had a decent, understanding roommate, unlike her sister's.

"Anytime," she heard her friend say as she sat down on the edge of the bed and slid in beside her sister. She turned on her side to face her and whisper, "It's going to be okay, Kaylee; we've got each other now." She felt her sister reach over and squeeze her shoulder briefly in response. "Good night," she whispered to her. _I'll take care of everything..._

"Good night, Katie," her sister responded as with a soft sigh, she closed her eyes. Secure in the knowledge that for now at least she was safe from further wrath, Kaylee was soon asleep, her sister's nearby slow, regular breathing softly caressing her face in reassurance as silence permeated their quarters.

* * *

><p><em>AN: I want to thank my friend Gloria for her help on being a beta for this chapter - thanks, my friend!:)_


	8. Expulsion Can Be a Good Thing!

_The twins move closer to being reunited with their other fathers._

* * *

><p><em>Early the Next Morning – 1 a.m.<em>

Katie lifted her head just enough to gaze over at her sister, hearing her regular breathing indicating she was fast asleep. She didn't dare turn on any light, not even a flashlight to help illuminate her way, but fortunately there was plenty of moonlight streaming in through the front windows to help her make out her sister's slim form huddled under the lightweight covers, her chest rising and falling as she snored softly. She seemed so small under them, so vulnerable, and it made Katie's heart lurch.

In the short time Katie had gotten to know her sister, she had been able to determine that Kaylee was a sensitive soul, one that wore her heart on her sleeve. To think of her gentle, easily-bruised sister being subjected to such unwarranted bullying by her brute of a roommate made her blood boil. Partly, too, she felt guilty about being the indirect cause of her torment, because Sandra erroneously blamed Kaylee for what had happened with the canoe. But she just couldn't stand by, however, and see her sister harassed like that, and besides, the girl had apparently been insufferable since the first day they had been paired together. There would time later to confess her transgressions to Kaylee; for now, though, she had something more important she felt she had to do.

Quietly rising from her side of the bed, she slowly slid her feet into her sneakers and looked around for something she could use. Spying one of Kaylee's metal hair clips lying on top of the dresser, she smiled as she picked one up and noted its sharp, angled end. _Perfect_, she thought as she pocketed the narrow, thin item into her lightweight jacket lying at the foot of her bed.

Stealing a glance over at Christina to make sure she, too, was asleep, Katie retrieved her jacket before creeping cautiously over to the door, turning the knob and hoping that the door wouldn't make any loud noise to rouse the other two girls and betray her movements. She heard a slight squeak from the door's hinges as she held her breath, praying she wouldn't hear any movement or voice from behind. Fortunately, the two girls both seemed to be heavy sleepers, because the only sounds she heard were their dueling breaths of soft, regular snoring. She slowly opened the door enough for her body to fit through and then quietly closed it behind her, letting out a large breath of relief once she was safely outside.

The full moon helped to calm her nerves, despite the fact that she could hear all sorts of odd sounds coming from the surrounding woods. She could readily recognize what must have been hundreds, if not thousands, of crickets chirping nearby, along with the piercing sound of an owl or two. She could also identify the unique call of a whippoorwill, having heard them near Britin on numerous occasions. But the other sounds were unfamiliar to her. They almost sounded like a pack of dogs howling – wolves, perhaps, or coyotes? She also knew from the camp orientation that there were numerous black bears inhabiting the woods along the ground's perimeter, which made her a little uneasy; she thought she could hear twigs snapping and leaves rustling somewhere not too far away. She shivered a little in fear, but her resolve outweighed her trepidation as she began to walk along the dirt pathway toward her first destination – the combination reception hall/cafeteria.

Glancing furtively around her surroundings to make sure no one was watching – after all, it was one o'clock in the morning, but she still felt she needed to double check – she sighed in relief as she saw no one else lurking around as she walked around the large, two-story building to the rear entrance. The back door was a single, wooden unit, warped slightly and faded by the countless days of sunshine that had beaten down upon it for so many years. Katie hadn't noticed it earlier when she had been walking to her canoe lessons, not really paying it much mind. But now she was desperately hoping it would be the key to her success.

Walking up to the door, she turned the knob first, hoping somehow it was unlocked. While the door gave way and jiggled slightly, however, it held firm. She sighed in disappointment as she fished in her jacket pocket for the hairclip she had acquired earlier that belonged to her sister and held it out in front of her.

She bit her lip in concentration as she pulled the two ends of the hairclip apart and inserted the sharp, angled end into the lock; she had seen it done numerous times on TV with various instruments, but she didn't know if it would actually work or not. She furiously twisted the piece of metal back and forth, wondering why it wasn't working; it seemed so easy when someone did it on television!

"Damn it!" she muttered in frustration; although her father was known to let forth with a string of expletives from time to time when he was particularly perturbed, Katie tended to avoid them except in times of extreme duress. She figured that this warranted such an occasion as she rigorously jiggled the doorknob with one hand as she tried to turn the lock with the other.

She was about to give up when finally after what seemed like an eternity, she almost fell as she turned the knob one more time and the door suddenly opened; she hurriedly grabbed the doorknob to catch herself as it swung inward. She gasped , startled, as the door banged loudly against the opposite wall; it had all happened so fast she couldn't catch it in time, and in the quiet stillness of the night the sound was heightened even more. She poked her head out the door furtively, peering left and right as she held her breath; she saw no lights come on or voices emerge to indicate she had been detected. Feeling distinctly like some cat burglar, she let out a huge breath she had been holding as she turned to quietly close the door, leaning against it to slow her rapidly-beating heart as she sighed in relief.

Feeling against the wall with her hands, she closely crept forward several feet until she felt the door of the windowless supply room. Turning the handle, she opened the door and began to feel for a light switch. Locating one to the side of the door, she flicked it on, blinking her eyes a few times to try and adjust to the sudden difference. Her breathing was faster now, the fear of possible detection fueling her body's adrenalin as she began to look for her target. Pushing aside several large, plastic jars of mayonnaise, mustard, and ketchup, along with a huge container of relish, she finally spied what she was looking for and smiled. _Yes_…_Perfect._ _Maybe THIS will sweeten your personality, you baboon. _One more item – a standard silver-plated knife, was located in the utensil drawer nearby, which she pocketed in her jacket.

Hefting the large, metal can in her hand and letting out a grunt of surprise at how heavy it was, she slowly lugged it over to the door, flipping the light switch off and bathing the room in blackness once more. Opening the stockroom door, she reversed her previous steps, walking several feet down the hallway toward the back entrance as she held onto the smooth, cold wall with one hand and the can with the other.

A few seconds later, she was back outside in the rapidly-cooling air, holding onto the handle of her precious find as she quietly closed the door behind her, making sure to lock it back the way she found it. As she lumbered away toward her second destination with her heavy cargo, she didn't notice the overnight cleaning lady watching her curiously from the nearby shower room, wondering why one of the campers was out at this late hour of the night. In the bright, overhead moonlight, she had a good picture of the short-haired, slim, blonde girl slowly shuffling away from her, a large can of some kind swinging in one hand as she disappeared toward some unknown location. The employee – a petite, dark-haired woman named Louise in her 50's who had been working at the camp every summer for a decade now – furrowed her brow as she tried to figure out what was going on. Was it simply one of the campers looking for a midnight snack? That wasn't unheard of; some kids thought the kitchen should be open, 24/7. But then why the can? And how did the girl get in the reception hall? She knew from cleaning the large building every night that a key was needed to get in. Did the girl have her own key somehow? Did she have permission, perhaps, to enter the premises for some reason? She knew the counselors sometimes conducted overnight camping outings with some of the more wilderness-trained girls but it was unusual for them to send a young camper back for supplies they may have forgotten; normally one of the counselors would take care of it. But was that why she was in this area so late at night? Was she told to come and get some supplies for their breakfast the next day or for a late-evening campout? She stood there for several seconds, pondering her choices, before she finally decided that while it was a bit unusual, nothing appeared to be amiss. Besides, she had started later than normal tonight and was already running an hour behind her typical schedule. Wiping her hands on a white industrial cloth towel hanging from her waist, she watched the girl disappear into the night before she turned and pushed her large, yellow, rolling, combination bucket and mop containing soapy water toward the community shower building to get to work.

* * *

><p>By the time Katie arrived near the maintenance shed, her arm was aching from toting the heavy container. She placed it down near the other object she needed: a medium-sized, orange, metal step ladder lying against the side of the weathered, wooden, tool shed. As she stood there thoughtfully, her hands on her hips, she knew this was by far going to be the hardest part of her scheme. As she tentatively lifted the ladder up, she was chagrined to learn that it was quite heavy, just as she feared. She was going to not only have to tote the ladder over to her sister's cabin somehow, but she was also going to have to come back for the can. There was no way she could carry both.<p>

She sighed in resignation, wishing there was another way; but despite the somewhat unfortunate circumstances, her wish to help her sister outweighed her hesitation. Squaring her shoulders in determination, she pulled the ladder away from the side of the shed and then lifted it slowly until it was about a foot off the ground. She grunted softly from the exertion as she slowly shuffled toward the camper cabins, having to carry it a few feet at a time before she had to place it quietly down on its side and lean it against her leg so she could rest a little.

Finally, after several minutes, she managed to reach her destination. It took her several MORE minutes to lug it up the couple of steps and open the two parts to stand it up in front of the door; she winced and held her breath as the rubberized feet made a slight thud when she adjusted it. She stood as still as a mouse as she waited for any telltale sign from inside that she had awakened the monstrous beast that she could hear snoring like a lumberjack's saw, but as she dared a peek through the window, she could make out Sandra's form underneath the light covers on her bed, still and motionless.

Sighing softly in relief at her good fortune, she quietly crept down the steps and hurried back to the tool shed, picking up the heavy metal can from where she had placed it and slowly making her way back to her sister's cabin. Placing it on the ground, she plopped down beside it, Indian-style, as she reached inside her jacket pocket and retrieved the heavy, silver-plated knife she had secured earlier. Years of playing sports had made Katie surprisingly strong for someone so small and slim; it took a few minutes of using the knife as a fulcrum, sliding the end of the utensil under the lip of the cap to pry it slowly up, until she finally succeeded in loosening the top of the can sufficiently to remove it completely.

Smiling in satisfaction at the outcome, she lifted the lid off the can and rose to her feet to heft her cumbersome cargo up with her. She had to place the can on one rung at a time as she slowly ascended the ladder, but finally she succeeded in setting the can on the painter's shelf attached to the ladder so she could carry out the final stage of her plan. As she stood on the next-to-last rung of the ladder, she reached over toward the door, cradling the can in both hands as she managed to place it in just the right position: half-on, half-off the small, narrow ledge over the door, right where any slight movement of the door would achieve the hoped-for results. Katie knew the wooden doors tended to be warped and would stick in the current humidity, so she was counting on that to work in her favor.

Grinning as she imagined the look on Sandra's face tomorrow morning, she slowly descended the ladder and folded it back up as quietly as she could, taking care not to bang it on the ground as she carried it laboriously back toward the spot where she had found it.

Huffing slightly out of breath as she took pains to lean the ladder against the side of the wall, just like it had been before, she breathed a huge sigh of relief as she stood back up. She took a few minutes to catch her breath again before she turned and walked back to her and Christina's cabin.

As she quietly opened the door and doffed her jacket, placing it at the end of the bed, her heart sped up in anxiety as she heard her sister softly whisper, "Where have you _been_?"

_Shit_. _She had been so careful_. Frantically thinking on her feet, she softly answered, "I had to go to the bathroom," hoping her sister wouldn't question her any further. She pulled the covers back and slid into bed, grasping her sister's upper arm briefly to squeeze it in reassurance as she turned to look into her twin's face that was illuminated by the moonlight. "Go back to sleep, Kaylee," she whispered to her soothingly. "Everything will be okay."

The two girls stared into each other's faces for a few moments until Katie saw Kaylee smile slightly and nod as she closed her eyes. Both girls were asleep within a few minutes, their two identical blond heads touching each other's as they drifted off into slumber.

* * *

><p><em>7:00 a.m. – Next Morning<em>

A bloodcurdling scream pierced the early morning silence as the three girls slept; they instantly bolted upright in their beds as they were startled awake.

"What was _that_?" Kaylee cried out, a little scared. The voice sounded angry, stunned, and loud – very, very loud. It also sounded dreadfully familiar. "I think that was Sandra's voice," she added anxiously. She knew all too well how angry and unreasonable her former roommate could get, and she wanted nothing at all to do with the other girl anymore, especially after what had happened yesterday. Her goal was to try and stay out of the way at all costs.

Unable to resist the temptation of knowing what was going on, though, she and the other two girls cautiously crept toward the front of their quarters and peered out of their window in the direction of Kaylee's cabin. Their eyes widened in shock as they were able to confirm that it was indeed Sandra. The dark-haired, stocky girl was standing near the cabin's open door, a golden-colored substance draped over her like some loose-fitting garment, her hands held out to her sides and her feet apart as it oozed slowly to the ground. Her mouth hung open in a mixture of surprise as she blinked to try and keep the gooey liquid from sticking to her eyelashes and getting into her eyes that were blazing with fury.

"Oh, my God!" Christina cried out softly as she clapped her hand over her mouth, afraid to make too much noise for fear the overbearing girl would look toward their cabin and see them. "What is that stuff all over her?"

"I think it's honey," Katie innocently supplied, trying hard not to break out into a euphoric smile. Apparently her idea had succeeded beyond her wildest dreams, because Sandra was not only covered with it, she was _drenched_ with it – not one inch of her body appeared to be untouched.

They watched as the girl began to scream out a tirade worthy of a salty, seafaring sailor. "You _bitch!_ I'm going to fucking KILL you when I get my _hands_ on you! Get your ass out here, Kaylee! You are going to be _dead_ when I find you! Come out here, you coward! You are going to PAY for this! I'm going to rip your hair out! Argh!" She angrily screamed at the top of her lungs while she remained frozen in place, unable to move too easily with the sticky, gooey substance coating every pore of her body. It was in her hair, in her eyes, and all over her clothing. The gallon substance had liberally covered every inch of her frame like some thick, amber rain.

Katie smiled in self-satisfaction over her achievement, unable to control herself, but as she turned to look at her sister her good mood instantly vanished to be replaced with concern. Her sister's face was white as a ghost and her blue eyes were wide with fear. When Katie had planned this latest stunt, she hadn't thought about the ramifications of what might happen. She hadn't stopped to consider what Sandra might think or what she might do in retaliation. She had only been intent on avenging her sister over how the obnoxious girl had unfairly treated her. Now, however, it appeared her good intentions might have backfired. "Kaylee," she began, not quite sure what she was going to say but feeling like she needed to reassure her somehow. She wanted to tell her sister what had happened, but somehow the words failed her at that moment.

"She is so angry," Kaylee whispered as she shrunk back from the window. "She's going to come looking for me, I just know it, and I had nothing to do with _this_!" Her eyes filled with tears as she continued to back away from the window until she bumped up against the end of the bed and she weakly sat back down, her shoulders slumped with dread. "Oh, my God. What am I going to do? I didn't _do_ it!" She bit her lip in an attempt to stop the tears, but it was futile; they slowly trickled down her cheeks as she wrung her hands in worry.

Katie's heart sank. Why had she thought this was such a good idea? Now they were in even _bigger_ trouble. She sighed, knowing she was going to have to tell her sister the truth, and then they were going to have to figure out how in the hell they were going to get _out_ of this impossible predicament.

She and Christina turned away from the window to walk back toward the beds, Katie sitting down next to her sister while their roommate plopped down on her own bed. "Kaylee, I have to tell you something," her sister began as she took her hand, but it wasn't necessary.

Kaylee's eyes widened in epiphany as she stared back at her guilty-looking sister. "It was YOU, wasn't it? YOU put the hole in the canoe, and YOU were responsible for what happened to her now, weren't you? That's where you _were_ last night, wasn't it? You were arranging that little _accident_ out there!"

"Kaylee…"

"Why, Katie? Why did you DO it? It's only going made her even madder! I'll NEVER be able to stay here now! Why would you DO that?" She turned her head away from her sister in anger, unable to look her in the face. They had been growing so close together, and now her sister went and did _this? _

"I'm sorry, Kaylee," Katie replied sincerely, regretting now what she had done. At the time, it had felt so good, so right; in fact, Kaylee herself had been highly amused at Sandra's reaction to being pitched from her canoe into the murky water below the other day. But now it was obvious to both of them that the initial feeling of triumph was quickly being replaced with fear and worry. "I was just so angry at her for how she was treating you and I couldn't just stand by and do nothing!" She tried to explain, but Katie angrily snatched her hand away and refused to look at her. "She doesn't have any proof that you had anything to do with it," she added, trying to reason with Kaylee, but she knew her words were hollow. It didn't matter if she had concrete proof or not; the girl would undoubtedly blame Kaylee for it – she already _had_.

Kaylee whirled her upper body back around to face her sister, her eyes flashing. "It doesn't _matter_, Katie! She thinks I did it now whether I did or NOT!" She stood up abruptly, her arms hugged around her chest; she had no idea what to do now. There was no way she was stepping outside her sister's cabin at the moment, but on the other hand, she figured it was just a matter of time before the other girl came looking for her over here. It was the logical place for her to escape to after last night. "What am I going to _do_?" she cried out to her cabin mates. "She's going to skin me _alive_!"

Katie stood up, her face a reflection of the guilt she felt. "We'll work something out, Kaylee, don't worry," she told her, although frankly she had no idea what that would be. "Just let her cool off for a while."

"As if that's going to help," Kaylee huffed at her. "That's not going to change her mood any!" She shook her head. "Katie, how could you DO that? Do you realize what's going to happen now? Even if she doesn't manage to kill me, they'll still blame me and kick me out anyway!" Perhaps that was the worst part of all. She hated to see the look of disappointment in her father's eyes when they called to tell him that she had been expelled from camp because of her behavior, and now the sister she didn't even now she had was going to be torn apart from her again, maybe forever.

"Come on, Kaylee! Our father couldn't blame you for what that bully did to you! You were just defending yourself! Or I was defending you… Or I was pretending to be you defending yourself… Oh, never mind! You _know_ what I mean! There's no way he's going to be mad at you over trying to protect yourself from that stupid gorilla!"

"Maybe not," Kaylee conceded stiffly as she leaned against the corner wall, making sure she couldn't be seen from the outside; she could still hear Sandra screaming in rage nearby and it made her terrified. "But I'm still scared. What am I going to do?"

Katie walked over and grasped her sister by the shoulders; this time, fortunately, Kaylee didn't pull away as they locked gazes on each other. "We're going to lay low for a little while until Sandra finishes blowing her stack and we can think of a way out of this," she told her firmly. "Surely she'll have to go take a shower to try and get it off. She can't just stand there, unless she wants to attract bees or Winnie the Pooh."

Despite their dire predicament, Kaylee had to smile slightly at her sister's attempt at levity. If it hadn't been for the fact that Sandra was furious with her, the entire episode would be quite funny. The thought of Sandra standing there as a portable beehive was still amusing, regardless of the circumstances, but her worry over what might happen was overshadowing it. "I guess you're right," she admitted. "But we can't stay in here forever."

"No," her sister agreed. "But it's the best we can do for now. Stay put," she told her as she looked over at Christina. "Christina, go over to the window and see what's going on. The erupting volcano seems to have died down a little." Indeed, the girl could no longer be heard screaming at the top of her lungs, which was a definite improvement.

Christina nodded as she rose from her bed and walked over carefully to the window. She poked her head around the side of the window frame to observe what was going on. "One of the counselors is with her now," she reported to the other girls. "She's talking to her. Oh! She must have told her to come with her, because they're walking away, toward the showers. I think you're right, Katie – she must have told her to go wash it off." She watched as another counselor appeared, walking over to observe the sticky, golden-colored mess surrounding the front door of the cabin. "There're another counselor and some other woman standing near the cabin now, looking at your handiwork," she added as she turned to give Katie an appreciative smile. "You really made a mess over there."

Katie had to grin slightly at her, unable to hide her satisfaction over the turmoil she had caused the other girl. She felt bad that Kaylee was probably going to be blamed for what happened, though. "I tried to be thorough," she told Christina. "My dad always says to do it right or don't do it at all." Of course, her father was normally talking about it in the context of her playing sports or being meticulous in her artwork, not participating in malicious pranks, even if it WAS for a good cause.

Suddenly, the overhead speakers wired to several telephone poles spread throughout the camping area crackled to life. An authoritative-sounding man's voice boomed over the P.A. System. "Kaylee Taylor-Kinney, please report to the Operation Manager's office immediately."

"Oh, no!" Kaylee groaned; it seemed her culpability was already being called into question and Sandra hadn't even been hosed off yet – or whatever they were going to do with her. "They already _know!_"

"Calm down, Kaylee," Katie told her sternly, feeling awful that her sister's name was being broadcast throughout the camp; the whole thing felt suspiciously like being called to the principal's office. "She's not exactly innocent here, either, you know."

"Yeah, but you did a better job of it than SHE did," her sister countered as she stood up, unsure what to do. She sighed in resignation and defeat; she might as well face the music and suffer the consequences, she decided, even though she was the innocent party.

Her sister almost looked smug as she replied, "Yeah, I _was_ pretty good, wasn't it? I can take care of myself," she added proudly. Her look of pride, though, faltered as she noticed her sister's worried look. "It'll be all right," she repeated. "I'll come with you and tell them what really happened. They can't blame YOU for what _I_ did."

"But even if they kick YOU out, you think I would want to stay _now_?" her sister pointed out. "Sandra would _still_ kill me." She sighed in desolation. "No, I can't stay here, either, Katie. She wouldn't leave either _one _of us alone now. Besides, I wouldn't want to stay here if you're gone, too," she admitted softly, realizing how much she had come to care about her sister; despite her anger over what she had done, she knew she only had her best interests at heart and had done it for her. Now that they had finally found each other, though, were they going to be torn apart once more? How long would it be this time before they saw each other again?

To her sister's shock, Katie's face suddenly broke out into a beaming smile. "Of _course _you wouldn't! This is our big chance, Kaylee, don't you SEE that? This is _perfect! _Absolutely _perfect!_" Her eyes lit up – this couldn't have worked out better if they had tried…

Kaylee looked at her sister like she had grown another head. "What in the world are you _talking _about? They're going to separate us again!"

"Exactly!" Katie exclaimed excitedly. "Don't you get it? We both wanted to get to know our other father, didn't we? Here's our chance! It's what we've been _hoping_ for!"

Kaylee shook her head in total confusion until, suddenly, the cloud lifted and for the first time that day she smiled a true smile. "Yeah… This is the greatest thing that could have happened to us!" They had been trying to figure out a way to seamlessly slide into each other's identities when they left camp, and it seemed the method had fallen into their laps.

Christina peered over at the two girls whose heads were huddled together, unable to fathom their secret conversation or their sudden change in demeanor. "I don't understand…" she sputtered out helplessly.

Both girls burst out laughing as Katie said, "Let me explain it to you…"

* * *

><p><em>Perry Winters' Office – Ten Minutes Later <em>

Winters looked up as the door to his office opened; he recognized Wanda Coltraine, one of his seasoned counselors.

"Yes, Wanda?" he asked politely, one brow rising curiously. He noticed the normally unflappable woman appeared hesitant, or was it confused?

"Uh… Kaylee Taylor-Kinney is here, Sir," she reported as she stood in the doorframe.

The man's demeanor turned serious; he had been told briefly about what appeared to be an ongoing personality conflict between two of the girls, and after this morning's episode, he knew it had to be handled forthwith. He _also _knew from previous experience with Sandra that it was best to talk to the other party separately, or there was a good chance this Kaylee girl wouldn't leave with all her fingers and toes intact. He had had several previous 'discussions' with Sandra and other campers in previous years who didn't seem to adhere to her 'standards' of conduct or bow to her every wish like she wanted, and none of them had ended very pleasantly. The girl always seemed to have a martyr complex, acting like everyone was out to get her, and despite his displeasure with her, Sandra had yet to do something drastic enough that would constitute full and permanent disbarment from the camp.

"Send her in," he instructed the woman with a sigh. He shook his head slightly in confusion as the woman continued to stand there. "Is there something else?" he asked a little curtly; he was in no mood at the moment for games.

"She brought her sister with her," Wanda advised him.

_Probably for moral support_, Winters thought. He wasn't aware this girl had a sister, but he knew it wasn't uncommon for more than one member of the family to attend camp together, especially if it was their first time as in this case and the girl was a little apprehensive about the whole experience. He would have probably preferred to speak to her alone, but he supposed if she didn't mind, it shouldn't matter to _him_, either. "Very well – bring them both in," he told her as he steepled his fingers into an upside-down "V" on top of his wooden, pitted-looking desk and waited for the girls to enter.

As the woman stepped aside, however, and he got a good look at both girls, his mouth hung open. Except for the difference in their clothing, both blondes walking in somewhat hesitantly were completely identical in appearance. Same hair, same face, same body frame; they even _walked_ the same. He looked from one and then to the other before asking, "Kaylee?"

To his consternation, both girls answered "yes" simultaneously. What sort of game were they playing with him? "No, I need _Kaylee_. Which one of you is _her_?"

"I am," both girls answered as if with one voice as they stood there, both with their arms crossed over their chests as they faced him like two sides of a mirror.

"This isn't funny, young ladies," Winters told them with a growl. "One of you has some explaining to do regarding this morning's events concerning Sandra, your roommate. And I also need an explanation for what happened to her canoe. One of my cleaning ladies saw someone matching your description early this morning coming out the back door of the reception hall where the food supplies are stored, so I can place you at the scene of the crime, so to speak. And I understand you and Sandra have had words in the past. I _also_ know one of you wasn't in the cabin you share with Sandra last night, at least according to her. So I repeat – which one of you is Kaylee Taylor-Kinney?"

"I am," the girls joined in together once more as they peered down at him innocently. Inside, though, Katie was seething. The man was acting like Sandra was almost an innocent party here; the _nerve _of that girl! Of _course_ she wouldn't report the reason WHY Kaylee hadn't spent the night in her cabin! If she had, the man would know just how horrendous the girl was being to her sister. For the moment, though, she forced herself to bite her tongue; if she didn't, it might well destroy everything she and Kaylee were working toward, and that was a much bigger prize worth waiting for.

Winters' eyes narrowed in anger; just what were these two girls trying to pull? "Okay, now that's enough, young ladies!" he scolded them sternly. "This is a very serious matter! You are facing some very real consequences for what one of you did to Sandra this morning. Now I suggest the real Kaylee speak up and admit her involvement in these incidents, or I will be forced to impart my punishment on _both_ of you!"

The two girls looked at each other, knowing no matter how much they wanted to present their side of the story, if they did, it might jeopardize their plan. The idea that Sandra may get off scot free, though, grated on Katie's nerves and she had to say _something_.

"What about Sandra?" she countered. "She's not exactly innocent here, either."

Winters eyed the girl intently, wondering if she was sticking up for her sister or herself; apparently, though, she wasn't willing to say either way. "What _about_ her?" he asked, his eyes boring into the young blonde's. He noticed she didn't flinch, though, as she stared him down evenly, her lips pursed together impertinently.

"She's a big, mean bully," he was told. "She has tried to make life horrible ever since camp started. Why do you think my sister and I wound up sharing a cabin last night? It was because Sandra kicked one of us out."

Winters sighed; he was hoping he was about to trip one of the girls up, but they were on to him. "She will be dealt with as well, if that is the case. I'm sure if she was doing what you said, there were witnesses to it. But the fact remains that you participated in behavior that is clearly grounds for expulsion, rather than bringing it to my attention as procedure dictates. So unless you have a defense for what you did, or are denying it altogether, and unless the REAL Kaylee fesses up right now, I have no choice but to recommend _both_ of you be expelled from this camp for the rest of the duration. Now what's it going to be, ladies?"

The two girls turned their heads to look at each other, their lips pursed firmly together as they remained silent. Inside, though, they were doing somersaults of triumph, because they knew soon they would be seeing the father they never really knew. Katie, though, was still worried about her sister's welfare.

"But what about Sandra?" Katie persisted, not wanting her sister to find the horrible girl back in the cabin when she returned. "What about her showing up?"

"Sandra was taken to another office upstairs after she had her shower. She will remain there until the both of you leave and then will be brought down here to talk to me. I can assure you that she will not be returning to the cabin she shared with Kaylee until after your parents or guardians pick you up. Now you have one last chance to admit which of you is the real perpetrator. What's it going to be?"

The girls remained stonily silent and stood their ground as Winters nodded curtly. "Very well, then," he stated, perturbed. "You have thirty minutes to go pack your things and then report to the registration office down the hall. You will wait there until your parents arrive to pick you up. If for some reason they are unable to do so promptly, you will be placed upstairs in the counselors' quarters until they can. Understood?"

The two girls nodded, actually feeling excited over what they were about to do. Their departure was going to be under less than optimal circumstances, but it was really going to happen – they would soon be meeting the father each had never really known. Now the _real_ work would begin first – they not only had to learn everything they could about each other, but they also had to work behind the scenes to reunite their fathers once they took their sister's place. It would be a daunting task, but one that would reap substantial rewards if they could pull it off. No, not if, _when, _because they _HAD_ to – it was time to get their family back together somehow.

"Very well," the man replied as he reached over to pick up the phone. "You can return to your cabins and begin packing your things. I will contact your parent or guardian to let them know what happened and that you are to be picked up immediately."

As the man spoke, Katie had a sudden, dreadful thought before they could leave; what if Periwinkle told their fathers that each other's sister was involved? If he did, everything they had worked for would be for nothing, because their fathers would know that they were aware of each other. It would destroy everything they were working toward. It was too soon – their fathers couldn't know, at least not yet.

"Can you give us a few minutes?" Katie asked the man unexpectedly, noticing Kaylee turning to stare at her in shock. This was NOT the way they had agreed to handle this. She knew she was veering from their plan, and she also knew Kaylee had to be wondering what was going on and whether she was changing her mind.

As if reading her thoughts, her sister began, "Ka..," catching herself before she said the whole name as Katie put a finger to her lip in a silent request for her to be quiet. She nodded, frowning at her sister as she wondered what she was up to but following her wishes.

Winters eyed them carefully for several seconds, wondering if one of them was about to break. He really didn't want to wrongfully punish both girls if he didn't have to, although their little 'show' was beginning to annoy him. Finally, he pushed back from his chair and stood up. "You have five minutes," he told them as he passed them on the way out.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Kaylee whirled to look at her sister. "Katie! What are you DOING?" she cried out. "We were about to get what we _wanted_!"

"Were we?" her sister countered. "What's going to happen when Periwinkle tells our fathers that Kaylee AND HER SISTER are both being expelled! They're going to _know!"_

Kaylee's eyes grew big as saucers. "Oh, my God, Katie, I didn't think about _that_! What are we going to do _now_?" she cried. They had come so far and now it was all going to be blown to pieces.

Katie sighed; she couldn't think of any other way. "We're going to have to tell Old Periwinkle the truth and hope that he helps us."

"Are you _kidding_ me? Why would he help US? We refused to cooperate with him just now."

Katie huffed in exasperation, knowing they were running out of time AND ideas. "Well, can you think of any _other _suggestion? He's bound to tell our fathers about both of us when he calls, unless we can convince him otherwise. Do you want to take that chance?"

Kaylee swallowed hard. She knew her sister was right – there was too much riding on this. "No," she admitted. "But do you really think he'll help us?"

Katie shrugged. "There's only one way to find out, isn't there?" The two girls stared at each other for a few seconds until Kaylee nodded her agreement and Katie walked over to open the door. For once this time, she referred to the man by his _real_ name. "Mr. Winters? We need to talk to you."

* * *

><p>The operations manager of the camp rubbed his hand through his hair restlessly as he sought to digest what he had just been told. Not only had the girls come clean about which one was Kaylee, they had also told him about an incredible tale of not only separation but also how they came to be miraculously reunited. Despite what Kaylee's sister had done to the other girl, by the time they were done explaining everything he couldn't help feeling sorry for them. He had been adopted as a young boy and hadn't even discovered the truth about it until he had reached young adulthood; he had learned about it merely by accident one day. He had been rummaging through his parents' attic after they had been killed in an auto accident and had found the adoption papers, along with his mother's old journal, detailing every part of their decision to adopt him. He could still remember the feelings of regret, shock, and even anger he had felt that he had never been told. Now, as the girls explained their <em>own<em> situation, those feelings had returned and he couldn't help identifying with their joy of discovery as well as their anguish.

He looked over at the two girls sitting across from him; marveling once more at their appearance – if they were wearing the same clothes, he would find it impossible to tell them apart. The only thing that slightly differentiated itself between them was a slight variation of inflection in Katie's voice. Other than that, they were a set of identical bookends. To think they had been separated for over a decade now – he couldn't even begin to fathom it. Despite his own adoptive parents' duplicity, at least _he_ had never been forced to be kept in the dark regarding any other siblings he had – he had been an only child. That didn't mean he couldn't put himself in their situation, though; how many days had he spent wondering what his real parents were like and yearning to know them? This changed everything.

"Wow," he murmured as the sisters finished their incredible tale. "I was looking for the truth from you, but I had no idea." He looked across his desk at the two girls who were sitting so close to each other, their shoulders touching. He thought himself a good judge of character – in his job, it was a valuable commodity – and he could tell these two girls were telling the truth, not only about this Sandra girl but also their unbelievable tale of separation. He was sympathetic to their situation, but at the same time one of the girls had definitely broken the rules.

He sighed. "I can assure you that this Sandra will be dealt with appropriately, and if your side of this story is validated, she will be banned permanently from returning," he told both girls. He looked at Katie as he added, "And I appreciate why you did what you did, Katie. But the fact remains that you took matters into your own hands and could have seriously injured another camper. That is a flagrant violation of our rules of conduct and calls for an immediate expulsion. I'm sorry, but I will still have to carry out my original decision." He turned his attention to Kaylee. "On the other hand, Kaylee, you appear to be innocent of any wrongdoing, so if you wish to remain here for the duration of your stay you may."

To his surprise, though, both girls vigorously shook their heads. "No!" they echoed loudly in unison. "You first!" they added, again as of one voice. Kaylee grinned at her sister. "Tell him," she urged her.

"No… We _want_ to BOTH be expelled!"

"What?" he asked, furrowing his brow in confusion. "Why?"

"Because we WANT to go home – with our _other_ father!" Katie explained as her sister nodded. "We WANT you to call them and make them come and get us!"

"Ahh," Winters exclaimed with a smile. "Now I get it." He curved his mouth up in amusement. "Well, aren't you two just the perfect little sneaks?" he complimented them as the two girls smiled. "Well, then, I think that can be arranged. I'll just say either you or Kaylee did it depending upon which father I call."

The two girls beamed at his response. "Yay!" they both screamed in delight as they stood up and hugged each other. "We can't wait to be expelled!" Kaylee told him as they jumped up and down ecstatically.

Winters laughed. "Well, I must say – that's certainly not the _usual_ reaction I get!" He stood up and walked over to the door to open it back up. "I'll make the calls now, then, and sound as stern as I can. In the meantime, you girls go get packed. You've both got quite an adventure to embark upon!"

As he watched them practically run from the room in glee, he had to smile. He still didn't quite condone what Katie had done for her sister but he could certainly understand it. And if he could help to reunite their family together, then, it would be one of the most satisfying things he had ever done. Shaking his head in amazement as he watched the two girls hurrying out the door, arm in arm, he turned to carry out his mission.

* * *

><p><em>AN: Thanks again to Gloria for being my beta!  
><em>


	9. Meeting the Other Father and the 'Enemy'

_A/N: The girls prepare to leave camp; Katie finally gets to see her other father again as well as the 'enemy.' Thanks to my beta again, Gloria, for looking this over!:)  
><em>

* * *

><p><em>Windsor, Canada – Same Time<em>

From the doorway of their hotel's bedroom suite, Alex silently watched Justin still deep in slumber. Even after the somewhat disappointing events of last night, he still couldn't help gazing a little wistfully as he studied the slim, pale form lying on top of the covers, his chest slowly rising and falling; Justin always _was_ warmer than he was at night, and typically by the time morning rolled around, he would kick the covers off and just lie on top of them in the cool air until he finally woke up around mid-morning. Alex, on the other hand, always seemed to be cold at night and was the early riser, finding the pre-dawn hours a productive time to sit down and sketch out some architectural ideas on white, old-fashioned, ruled legal paper before transferring them to his laptop's graphics program. It was a rather archaic way of conducting his work, but he preferred having paper in his hands when he was first hashing out his proposed ideas.

Today had been no exception, even though technically he was on vacation. He had come up with what he thought were some unique ideas for the new organic grocery being built on the east side of Chicago and had been studiously working for the past two hours, eventually saving the ideas onto his laptop for safekeeping. When he got back home, he would polish them up and ultimately use them in his pitch to woo the influential, well-known company into his firm's fold. He had no doubt in his mind that his campaign to win them over would be successful, because he knew architecture like the back of his hand and what each client was looking for, so much so in fact that he had made a very lucrative career out of it and had developed a solid reputation for consistent, innovative excellence in his work.

As he peered over at Justin, though, he only wished he could be so confident about _him_. While Justin hadn't discounted his marriage proposal outright, he hadn't exactly been singing its praises, either. His boyfriend had been adamant that he wouldn't give him a yes or no answer until he had spoken to Kaylee to get _her_ input, also. He sighed softly; he still felt Kaylee should abide by whatever decision her father made, but it seemed Justin wasn't about to make that determination alone, no matter how much he might want that. If he didn't love the damn man so much, he would have just told Justin that he didn't think he was taking their relationship seriously enough and to just forget about his proposal, but he couldn't do that. He was in way too deep already. Justin had gotten under his skin a lot time ago, probably from the first moment they had met, and his feelings had only deepened over time. He would just have to hope that he could convince Justin when they returned to Chicago that becoming his husband was the best thing for both of them as well as Kaylee.

_Kaylee_. Now THAT was another matter. He supposed the girl was all right, if you didn't mind the moody, perplexing type. She could be at times both clingy and independent, almost according to when the mood struck her, and he had to admit, her need to have Justin's undivided attention at times did bother him. After all, her father had needs, too – needs that a young girl couldn't understand or begin to meet. Justin was still a relatively young man and a passionate one, too, at least with his art. Alex sometimes wished he would be more passionate when they were making love, too; it was sweet, it was tender, it was satisfying enough – at least for him – but there was a certain fire missing in it. He could feel Justin holding back, almost as if he were saving his most intense emotions for someone else.

His face darkened as he thought about whom it might be; he was confident that Justin hadn't been seeing anyone else for the past couple of years during their relationship, so to him there could only be one answer to that. _Kinney_. Was that it? Was Justin still pining away for his ex after all this time? He knew his boyfriend never really spoke about him; whenever the subject was brought up even nonchalantly, Justin quickly steered the subject of conversation to something else, saying his relationship with his ex was in the past and he only wanted to move forward. But _were _they? _Could_ they? Could they move forward with this large shadow looming over them? Just what sort of hold did this Kinney have on him, anyway? He knew the other man couldn't have loved him any more than HE did, than he _does_. And besides, the two hadn't even seen each other in a decade now; how could this man still affect him, then, even now?

Alex sighed softly; there was only one man who could answer that question and he wasn't telling. He knew that look that Justin got occasionally – the same one he had received when Justin had told him 'not to push' his marriage proposal on him. The one that told him he was getting perilously close to some truth that Justin didn't want to discuss. The one that clearly broadcast that Brian Kinney was the one subject that was off limits. And _that_ was what continued to bother him, because it _also_ meant in his mind that despite the time that had passed, Justin's ex-partner still possessed some piece of his heart.

_Well, that's too bad, Kinney_, he thought with disdain as he continued to stare at the man who made his pulse race and his own heart flutter with a myriad of emotions. _I don't give up that easily. _ Justin was the one for him; he was sure of it. He had meant what he had said to him – Justin was his soulmate, the man destined for him, and he wanted to spend the rest of his life making sure he knew how special he was to him. Now all he had to do was convince _Justin_ of that – and Kaylee, the man's independent, skeptical, and headstrong daughter.

Biting back his disappointment over not having his offer of marriage agreed to, he nevertheless resolved to spend the rest of their private time together persuading the man he loved to say yes. Then when they_ did_ get home, all he would have to do was convince Kaylee of the same thing. _Yeah…Right_. Somehow he didn't think it would be that easy; he and Justin's daughter were civil at best. It would certainly help, though, to get Justin on his side first before he tried to persuade her as well.

He was about to turn around and order room service breakfast for the two of them when the sound of his boyfriend's cell phone pierced the quiet and Justin's eyes sprung open sleepily in surprise. Alex couldn't help grinning a little as he watched Justin's arm reach out blindly to the side of the bed to locate it on the nightstand, flipping it open as his fingers located it and bringing it up to his mouth as he lay prone on the bed.

"H'lo?" was the somewhat sluggish reply.

"Is this Justin Taylor?"

"Yeah," Justin responded as he rubbed his free hand over his face in an attempt to fully wake up.

"Mr. Taylor, my name is Perry Winters. I'm the operations manager for Camp Pineland."

At that statement, Justin became instantly alert as all sorts of dreadful thoughts rushed through his mind. Had something happened to Kaylee? He knew the odds were remote – the camp had a reputation for being extremely efficient and well-organized – but he couldn't help it; when it came to his daughter, who was rarely out of his sight, he was simply a perpetual worrywart. He immediately scooted up in the bed and sat up against the headboard, noticing for the first time Alex standing in the doorway watching him as he replied, "Kaylee? Is something wrong with my daughter?"

"No, no," Winters reassured him. "She's fine, Mr. Taylor. But we _do_ have a problem, I'm afraid."

"A problem? What _kind_ of problem?" Justin watched as Alex walked over and sat down gingerly on the bed next to him with a curious look on his face. Justin shook his head at him as if to say he didn't know what was going on. "Is she sick?"

"No, that's not it." From his vantage point behind his desk, Winters looked over at Kaylee and Katie, who had hurriedly finished packing and were raptly listening to every word he was saying. He winked at them before he responded, "I'm afraid it involves some disciplinary action we had to take."

Justin furrowed his brow. _Kaylee? Disciplinary action_? The two didn't even make sense together. "Disciplinary action? Mr. Winters, you're going to have to spell it out for me. Are you trying to tell me Kaylee has gotten herself into some kind of _trouble_ there? I find that extremely hard to believe." Alex's brows shot up at that statement; Kaylee, the "_She can never do any wrong"_ daughter was in some kind of trouble?

There was a slight hesitation on the other end as Winters replied, "Well, it wasn't entirely her doing, but she did respond in a way that is simply not acceptable, I'm afraid." Winters looked across his desk and had to grin – for two girls who were about to be kicked out of camp, they looked deliriously happy.

Justin frowned in concern. "Mr. Winters, will you please tell me what in the hell you're talking about? What exactly happened?" The more obtuse the man was being, the higher his blood pressure – and his worry – was rising.

"It seems that Sandra, Kaylee's roommate, was harassing your daughter, I guess you could even say bullying her; for whatever reason their personalities didn't mesh together from the start. And she suspected your daughter was behind some malicious activity involving vandalizing her canoe the other day and she retaliated by shoving Kaylee out of the cabin they shared last night. It seems that one of my employees – a very reliable one, I might add – observed your daughter coming out of the camp's kitchen area late last night with a can that was later identified as containing honey. Your daughter managed to rig the can so it was resting half-on, half-off the cabin's door ledge so that this morning when Sandra went to open it, it fell on top of her and completely coated her with the substance."

Justin's mouth dropped open; this didn't sound like _his _daughter. She was highly sensitive, yes, and at times would easily get her feelings hurt, but to retaliate against someone she felt had wronged her? That wasn't Kaylee at all. Kaylee _hated_ confrontations. "Mr. Winters, this is really hard to believe. That doesn't sound like my daughter at _all_. Is your employee POSITIVE that it was MY daughter? I'm sure you have several girls up there who would match her general description. And you said it happened last night. How could this person be so sure, then?"

"I can assure you, Mr. Taylor, my employee has been with me for several years and is highly ethical," Winters said, trying to put a little bit of effrontery in his voice to make it sound authentic. "There was more than sufficient moonlight last night to see your daughter's outline clearly; besides, there are security lights around as well. And, more importantly, your daughter admitted her culpability to me this morning when she was brought to my office to discuss the incident. No, there is no question that it was she who caused it."

Justin was shocked as well as dismayed. He definitely didn't approve of using malicious tactics to prove a point – he had learned his lesson back in the days of the horrid Pink Posse that violent responses to wrongs perpetrated against you may make you feel good and even euphoric for a brief time, but it never solved anything in the long run. On the other hand, though, he couldn't help sympathizing with his tender-hearted daughter. To be roomed with someone who was mean-spirited and a bully would have been torment indeed for Kaylee and should never have been tolerated.

"Mr. Taylor?"

Justin turned his attention back to their conversation as he asked, "What sort of 'disciplinary action' are you taking, Mr. Winters? I honestly can't say that I blame Kaylee for what she did, although I realize it may not have been the best way to handle it."

Winters looked over at the pair of excited little schemers and replied, "I'm afraid under our bylaws I have no choice, Sir. She will have to be expelled and you will need to come and pick her up as soon as possible."

Justin glanced over at Alex, who was trying to figure out what was going on. He had a feeling someone wasn't going to be happy with this turn of events, but he had no choice. "I see," he said quietly. "That's unfortunate. I was looking forward to my daughter being able to experience what your camp had to offer. I think it would have been beneficial for her to be exposed to other viewpoints and personalities there. I never anticipated this happening, though. That other girl sounds like she has no business being there, and I'm disappointed that your staff didn't do a better job of screening potential attendees."

Alex frowned; that didn't sound good at all. It sounded somehow like Justin was saying his daughter's camp vacation was ending. _What the hell_?

"I understand your concern," Winters replied soothingly. "We are proud of our reputation here at Camp Pineland, and we strive to provide a positive experience for every child. I can assure you – we do not condone nor tolerate this type of bullying behavior, and this other girl will be sternly dealt with. If we are able to substantiate your daughter's claims, she will be expelled as well and told if this ever occurs again, she will never be allowed to return at all. We do not leave any leeway for bullying here. Your daughter, by the way, doesn't fall under that same category. While I have no choice in my method of discipline, I _do_ understand why she did what she did. She just made a poor judgment call on how to handle it and should have come to me for assistance instead."

Justin bristled slightly; if his daughter said it happened, it happened. "I can assure you, Mr. Winters, if my daughter told you she was being bullied, that was _precisely_ what happened. My daughter doesn't lie."

Winters had to almost bite his tongue at that statement as he glanced over at the two girls who were about to engage in the biggest lie of all – switching places with their fathers and pretending to be each other instead. _If you only knew…_

"I'm sure you're right, Mr. Taylor," he replied politely as he smirked at the girls. "If you say your daughter doesn't lie, I believe you."

Justin could have sworn he heard what sounded like someone _giggling_. "Was that Kaylee?" he asked in confusion. If it was, she certainly didn't _sound_ upset.

"Oh, no," Winters responded hastily as he shook his head and placed a finger over his mouth in an urgent quest to get the giggling girls to stop. Fortunately, they understood and quieted down quickly. "That's a play that some of the campers are rehearsing down the hall."

Justin nodded. "Oh. Okay. Well, is my daughter all right? I mean, how _is_ she?" He imagined if she was about to be expelled, she had to be quite upset with not only the situation in general, but with herself, too, over her impulsive behavior. He _also_ knew that she was probably afraid of what he was going to think about her and that she was probably fretting over whether or not he would think any less of her for what she did. He was a little disappointed that she hadn't come to the operations manager with her problem, but he could still understand why she had felt a need to do something to defend herself.

"She's okay," Winters reassured him. "I think she's actually relieved in a way that the situation is out in the open now. I don't think she likes the circumstances under which she is leaving, but in an odd way, I don't think she's all that upset over having to leave." He grinned at the two girls who beamed back at him in nervous anticipation. Ever since they had come back to his office, they had been chattering nonstop about meeting their other father again. Their excitement was contagious – he almost felt like HE was going to be participating along with them. "She'll be fine," he told him. "And she'll be welcome to reapply next year if that's what you both want."

Justin sighed as he looked apologetically over at Alex, who was apparently beginning to realize that their first real vacation together with just the two of them was about to be changed and not for the better. "Well, that's good, at least," he applied. "Although I'll have to give that some serious thought. Where will I find her?"

"She'll be here in the main office with me. That is, as long as you're able to come sometime today. Otherwise, I'll bunk her upstairs in one of the empty counselor rooms out of the other girl's reach. I can assure you she will be quite safe until you arrive. Do you have any idea when I may expect you?"

Justin worried his upper lip with his teeth as he looked at Alex and said, "Could you hold on for just a moment and I'll check?"

"Certainly."

Justin let out a heavy breath as he cupped one hand over the bottom of his cell phone and turned to his boyfriend. "Kaylee's been expelled," he told him simply.

Alex's eyebrows rose; he had a feeling he wasn't going to like what Justin would tell him, since he gleaned part of the story from Justin's part of the conversation, but _expelled_? "She's been kicked out? Why?"

"Expelled, Alex," Justin corrected curtly; somehow he didn't like the term 'kicked out,' although he supposed it was the same thing. "It's a long story," he added, not willing at the moment to fully go into all the details. "The end result, though, is that I have to go pick her up." He hesitated for a moment, not really wanting to ask Alex but seeing it as the best alternative. After all, they were already in Canada and it was on the way back home. "Alex…" he began softly.

Alex sighed. "You want to pick her up in my company's plane."

Justin nodded. "I'm sorry," he told the other man. He really _was_ a little embarrassed to have to ask him for such a large favor, and he knew Alex had to be bitterly disappointed. Not only had he rebuffed his marriage proposal, but now he was asking to cut their vacation short and pick up his daughter on the way back to boot. "I know it's cutting our vacation short and I know how much you were looking forward to it. But I have no choice – their rules require that she be expelled from camp and I have to go pick her up right away, or else she'll have to sleep in one of the counselor's quarters." Alex blew out an exasperated breath between his lips as Justin added, "If you'd rather not, I guess I can rent a car and drive there."

Alex shook his head. "Justin, that's at least a five-hour drive," he pointed out. "That's not practical." He knew he was stuck. As much as he hated the idea of having to cut short their vacation, in addition to not obtaining what he wanted most of all, he _also_ knew Justin. The man wouldn't stop at whatever it took to pick Kaylee up as soon as possible. He knew Justin had fretted from the start about being separated for such a relatively long period of time from his daughter, and now this would increase his concern ten-fold. Besides, this just might be a good opportunity to show his boyfriend that he could be supportive of his needs. "Of course we can pick her up in the plane. I agree it's the logical thing to do."

Justin smiled at him, grateful – and just a little surprised – by his understanding. "Thank you," he whispered. His eyes clouded over slightly as he added, "I'm sorry I ruined your plans."

Alex reached over and took Justin's hand. "I won't lie, Justin. I _am_ disappointed that our vacation's over so soon. But I know how much you love your daughter, so I would expect nothing less from you." He gazed into the captivating blue eyes intently, so much so that Justin's face reddened in response as he added, "That still doesn't mean I'm giving up on what I want." The look he was giving Justin left no question as to what precisely he was referring to as he leaned over to kiss the soft lips briefly before pulling back. "Just remember that." And he meant it, too, he didn't know exactly how or when it would happen, but he had no intention of letting Justin's ex – whether he was completely out of the picture or not – come between what he wanted more than anything.

He quickly turned back to the camp's operations manager. "I will be there shortly," he told the other man. "Probably within a couple hours, in fact."

Winter's eyebrows rose in surprise; he could have sworn Kaylee has mentioned that they lived in Chicago when she and her sister had told him the truth about their scheme earlier. "I see," he said. "That will be fine; I'll be expecting you then."

As the two men concluded their conversation, Justin bit his lip as he watched Alex rise from the bed and walk quietly over to the closet to begin pulling his clothes out and drape them over the back of a nearby desk chair. He knew his boyfriend was disappointed over having to change their plans and he _did_ feel bad about it. Was he as crestfallen, though, as Alex was? Probably not, he had to admit. If he were honest with himself, he had come mainly because it seemed to mean so much to the other man. Oh, he had liked the idea of exploring someplace new, especially the art galleries. He and Alex did have a lot in common, and he enjoyed his company. Alex was an attentive, considerate lover and companion. As he slowly rose from their bed, however, and watched Alex walk into the bathroom to begin gathering their toiletries, though, why did he feel just a bit relieved, too? Was it because Alex was expecting more from him than he was willing to give him?

He sighed, knowing he wasn't going to get the answers he wanted today. Walking over to the dresser, he slowly pulled out the top drawer to begin gathering his briefs and socks. In time, he would have to wrestle with all those questions, but for now, he had a scared little girl he had to comfort and reassure.

* * *

><p>Back at camp, the girls stood up and gave each other a high-five as soon as Winters put the phone down. "One down, one to go!" Katie shouted to her sister in joy as they hugged each other, relieved that the first part of their plan had gone so well. "Now it's <em>my<em> turn!"

Winters smiled over at their exuberance as they did a little happy-type dance in a tight little circle. "Just remember, though," he cautioned them as he began to punch in the telephone number for the other father. "This is supposed to be a _serious_ situation; no more giggling. That kinds of gives off the wrong sort of vibes," he said teasingly.

Kaylee and Katie grinned at each other, their eyes sparkling in barely-controlled joy over their accomplishment so far. "The man's right," Katie declared. "Less happiness, more drama." She still couldn't help grinning at her sister, though, as they gave each other a brief, tight hug before they sat back down in their seats, each mimicking the other's posture as they both sat forward in their chairs, their hands clasped together in between their legs as they looked over at Winters expectantly for the execution of the next part of their plan.

"Well," he said with a grin. "That's better. Remember, this is serious business." The two girls nodded with a smile as he added, "Now, let's try Mr. Kinney." He finished pressing the phone pad for Kinney's number and waited rather impatiently for it to connect. After a couple of rings, he heard a click on the other end.

"Kinney."

"_Brian_ Kinney?"

"Yeah – you're the one calling my personal cell phone. Who the hell are _you_?"

Winters smirked. _Well, the man apparently doesn't mince words. Let's see how he responds to what I have to say_. "Mr. Kinney, my name is Perry Winters. I'm the operations manager for Camp Pineland."

"Katie?" was the instant response as Brian's caustic tone immediately changed to a softer one, inflected with concerned. "Is something wrong with her?" Despite his careful show of bravado around his friends and colleagues, when it came to his daughter – _Justin's_ daughter – that was an entirely different matter.

"No," was the reassuring response as Brian's breathing started up anew; he hadn't even been aware he had been holding it in. "She's fine. But there _is_ a problem, Mr. Kinney."

Brian urgently held up his hand for silence as Ted walked into his office with some papers, signifying he needed quiet. Ted nodded as he walked over and slid into one of the chrome and leather seats opposite Brian's desk as he noticed Brian's brows furrowed.

"What _sort_ of 'problem,' Mr. Winters? Please get to the point."

"Well, it seems that your daughter and another camper didn't get along too well and she took matters into her hands to resolve it."

Brian's eyebrows rose. "_Took matters into her own hands_? What the fuck does that mean?"

Winters' eyes widened slightly at the other man's 'colorful' language. Katie had warned him, though, that her father could be 'blunt,' and he was beginning to quickly realize that she had been right. He took a deep breath before explaining, "It seems your daughter and another camper haven't been getting along too well together and it's resulted in some altercations."

"Altercations? Will you fucking get to the point, Winters? Did my daughter beat the shit out of someone or something? If she did, I'm sure the other girl deserved it." Brian knew his daughter could take care of herself, but he _also _knew that unbeknownst to a lot of people, despite her hard outer shell Katie was also like most girls her age and her feelings could be easily bruised. If his daughter had difficulties with another girl at camp, he knew she had to have been provoked before she resorted to violence.

"Well, not exactly," Winters answered; he hastened to elaborate before Brian had another chance to say anything further. "It was mainly what I would call pranks. She is accused of drilling a hole in another girl's canoe and placing a can of honey over the door ledge of the other girl's cabin so it spilled onto her when she opened the door this morning."

To his consternation, he heard the other man laughing heartily in response. "Mr. Kinney, I assure you this is a very serious situation! This is not a laughing matter," he said stiffly. He noticed both girls eyeing him intently with a smile on their face before they couldn't help it and proceeded to giggle at his answer, no doubt figuring out that their father wasn't taking this quite as seriously as he was. Winters quickly shook his head, again signaling them to be quiet as they reluctantly complied.

"To hell it _isn't!_" Brian responded, thinking he had heard his daughter in the background laughing just like he had been. "I think it's fucking _hilarious_. I'm glad my daughter can take care of herself."

"But Mr. Kinney, this is _not_ the way to resolve this sort of thing! Someone could have gotten hurt."

"I can assure you, Mr. Winters," Brian said icily. "My daughter does not go around picking fights. If she did what you said she did, she must have had a good reason. What exactly was this other girl doing to her?" His face darkened at the thought of another girl hurting his daughter – _Justin's_ daughter.

"She has been accused of bullying her and kicking her out of the cabin they shared," Winters admitted as he looked over at the two girls who had finally quieted down. "Not _literally_ kicking her," he added quickly before the other man's temper exploded. "Just pushing her out last night and causing her to find other quarters temporarily. I can assure you, though, that your daughter is fine. In fact, she's here with me right now." _Both of them…_

Brian huffed out a tension-filled breath, not liking the sound of that at all. "And just where is this other girl?" he asked curtly. "What about _her_ culpability in this?"

"The other girl is being questioned about her role in this matter, and her misbehavior will be dealt with accordingly," he assured Brian. "If she has been found to be in violation of our bullying policy, she will be expelled from camp and banned for any further attendance in the future."

Brian set his jaw at the thought of his little girl being subjected to such behavior. He had wanted Katie attend the camp to gain more experience with her painting ability and engage in some of the other activities that she enjoyed, but he had also been ambivalent about letting her travel so far out of his sight. It seems that his concerns might have been justified now. "Well, you fucking well had _better_ take care of it," he warned the other man. "When I agreed for my daughter to attend your camp, I was under the impression that you were a first-rate establishment; I have serious doubts about that now."

"I can assure you, Mr. Kinney, we are; this is a very rare occurrence. And as soon as the matter came to light, we took immediate pains to address it." He glanced over at the two girls across from him before adding, "As a matter of fact, there's something else I need to discuss with you. While I can understand why your daughter felt like she needed to do what she did, unfortunately she did not follow proper protocol in handling it. She should have allowed us to investigate the matter instead of taking matters into her own hands. As a result, I'm afraid we have to follow the bylaws of the camp and issue an expulsion order for her."

Brian's blood pressure rose along with his voice as his eyes flashed in anger. "Let me get this straight, Winters; because some other camper saw fit to harass and bully my daughter and she defended herself, now she is being _expelled_? What sort of fucking nonsense is THAT?"

Ted, who was sitting across from his boss, stared over at Brian and actually felt somewhat sorry for the other man on the phone; like everyone else, he had occasionally felt the wrath of Brian Kinney; and when it came to his daughter – his and Justin's daughter – he was like a bear protecting its cub.

Winters closed his eyes in dismay, figuring that was going to be Kinney's response. But rules were rules, no matter _how_ arbitrary and unfair they may be. "I can understand your viewpoint, Mr. Kinney," he finally said, trying hard to stay calm. "But we cannot allow these girls to take matters into their own hands. Your daughter signed the page from the handbook signifying that she was to take any such issues directly to me or one of the counselors and she violated that rule. We have to maintain order here or chaos would ensue." He took a deep breath before adding, "I'm afraid you will need to come and pick your daughter up as soon as possible. When can I expect you?" He left no room for negotiation as he waited for Kinney's response.

From their place across from Winters, Kaylee and Katie looked at each other and held their breath. This was the last – and other necessary part – of the puzzle that needed to come together before the girls could start to execute the next part of their plan.

Brian sighed, still disgusted with their unbending rules. If that was the way they were going to be, though, to hell with it; he didn't want his daughter in such an intolerant environment anyway. "My daughter is there with you?" he asked.

"Yes, she is," Winters told him, wondering if he was insinuating that somehow he couldn't make sure one of his campers was kept safe. "She will either stay with me or be upstairs in the counselor's quarters until you arrive," he assured him. "Nothing will happen to her, Mr. Kinney."

"You'd better make damn _sure_ nothing happens to her," he told him almost menacingly. "Let me talk to her."

Winters sighed as he placed the phone on speaker. "I've got you on the speakerphone, Mr. Kinney," he told Brian as he lifted a finger to his lips in a motion and looked at the girls to signify they'd better watch what they said. He lifted his eyebrows at them as they nodded in understanding. "Katie's right here; go ahead."

Kaylee's heart soared at the first sound of her other father's voice that she had not heard in so many years. As he began to speak, her mind floated back to a time when she had heard that same voice when she was much younger; a voice from another time and place….

* * *

><p><em> Flashback – approximately 10 years ago<em>

"Oh, my God," Brian deadpanned as he walked into their kitchen and observed the mess near the eat-in breakfast counter. Just before the twins were born, he and Justin had had the kitchen remodeled so that a two-tiered, cherry-wood counter bar had been installed near the stove and refrigerator. Even though it looked a little silly, they had made sure that one of the levels on the eat-in counter was low enough so that two little girls would have a place to sit with them when they ate breakfast. They had even had two miniature chairs made especially for the twins so they all could sit together in the mornings and eat as a family before Brian rushed off to work. Brian had laughed at Justin's sentimental idea at first, but he was forced to admit to himself that he couldn't imagine not starting his day out now without their daily morning ritual. It was one of the best parts of his day, and it made the rest of the day so much more enjoyable. Now, as Brian stood in the kitchen doorway, he noticed a pool of milk and Cheerios on the floor under his daughter as she looked innocently over at him, and he had to purse his lips together to keep from bursting out laughing at the comical scene. Kaylee had a white mustache around her mouth and Cheerios stuck to her face as she looked over at him with a deer-in-the-headlights look and she blinked back at him with those large, baby-blue eyes that so reminded him of his partner.

At the first sign of her father's appearance, she flashed him a beaming smile that caught at his heart as she said brightly, "Hi, Daddy! Look what I did!"

Brian had to laugh now as he entered the room and noticed Kaylee's cereal bowl turned upside down on the counter with more milk pooled around the perimeter. He reached down and gingerly kissed his daughter on the one part of her cheek that wasn't adorned with Cheerios. "I see," he said with a smile. "You made yourself breakfast."

The little girl nodded.

"And just how did you get the milk?" he asked curiously, knowing that there was no way she could have opened the refrigerator.

"I took it out of my sippy cup," she explained helpfully as Brian noticed Kaylee's favorite cup – the one with Curious George on it – lying nearby on the counter on its side, the top off it and the container now empty. Justin must have forgotten to place it in the sink last night, he thought. His partner was normally very careful about not letting the girls go to bed with a bottle in their mouth, and he usually was very conscientious about emptying any leftover milk into the sink before they retired for bed. He knew, though, how tired Justin had been yesterday after being out of town for an art show in Philadelphia, so for once he must have abandoned his normal routine and merely left it on the counter, well within reach of inquisitive hands… It seems that their daughter had decided to take advantage of that fact.

"Where's your other Daddy, Princess?" he asked curiously.

"He's right here," Brian heard Justin say a little wearily as he turned to see Justin walking in with Katie's hand in his. The two slowly toddled over to Brian as Justin explained, "Someone was lying on the couch fast asleep a few minutes ago," he explained, knowing that Brian knew he never left the twins out of his sight normally. "It seems, though, that someone woke up," he added ruefully. "I'll have to be more careful." He picked Katie up and placed her down on the other miniature chair next to her sister as he sighed regretfully. If anything ever happened to his girls, he would feel awful.

Brian reached over to place a kiss on Justin's lips. "Hey, no harm done," he assured him softly as he smiled at him. "We may need to get another box of Cheerios the next time we hit the grocery, though; I think someone used the last of them up just now."

Justin grinned as he looked at the abundance of little 'O's' scattered on the floor and on the counter near their little girl. "Yeah, I think you're right." He turned to his other daughter. "How about Rice Krispies this morning, Sweetheart?"

Katie nodded with a smile as Justin walked over to the sink and procured a wet rag and some paper towels. He handed them to Brian, who began to clean up the mess around Kaylee and then stooped down to continue the task on the floor. As he stood back up, Justin placed a bowl of cereal with milk in front of Katie. "There you go, Honey." The little girl picked up her small, rubber-ended spoon and began to eat her cereal as Justin asked Brian, "What time do you think you'll be home tonight? I thought I'd fix something for dinner."

"About the normal time," Brian said as he picked up Kaylee's bowl and handed it to Justin. "You sure you want to cook?" he asked. "You still look a little tired from your trip."

Justin smiled at him. "I wouldn't look so exhausted if _someone_ hadn't kept me up most of the night."

Brian waggled his eyebrows and curled his lips under. "Well, we had to get reacquainted, didn't we?"

Justin blushed. "I was only gone for a couple of days." He could still feel the effects of their passionate lovemaking last night; since they no longer had any latex barriers between them, every movement, every thrust and every touch was intensified tenfold. It made Justin feel it for hours afterward, but he didn't dislike that feeling; in fact, it was pretty damn incredible.

"That was two days too many," Brian whispered huskily as he slid his arms around Justin's waist and kissed him passionately. The two girls didn't seem to pay them much mind as they kissed; their fathers participated in this activity on a frequent basis and it was a common sight for them. As he pulled back from Justin, Brian whispered, "I have to go into work early today. I'll be home as soon as I can."

Justin nodded as he gazed up lovingly into Brian's eyes. "I love you," he whispered softly.

"I love you, too," Brian whispered with a smile as he gave Justin one more quick peck on the lips before releasing him. He leaned down to kiss Katie on the cheek. "Bye, Princess," he said to her. "Take good care of Daddy while I'm gone." Katie nodded as she continued to enjoy her Rice Krispies.

He turned then to his other daughter, who was now thankfully cleaned up from her breakfast endeavor. His daughter reached her arms up above her head and Brian scooped her up into his arms briefly and kissed her soundly on the cheek, too. "Bye, Sweet Pea," he cooed to her as he hugged her tight and grunted before placing her back down in her chair. "I'll see you later." He smiled once more at Justin before he picked up his briefcase by the door and turned to go. "Better fix dinner by yourself tonight, unless you want to be wearing it," he advised teasingly as Justin rolled his eyes and grinned. He quietly opened the door to the garage and, with one last loving look at his family, closed it with a smile on his face.

_End Flashback_

* * *

><p>"Katie?" Kaylee heard the same melodious voice saying now, and her heart skipped a beat as she glanced over at her sister.<p>

"I'm here, Dad," she heard Katie say.

"Are you okay, Princess?"

Katie nodded, even though she knew he couldn't see her. "I'm fine," she reassured him. "But I'm ready to come home." She smiled over at Kaylee who returned her smile with one of her own.

"You sure you're all right?" Brian pressed, still not liking the idea of his daughter being harassed.

"Yeah," Katie repeated. "How soon can you come and get me, Dad?"

"I'll call the airport and get the jet ready," he told her, not wanting to waste precious time booking a regular flight. He looked over at Ted, who nodded, knowing he wanted him to call and get it gassed up and ready to go. He quickly rose from his chair and headed out the door to take care of it.

Brian normally didn't like to use Kinnetik's private jet for anything except pressing business, but he couldn't think of anything more pressing at the moment than getting his daughter home where she belonged. He should have never let her go off by herself in the first place, he thought, even though he knew how important it was for her to experience new vistas and other cultures. Being subjected to a bully, however, was not what he had had in mind when he had allowed Jennifer to persuade him to let Katie attend Camp Pineland. He would have to make sure that she knew what a big mistake that had been the next time he saw her. "I should be there in about four or five hours," he advised her.

Kaylee reached over to excitedly take Katie's hand as her eyes lit up; she was absolutely fascinated by listening to her father's voice and it brought back so many happy memories of him that she thought she had forgotten. She couldn't wait to see him again! Katie smiled at her as she said to her father, "That's great, Dad! I'll be watching for you."

"Good," Brian said over the speakerphone. "Let me talk to Mr. Winters again." There was a slight pause before Brian added, "I love you, Princess."

Both Kaylee's and Katie's eyes filled with tears at that statement; Kaylee longed to say those words back to her father but knew she couldn't yet – or could she? She looked at Katie who nodded encouragingly before she said to her father in a choked-up voice, "I love you, too, Dad. I'll see you soon."

Winters swallowed the lump in his own throat as he switched the phone back over to "private" to conclude his conversation with the girls' father. "Mr. Kinney? She'll be waiting in my office for you, and I'll take good care of her," he promised.

"See that you do," Brian said sternly, not impressed so far with his efforts in that regard. "I'll see you shortly."

Winters let out a sigh of relief as he replaced the receiver and looked over at the two look-alikes. "Well, looks like that's settled," he told them. "It sounds like Mr. Taylor will be getting here first. If you'd like, I can have some breakfast sent over here to my office, and you can eat upstairs in the counselor's dining room. Sound good?"

The two girls nodded gratefully as they stood up to go. "I'll have someone send for you, Katie, when your father gets here," he told the girl. Looking over at Kaylee, he added, "And it goes without saying that you need to keep a low profile until your other father picks her up, or this will all be for nothing."

"Don't worry," Katie told him as the two girls looked at each other. "We're not going to give anything away." _At least not yet_, she thought. There would be time later to divulge what was going on, but not before they put a lot of plans into motion first. She turned to her sister to add, "Come on. We've got a lot of work to do yet."

Kaylee nodded; they had started providing each other with a crash course into each other's lives, but if they were going to successfully pull this off, there was still a lot of work to do yet.

As the two girls left his office to walk upstairs and Winters picked up the phone to order some lunch to be brought up to them, he could sense both their anxiety as well as their excitement over the momentous adventure they were about to embark upon. _Good Luck, Girls_, he silently thought as watched them disappear.

* * *

><p>"No, her name is JR, not RJ!" Katie corrected her sister. "Remember – it's short for <em>Jenny Rebecca!<em>"

"Argh!" Kaylee growled as she closed her eyes briefly and shook her head in frustration. "There's so many names to think of! You have only a _few_!" she pointed out to her sister as they sat side by side at a small dining table in the counselors' area eating their breakfast. "Okay, okay… JR," she repeated as Katie nodded.

"And my cats' names are…?" Kaylee prodded her sister.

"Dali and Picasso," Katie responded quickly as her sister nodded before she plopped a slice of her orange into her mouth. She scrunched up her face as she watched Katie enthusiastically swirl her scrambled eggs in ketchup before taking a large bite. "That is _so_ gross!" she commented. "I can't believe you eat your eggs with ketchup!"

Katie grinned at her. "Better get used to it," she warned her. "Daddy always expects it whenever I ask him to make me scrambled eggs for breakfast!"

Kaylee's face took on a pained expression as she watched her sister polishing off the rest of her eggs with alacrity. She silently vowed NOT to ask their father to scramble any eggs while she was with him. "What else do you like to eat for breakfast?" she asked, hoping fervently that something more agreeable to her stomach would be a possibility.

Katie laughed, realizing why she was asking her. "Don't worry – I can eat 'normal' food, too. But our father isn't that great of a cook," she added. "Most of the time I either fix old-fashioned oatmeal with strawberries in the microwave or maybe a whole-grain bagel with some low-fat cream cheese. Dad normally doesn't eat a whole lot for breakfast – usually he just has some coffee and a piece of whole-wheat toast or two with a little soy butter and sugarless jam."

"Wonderful," Kaylee replied with a definite lack of enthusiasm, although that feeling didn't extend to actually meeting their father again. She hadn't eaten much of her own breakfast – just a few slices of her orange. She hadn't even touched her bagel. Her stomach had too many butterflies as she thought about her other father coming to pick her up soon. The closer the time was getting, the more her stomach was churning. What if she and her sister couldn't pull this off? What if somehow her father figured out what was going on and exposed them to their other father before they had a chance to implement any of their plans? Not only would they be back at the beginning, but their two fathers might be even farther apart than they were now.

"It's going to be okay, Kaylee," she heard her sister say as Katie reached over to grasp her wrist. "I know it's a lot to remember, but I've written most of it down. You can sneak a peek on the sly when you get confused about something. You have to try," she urged her. "Everything else depends on this."

Kaylee nodded, her blue eyes wide and expressive. "I know," she answered solemnly. "My stomach is tied up in knots, though. Isn't yours?" She couldn't believe her sister had eaten so much of her scrambled eggs and bacon; all that was left was a half a piece of buttered toast.

Katie shrugged. "Yeah," she admitted as she plopped the last bite of toast into her mouth and licked her fingers. "But we still gotta eat, though." She grinned as her sister shook her head in amazement over how much she could wolf down. "Besides, I have a lot less information to memorize than YOU do; all I have to do is remember your cats' names and that stupid Alex." She was silent for a moment before asking a little worriedly, "You don't really think Daddy's serious about him, do you?"

Kaylee shook her head. "Nah," she said with conviction. "Like I told you before – he's more interested in Daddy than Daddy is in him. I do think he gets lonely sometimes, though," she said softly, her heart twisting just a bit at the thought of her wonderful father feeling that way. She knew how much he loved her, and she loved spending time with him, but she also recognized that he was still young and needed the company of someone his own age. She knew instinctively, though, that Alex wasn't the right choice. It was almost as if the man was trying _too_ hard to win her over to 'his' side, but he was wasting his time. The right choice – the _only _one – was about to come pick her up, and it was up to both of them to right this horrendous wrong that had been made and bring their fathers back together again. She still didn't understand what had happened so long ago, but it was time to take care of it. "No," she said firmly. "He likes Alex, and I think Alex does love him, but Daddy doesn't feel the same way. His heart still belongs to our other father; I can feel it." _At least I hope so_, she thought silently, not wanting any doubt to spill out of her mouth for fear her sister would become concerned that their plan wouldn't succeed. It _had_ to…

"Good," Katie said with a relieved smile. She dug into her pocket to make sure she still had the 'cheat sheet' with important information about her other father, as well as Kaylee's cell phone number on her. "Now remember what I said – make sure no one is around when you call or text me. And if you get stuck about something, contact either Grandma Jen or Grandma Debbie – they'll both help you out."

Kaylee nodded, her heart beating rapidly in anticipation of their plan finally taking shape. She looked at her sister and softly said, "This has got to work, Katie. It just has to." A sudden thought occurred to her. "What if by chance both of our fathers show up at the same time? Is that possible?"

Katie's eyes widened as she considered that. Her father was flying in on Kinnetik's private jet. How was their other father coming? And how long would it take? Both fathers would have to drive up here to the somewhat remote camp location once they arrived at the airport. "Oh, no," she exclaimed in dread. "You don't think that would happen, do you?" she asked. "Isn't Daddy coming in from Chicago by plane, too?"

Kaylee bit her lip. "Well, we flew up here, and I heard Mr. Winters tell him to get here as soon as possible, so I think he would fly. It only took us about an hour from the time we left our apartment and we arrived at Cheboygan. It took you longer than that to get here, didn't it?"

Katie scrunched up her face as she thought about their flight time before and told her, "Yeah… About four and a half hours, I think."

Kaylee's face relaxed somewhat as she nodded. "Thank goodness! If Daddy leaves right away – and I think he will – he should be here a lot sooner than our other father then. That should give us enough time to do what we need to do.

Katie nodded. "Yeah. Now let's go over all the names again."

Kaylee groaned. "We've gone over them three times now, Katie! I know them like the back of my hand!"

Katie's eyes flashed in irritation. "Don't complain! If you don't get all the names straight, Daddy might figure out what's going on before we're ready! Is that what you want?"

"Of course not!" Kaylee told her gruffly. "But it's not very likely," she told her sister. "Why would he figure out that we know about each other? It's not like he's worried about it before." Her eyes inexplicably filled with tears as she thought about how he had likely not thought about her at all. She wanted so badly to see him again, and to get to know all about him, but she was also hurt by his lack of contact with her.

"I'm sure that's not true, Kaylee!" Katie cried out as she turned to look into her sister's troubled eyes. "I mean.. yeah, Daddy didn't tell me about you, either, but there has to be a good reason!"

"I suppose," she conceded grudgingly.

"This is our chance to find out," Katie told her firmly. "Okay?"

Kaylee nodded; they both wanted to see their other fathers so badly, and she knew her sister was right. Now was the time to find out exactly how each man felt about each other and to hopefully get them all back together as a family. "Okay." She took a deep breath as she began to rattle off slowly, "So Michael is Daddy's best friend, and Ben is his husband…"

* * *

><p>From the front passenger seat of their rental SUV, Alex glanced over at Justin as he drove toward the camp; he had been noticeably quiet since they had boarded his company's private plane earlier and had kept up the same sort of silence since they had entered the car twenty minutes ago. "Justin."<p>

The blond turned to peer over at him briefly before he returned his eyes to the road, his thoughts concentrated on his daughter.

"Yes?"

"She's going to be fine; I'm sure the man's taking good care of her."

Justin snorted softly. "Like he did last night when that other girl kicked her out of her own cabin and made her find some other place to sleep? Doesn't sound like it to me." His hands were gripping the leather steering wheel so tightly they were white from the effort as he pursed his lips together in disgust. He was still fuming over what the other girl had done to his daughter. Kaylee wouldn't hurt a fly – literally; she couldn't even kill an insect if it wound up in the brownstone. She would shoo a wasp out the window rather than harm it. To have her in the middle of some physical fracas with another camper was ludicrous, then; there was no way his daughter could have instigated or participated in something like that. And to be accused of drilling a hole in the other girl's canoe? Kaylee was the least mechanical person he knew – she couldn't even handle an electric skillet, much less a drill! And she was petrified of heights – she would have had to use some sort of stool or ladder in order to get that can of honey on the door's ledge. No, there was no way she could have done those things, and yet here she was, about to be expelled over accusations that she had done just that. "This is crazy," he muttered.

"What?" Alex asked curiously.

"That my daughter would be accused of those acts! She would never do something like that!"

Alex silently wondered about the veracity of that statement; as far as Justin was concerned, Kaylee could do no wrong. He preferred to believe that she was the consummate actor when it came to playing on her father's sympathy. He wasn't totally convinced that she was the innocent party in this whole affair, but at the same time he wasn't about to call Justin out on it; that was not a wise thing to do in light of his wish to get Justin to accept his marriage proposal. He only wished the man's daughter wasn't going to be part of a package deal. He bit his tongue as he replied soothingly, "I'm sure you're right. But the man wouldn't be stupid enough to have any harm come to her, not when he knows you're on your way up to get her."

"Well, I would hope not," Justin curtly responded, still peeved over the whole incident. The sooner he got his daughter out of there, the better. "We're almost there," he told Alex as he recognized the turnoff up ahead for the camp. He turned off at the sign indicating the camp's gravel driveway as Alex looked around curiously. "Wow, this is really out in the boonies, isn't it?" he asked, noticing the abundance of pine trees and fields surrounding the driveway, which seemed to go on forever.

"That's the idea," Justin said just a little more harshly than he meant to; he was so concerned with his daughter, though, he couldn't help it.

Alex sighed. "Justin, I'm not the enemy here," he said softly.

Justin let out a tense breath as he turned to glance over at Alex apologetically. "I know, I'm sorry," he told him. "I'm just worried about Kaylee, that's all." He turned his eyes back to the road as he felt Alex's hand on his arm.

"I know," Alex told him as he gave Justin's arm a brief squeeze. "She'll be fine, you'll see."

Justin nodded in response, but he was still preoccupied with his daughter's welfare as he finally saw the camp's parking lot coming into view. "Finally," he breathed out in relief as he pulled into the large, gravel expanse and slowed the car down to a stop in a spot close to the main building. He quickly unlatched his seatbelt and opened the SUV's door as Alex hurried to exit the vehicle and keep up with him; he tried hard to keep the disdain from his face at the hold this little girl had over Justin as he followed close behind him.

As they opened the two wooden double doors, Justin glanced quickly around to locate Perry Winters' office. He hurried over to the next door on the right that had a glass panel covered with a wooden-like blind as he knocked on the door firmly. "Come in," was the reply as he turned the knob to open the door, noticing a gangly-looking, red-headed man sitting behind a massive, oak desk. "Mr. Winters?" Justin said coolly, noticing immediately that his daughter wasn't in the room. "I'm Justin Taylor, Kaylee's father."

Winters rose from his chair, observing another man striding into the room with Kaylee's father. As he studied the blond who had spoken to him, however, there could be no doubt that he was the biological father of both twin girls; they were like feminine miniature versions of their father, except for the slightly darker skin. They had the same color hair, the same shade of blue eyes and the same slender body structure. He walked out from behind his desk to extend his hand outward. "Yes, Mr. Taylor, I'm the person who spoke to you earlier on the phone. Thank you for getting here so promptly."

Justin shook his hand briefly as he asked, "Where's my daughter?"

Winters smiled slightly in reassurance. "She's upstairs. She had some breakfast a little earlier, and I told her she could wait for you up in the counselors' lounge area. I'll go get her for you. Please – make yourselves comfortable."

Before Justin could follow him, Winters quickly strode over to the doorway, silently praying the man didn't trail along behind him. The last thing he wanted after all the planning he and the girls had done was for their father to discover two of them hiding upstairs from his view. To his enormous relief, the girls' father stayed back in his office. Taking a deep breath and letting it out, he hurried over to the stairs at the end of the hallway and sprinted up them, two at a time. His heart was pounding in excitement at the prospect of being a participant in the girls' wish to be reunited with their other fathers as he hurried up the steps.

As he bounded onto the landing, he rushed over to the two girls who were sitting in a somewhat beat-up, maroon, paisley-print couch that was normally used by the counselors during their leisure time; since it was mid-morning when the camp participants were typically involved with an activity of their choice, however, the room was totally empty except for the two twins seated side by side.

"Katie," Kaylee nudged her sister as she saw Winters hurrying toward them. Katie looked up as her heart began to race in expectation. The two girls stood up as the man hurried over. "Is he here?" Katie asked anxiously.

Winters nodded with a broad smile. "Yes, Justin Taylor is downstairs waiting for his _daughter_," he told them, looking over at Katie whose eyes were wide as saucers. "He's ready to take you home."

Katie bit her lip anxiously; she couldn't quite believe that the father she hadn't seen in years was downstairs, waiting to see her; or at least who he _thought_ was his daughter. Despite her previous bravado, now that he was actually downstairs, her courage was beginning to fade. "Kaylee… What if I mess this up? I'm not sure I can pull this off."

For once, Kaylee was the strong one as she sternly said, "Yes, you can, Katie! Remember you look just like me; we look the same, we sound the same. He'll never know, not if you play along like we rehearsed! Just remember everything I told you! And if you get stuck, call me! You can do it! You HAVE to! It's our only chance!"

Katie licked her lips nervously but nodded. "Okay," she said hesitantly. "I'll do my best." Her eyes bored into her sister's as she realized they would have to say goodbye. "I'm going to miss you, Kaylee," she told her sister. "Remember to wait for my call tonight. And don't forget the information I gave you! You've got a lot more to remember than _I _do!"

Kaylee nodded. "I will… And I'll be waiting to hear from you – 11:00! Don't forget!"

Katie nodded as she reached over impulsively to give her sister a tight hug. "Good luck," she whispered to her, the glimmer of tears in her eyes.

Kaylee nodded, a lump in her throat over the idea of them parting so soon after they had been reunited. She knew, though, that it was just temporary; and hopefully when they _did_ see each other again, it would be to bring them all together again as a family. "You, too," she whispered back to her sister as they pulled apart to stare into each other's eyes.

Winters cleared his throat to hurry them along, not wanting to take the chance that their father would come looking for them. "We'd better go," he told Katie. We wouldn't want your father to see you both up here. Oh, and by the way, there's another man with him."

Kaylee and Katie frowned. "Another man?" Kaylee asked as her eyes narrowed. _No, please, not HIM._ "What does he look like?"

"About average height, dark hair, dark blue eyes, I think," Winters supplied as Kaylee rolled his eyes.

"Great!" she muttered. "Alex the pest must have decided to come with him! That's just great! Why am I not surprised, though?" she growled in disgust. Leave it to her father's obnoxious boyfriend to show up with him.

"Daddy's boyfriend came with him?" Katie asked in surprise.

Kaylee nodded. "It sounds like him. It can't be Daddy; he's a lot taller than average and I'm sure we'd know it if they both showed up together unexpectedly. It has to be him." She sighed. "I was hoping Daddy would show up alone, but I can't say I'm surprised he's here. He has a habit of showing up at the worst times." Typically, Alex liked to appear unannounced at their brownstone's doorstep with some type of carryout for dinner, hoping no doubt to ingratiate himself further in their father's presence. She hated the way he always seemed to saccharine sweet around her when their father was around; as soon as he left the room, however, he normally simply ignored her until their father came back, which was fine with her. She had coached Katie extensively on the man's tricks, and was confident her no-nonsense sister wouldn't let him get away with much while she was gone. "Remember what I told you about him," she reminded Katie, who nodded firmly.

"I will," she promised as she reached over to pick up Kaylee's suitcase, choking down the strangeness of assuming her sister's identity and feeling almost ill now that the moment was close at hand – the moment she had dreamed of for so long. "I'll talk to you tonight," she whispered to her sister. "I'll be thinking about you."

Kaylee nodded, hating to see her go but knowing she must. Her eyes followed her sister's slight form as she and Winters walked over to the steps and soon disappeared from view. She sighed as she sat back down, suddenly feeling very alone but knowing her sister's thoughts would be with her until they could see each other again. Up until a few days ago, she didn't even know she _had_ a sister; now that she knew, though, she was going to miss her terribly. And while she was eagerly looking forward to seeing her other father again, she found herself mourning the loss of not seeing the father she loved so deeply waiting for her downstairs. "I'll see you soon, Daddy," she whispered aloud. "I love you." She clasped her hands in her lap, feeling small and vulnerable as she wondered what was going on downstairs.

* * *

><p>Justin tightly hugged his arms around his body as he leaned against the side wall, waiting anxiously for Kaylee to return with Winters. He wouldn't be reassured that she was really all right until he could see her with his own eyes.<p>

From his position on the couch, Alex watched Justin intently, knowing he was preoccupied with his daughter's welfare. He also knew that until this issue with his daughter was settled and she was safely on the way home with them that he could forget broaching the topic of marriage with Justin. He sighed softly in resignation as he heard footsteps softly approaching the office.

Justin glanced over to the door as he heard someone coming; a few seconds later, he saw Winters coming back in with his arm placed lightly around his daughter's shoulder. "Kaylee!" he cried out in shock as he noticed her appearance. "What happened to your beautiful _hair_?" Kaylee's pride and joy had always been her long, wavy, flowing hair; she was almost obsessed with ways in which to style it, enjoying using all sorts of glittery, shiny barrettes and scrunchies to hold her unruly main back. Now, however, all those hair accessories would be unnecessary as he noticed the short bob she was currently wearing. His mouth hung open in shock; he simply couldn't believe that Kaylee would have agreed to have her hair cut willingly.

Katie stood there agape like a statue as she finally got a look at the father that she hadn't seen in so long; he was just like he had appeared in the photograph, only a little older obviously. He had the same slim but fit built, with the same exact hair color and eye color as she and Kaylee did. He had the same perfectly-proportioned nose and the same full lips. There could be no doubt this man was her father. As he spoke to her for the first time, her heart sang at the sound of his voice. It was a strangely familiar voice, a _comforting_ type of voice. She smiled broadly as tears of joy came unbidden to her eyes. "Daddy," she called out softly as she hurried over to fall into his waiting arms and hugged him tight as she fell into his comforting embrace, wrapping her own arms around his slender waist and laying her head against his chest, feeling his heart beating strongly beneath her. She reluctantly pulled back after several seconds to look up into his eyes. "I'm so glad to see you, Daddy," she whispered with a choked voice, overcome with emotion.

Justin frowned in concern over his daughter's reaction to seeing him, worried how recent events had affected his tenderhearted daughter. "I'm glad to see you too, Sweetheart," he replied softly. "Are you sure you're okay?" He glanced over at Alex, who was studying their reunion silently. Justin returned his attention to his daughter as he cupped his hands around her face to force her to look into his eyes. "Kaylee?"

Katie smiled. "I'm fine, Daddy," she reassured him. "I'm just so glad you're here." She sniffled through her tears as she repeated, "You don't _know_ how glad."

Perry Winters blinked back some of his own tears as he witnessed the tender scene. _If only this man knew_… He cleared his throat. "Kaylee decided to take advantage of one of our counselor's talents, who's a hairstylist back home. She decided it was so hot up here without any air conditioning that it would be cooler on her if she got her hair cut." _There – that sounded plausible enough_, he thought in satisfaction as Justin thankfully nodded his understanding and didn't question his story.

He smiled down at his daughter. "I'm still surprised, though," he admitted. "I never thought I'd see the day when you would willingly cut your hair off."

Katie relished the feel of her father as she kept her hands around his waist and smiled. "I thought it was time for a change," she said simply as Justin grinned. She was grateful for Winters' quick thinking regarding how – and why – she had decided to change her hair style.

"Well, it suits you," Justin decided with a smile. "And it will definitely be a lot cooler when the humidity hits back home." Chicago, while near the lake, could be notoriously uncomfortable when late August hit.

For the first time, Katie broke apart from her father to stare suspiciously over at the other man_: _the_ boyfriend._ She immediately pegged him as the enemy and decided she didn't like him one bit. "What's HE doing here?" she asked bluntly.

Alex tried to keep the glare off his face as Justin explained, "Alex and I were actually in Canada when Mr. Winters called. He was nice enough to let me use his company's jet to fly down here to get you so I could arrive here faster."

Katie's eyes narrowed. "What were the two of you doing in Canada?" She didn't like the sound of that at all.

"Kaylee," Justin chided her, a little embarrassed at her sharp tone of voice. "We can talk about it in the car, Honey. Get your things and let's get out of here." He wanted to discuss in more detail what had happened between her and this bully, Sandra, but as long as she appeared physically okay, he preferred to discuss it in private and whisk her away from the camp immediately.

Katie gave Alex one more suspicious stare as she finally nodded and picked up Kaylee's suitcase to begin pulling it along behind her father. She paused as she approached Winters to whisper to him, "Thank you," as he nodded with a slight smile, the words conveying much more between them than her father would ever know.

"Mr. Winters," Justin said politely as the man nodded while the trio turned to go. "Good luck, Katie," he whispered when they were out of earshot. "Good luck to _all_ of you.


	10. Battle Plans and Whispers of Doubt

_Kaylee is reunited with Brian; Katie continues to get to know Justin better. The girls find out that impersonating each other may not be as easy as they think.:)_

* * *

><p>The trio trudged silently toward the rental SUV, Katie stealing glances frequently over at her biological father beside her; it was still kind of surreal after all this time to see him in the flesh. She had dreamed of this moment for so long that now that it was actually here she almost couldn't believe it was really happening. Of course, she hadn't even realized she had a twin sister until recently, either; so much had happened in the past several days that would change her and her family's life forever it almost made her head spin. Finally she and her sister had an opportunity right a terrible wrong. That is, if she and Kaylee could successfully put their plans into action – <em>and<em> if the other man walking right in front of them could be dispatched in short order. Her brows narrowed as she secretly took a good look at Alex – _the interloper_. Her heart had stopped in her throat earlier when her father had advised her that he and Alex had been in Canada at the time that Mr. Winters had called them. A terrible thought occurred to her just then – didn't they have gay marriages in Canada? If that man had convinced her father to actually marry him while they were gone… Just the thought made her heart ache. _Please… Not that._

She bit her lip, wanting so badly to find out as they arrived at the SUV and her father turned to look at her. He smiled slightly in reassurance, no doubt noticing the worry in her face as he unlatched the back door of the vehicle and grabbed the handle of her suitcase to swing it up into the SUV.

"Why don't you get in the front with me, Kaylee?" Justin told her quietly. "I think we have a lot to talk about."

_Boy, if THAT isn't an understatement, _Katie couldn't help thinking as she nodded and walked around to open the front passenger door, although her father's statement made her more worried than ever. She looked over her shoulder to see Alex scowling at her before, realizing she was watching him, he pasted a more neutral expression on his face and opened the back door to enter the SUV.

As Justin opened his side of the vehicle and got in, he studied his daughter as the two of them latched their seatbelts. She seemed different somehow, but he couldn't figure out just why he felt that way. While he was concerned that Kaylee had tried to take matters into her own hands regarding the bully she had encountered – which still perplexed him, since that wasn't _like_ his daughter – he was also worried that she had suffered some sort of mental trauma as a result of what she had gone through. Winters had briefly filled him in on what had happened, but he wanted to hear the entire, unabridged version from her.

As Justin started up the car and pulled out of the parking space, Alex fumed silently from the backseat. Not only did he presently feel like some toddler having to be relegated to the rear of the SUV, he felt a distinctive hostile vibe coming from Kaylee, even more so than usual. _Cheeky little shit_, he couldn't help thinking in disdain as they proceeded to leave the camp. Why did he have to go and fall in love with someone who had this sort of baggage with him? _Damn it._ He fleetingly thought of forgetting everything and simply chucking his relationship with Justin once they got back to Chicago – after all, he was a successful, attractive guy and could have his pick of any number of men – but he knew he was simply kidding himself. As much as he would have preferred to have been involved with someone whose personal life was less complicated, he _also_ knew he was hopelessly in love with the damn man and there wasn't a thing he could to do about Kaylee. If he really wanted Justin to marry him – and he did, with all his heart – then he would have to find some way to at least tolerate the brat that came with him.

He sighed deeply in resignation as they began to travel back down the gravel drive toward the main road. As much as he had hated to cut their vacation short, at least things might go back to a semblance of normalcy once they returned to Chicago. Once they were back to more familiar territory, also, he could work more diligently on persuading Justin to accept his proposal. The worst part was having to deal with Kaylee's attitude toward him; something told him she was going to be much harder to convince than her father was. He bit his lip pensively as he watched pine tree after pine tree pass by the passenger window, his thoughts swirling inside his head as, just like with one of his architectural jobs, he began to mentally formulate a tentative plan for _Operation Marriage_ to commence as soon as they were home again. He felt it was necessary to begin soon, while the subject was uppermost in Justin's mind. He could be quite persistent when the need arose, and he couldn't think of any other campaign more important than this one.

As Justin steered the vehicle out onto the main road, he glanced over at Kaylee to find her staring over at him as if she were seeing him for the first time. It was the same sort of look she had given him earlier when she had fallen tearfully into his arms, again making him wonder just what sort of ordeal she had been through. He was beginning to profoundly regret letting his mother talk him into sending her to the camp. If she had suffered some sort of permanent emotional effects from what that other girl had done to her, he would never forgive himself. He had had reservations enough initially about letting her go anyway, and this experience had merely cemented his previous misgivings.

He looked at her tenderly before saying quietly, "Kaylee?"

"Yes, Daddy?" she replied softly, the name _Daddy_ making Katie's heart flip. She had never thought she would be here sitting next to her biological father, much less calling him the name that Kaylee had instructed her that she commonly used to address him with.

"You want to tell me in your own words now what exactly happened at the camp, Honey?"

Katie shook her head to Justin's surprise as she said, "First I want to know why you and _him_ were in Canada." _Please don't let it mean what I'm afraid it means…_ _I know you can't love HIM. _

"Kaylee…"

From the backseat, Alex's head popped around in disgust at the girl's accusatory tone; _what was this girl's problem_?

"Daddy, I want to know," Katie insisted. Perhaps she _didn't_ want to know, but she definitely NEEDED to know. She and Kaylee would no doubt have a lot to talk about it as it is; she desperately hoped that marriage – at least to _this_ man – wasn't going to be one of their topics they would need to cover this evening.

Justin sighed, realizing he would have to satisfy his daughter's curiosity before they could proceed with what he wanted to know himself. He glanced back a little uneasily at Alex, wondering how much to divulge, before he decided that now wasn't the time to bring all of it out in the open. Besides, nothing had been decided yet, and his daughter's well-being was more important. "We were just on a vacation in Windsor, that's all," he assured her with a slight smile. "Alex thought it might be a good time to get away while you were at camp to do a little exploring."

Katie looked into her father's blue eyes. _Yeah… Right. _"That's all?" she prodded, fervently hoping that that was all there was to it. She had seen the strange look her father had given Alex, though, and it had made her instantly suspicious as well as curious about what it meant.

To her enormous relief, Justin nodded. "Yeah, Kaylee, that's all," he assured her. "We just thought while you were at camp that it would be a good time for us to get away, too."

_Bull,_ she couldn't help thinking. _That 'vacation' had the asshole's name all over it. _She wasn't buying it for a second; if anyone had suggested getting away, she instinctively knew it would have been the guy in the backseat. Kaylee had warned her about how clingy he was with their father, how he never even liked for him to go out of town, and how he always wanted to know their father's plans when he did. The man was up to something, she just knew it, and she decided that it was going to be her obligation to find out exactly what it was. The only question would be how quickly she could find a way to get rid of the guy so the man that her father _really_ loved could replace him. In her mind and in her sister's, there was no question of _if_; it was _when_.

"That's all?" she repeated as she stared over at her father stubbornly. "Just a vacation?"

Justin sighed. How did they get onto this subject when he wanted to find out more details about what had happened at the camp? "Yes, Kaylee, that's all; just a vacation. Now don't change the subject, young lady; I want to hear all about what happened with this Sandra girl and how it escalated to where you wound up getting expelled. Spill."

Alex was steaming inside that Justin hadn't had the balls to bring up the _real_ reason why they had gone away, at least the reason why _he _had wanted to go. He had just had the perfect opportunity to bring up the subject with Kaylee and had chosen to ignore it, at least for now. "Justin…"

"Not now, Alex," Justin said quietly, his tone of voice making it clear that he knew exactly what Alex was trying to do and having no part of it. He glanced in the rearview mirror and met Alex's eyes, noting the firm set of his jaw as they locked brief gazes on each other. He knew his boyfriend wasn't happy having to take a backseat to his daughter – both literally and figuratively – but his daughter had to take priority at the moment. Satisfied that the other man would remain silent for now, he peered over at Kaylee who was looking at him curiously. "I'm waiting, Kaylee," he said as he returned his eyes to the road.

He heard a soft sigh as she began, "Well, Mr. Winters already told you about Sandra."

Justin nodded. "Yes, he told me she was bullying you. What exactly did she do?"

Katie was glad that her sister had filled her fully on what had happened. She pretty much knew most of the story from a lot of what she had seen herself, but she had been sure to get all the other details from her sister before they separated. "Well, she was assigned to be my roommate. I wanted to be friends with her, I really did, but from the moment she saw me, she had it in for me. First she shoved me off my bed because she preferred mine to hers, even though they were exactly alike. Then she made fun of the way I dressed and the way I try to always look nice, even in the worst of conditions. I mean, did you see the vests they made us wear? _I_ think she was jealous of me," Katie declared a little smugly. Despite the seriousness nature of their discussion, Justin couldn't help grinning just a little at her comments – that was typical Kaylee, always meticulously dressed and confident that she looked her best at all times. "She was always saying mean things to me and making fun of me, even though I hadn't done anything to her."

Justin felt his blood boil over the way the other girl had treated his tender-hearted daughter as he commented, "At least not yet, anyway. " He turned to look over at her as he stopped for a red light. "What about the canoe, Kaylee? And the can of honey?" He could actually see the funny side of the pranks that his daughter had pulled, but he was trying to stress to her how taking matters into her own hands wasn't the way to resolve them. He had learned that himself the hard way through Cody and his stupid Pink Posse idea, and it could have ended up disastrously as a result. "Did you do what Mr. Winters said you did? He told me you admitted to it."

Katie was silent for a moment, trying to figure out the best way to answer that question. Truthfully, she HAD. But as "Kaylee," she hadn't. Mr. Winters had already told her father that as "Kaylee," she had, though. "I had to do it, Daddy!" she cried out softly, trying to put herself in her sister's shoes. If she was answering as herself, she would have been _proud_ to admit it; as Kaylee, though, she had to assume a much more vulnerable-sounding role. "She wouldn't leave me alone and I just snapped!"

Justin stared over into her blue eyes, so reminiscent of his own as he gently told her, "I can understand that. But you went about it the wrong way, Kaylee. It might have seemed amusing at the time, but the other girl could have gotten hurt." He eyed her curiously. "By the way, what exactly did you do to her canoe? Mr. Winters merely told me that you vandalized it somehow. What happened?"

From his position in the backseat, Alex silently listened to the father-daughter conversation and had to bite his tongue. Justin was being way too lenient with her and as usual, Kaylee was milking it for all it was worth. _Give me a break_, he thought, seething. _I'd ground the brat for at least a week; maybe then I'd have a chance to be alone with her father for a change_. Somehow, though, he had a feeling he wasn't going to get his wish as he continued to listen to their exchange. He sighed again in disgust.

While Justin was too caught up in trying to determine what had happened to notice Alex's sound of disapproval from the backseat, Katie instantly picked up on it. She wanted to throw a scathing look his way, but knew it was more important that she and her father hash out what had happened at the camp first. Then she could deal with getting rid of the troublemaker that stood in the way of her two fathers getting back together. "One of the other girls knew how to use a drill and I asked her if she could drill some holes in Sandra's canoe before we went down to the lake for our class. The number of the canoe we were assigned to was written down on a piece of paper on the announcement board," she explained, remembering how she had managed to figure out which one was Sandra's. "I…," she started to say before she corrected herself, "I mean, _SHE_ took the drill and put a couple of holes in it before we got down there, and when Sandra got in hers and took it out into the lake, it sank. She just got wet, that's all," she said by way of defense. "She didn't get hurt."

"And the can of honey?" Justin pressed. "You're afraid of _heights_, Kaylee! How did you get the can of honey above the door, then? Mr. Winters told me one of his employees saw you coming out of the back of the kitchen area with a can that resembled one of their honey containers. What about that?" The whole thing sounded so implausible to Justin; even if Kaylee _had_ enlisted someone else to help her with drilling holes in the canoe, unless she had help with the can of honey there was no way she would have gotten onto a ladder. She wouldn't even use a _stepstool_ in the kitchen for items high up on the shelves. She always made sure that he placed grocery items and kitchen dishware and utensils she would need within easy reach, or else she waited for him to get home so he could get them for her. She wouldn't dare set foot on any type of ladder. "How did you manage it, Kaylee? You're scared to death of heights, even a few feet off the ground." Before she left for camp, Justin had mentioned that the facility had a zip line installed, and when he had suggested to Kaylee that she might want to consider trying it, she had looked at him aghast and her face had literally gone white at the thought. He had actually expected that reaction, but one of the reasons why he had agreed with his mother's suggestion in the first place was so his daughter would experience new activities and perhaps gain some more confidence in herself and her athletic abilities. He had never expected her new 'experiences' to include vandalism and pranks, however, no matter how justified. "Kaylee?" he asked again as his daughter remained stonily silent and he pressed the gas pedal as the light turned green. "I want an explanation as to how you did that, because I find that very hard to believe."

_Shit_, Katie thought. How was she supposed to answer _that_? "Uh… I had help," she explained after a break pause as her mind raced for the details. "I did go get the can of honey, but another girl put the can up over the door while I stayed around as the lookout to make sure Sandra didn't wake up while she was doing it."

Justin pondered that explanation; it certainly made more sense than Kaylee stepping up on a ladder that had to have been at least a six-foot model in order to place the can up there herself. "Okay. So what about this other girl who helped you? Did she get punished as well?"

Katie hated to dig herself into an even deeper lie, but she was trying to look at the bigger picture. She would do anything to get by this and move on to the more important issue at hand: getting to know her biological father better and finding a way to get both of her fathers back together. "Yeah," she found herself saying. "She was expelled, too. I kind of felt bad for her, because she was only trying to help me, but Mr. Winters said we were both at fault, so we had to be treated the same." It was sort of the truth, anyway, if she was talking about Kaylee.

Justin nodded as he kept his eyes on the road. "I think that's only fair," he said, still feeling a little bad that someone who was merely trying to help his daughter defend herself had wound up having to leave camp, too. "But you do understand that you should have gone to Mr. Winters with this, or at least talked to a counselor instead of taking matters into your own hands?"

_Oh, please_, Alex thought as he continued to silently listen in shock. _The little shit needs to be punished, and she's going to fucking get away with it!_ He couldn't believe it. Justin normally was a very secure, assertive person, at least when it came to everything else; it was one of the things that he had initially found so attractive about him when they had first met – that and the fact that the man was simply beautiful inside and out. When it involved Justin's daughter, however, it was like he was like a totally different man.

"Yeah, Daddy," he heard Kaylee say. "I know I handled it wrong. I'm sorry," she whispered, trying hard to imagine how Kaylee would react. "But she made me so mad!"

"I know, Honey," Justin said softly as they neared the regional airport. "But next time, you go to the proper authorities with your concerns. Don't try and resolve things like this on your own, for your sake as well as the other person, okay? Promise?"

Katie smiled. "Okay," she said, nodding with relief. "I promise."

Justin nodded back at her, considering the matter closed. He realized he hadn't even ascertained what punishment the bully herself has received; he made a mental note to check on that once they were back home. For the time being, he was just relived that his daughter hadn't apparently suffered any lasting effects from her ordeal. "You sure you're okay?"

Katie nodded firmly. "I'm fine, Daddy. Really. But I'm really glad to be going home." As Justin nodded at her with a tender smile and returned his eyes toward the road, she suddenly found herself overcome with emotion as it sank in. _Home. _She was actually going _home_ with her other father. She was going to be living in the same place with him, getting to know his daily routine: what he did when he got up, what his typical day was like, what he enjoyed doing for fun. She would see him every day and would be able to forge some new memories with him. Most of all, though, she would get to watch him _paint _and see where her love of art came from. It was both exciting as well as a little frightening to be going to a place she didn't really know. But she couldn't wait. Her and her sister's plan was finally set in motion now, she thought, as she turned to gaze out the side window, the heavily forested area quickly giving way to fast food restaurants, small shops and gas stations, signifying they were approaching the small airport that would take them back to her other father's home.

The next part was now up to Kaylee; would she be able to remember everything she needed to know when their other father arrived to pick her up? Would she be able to convince him that it was her instead? It was one thing for her to impersonate her more timid sister; would Kaylee be able to be successful as well? She could only hope for the best, or all they had worked so hard for might be all for naught. She sighed softly, wishing she could retrieve Kaylee's cell phone (they had switched before she left) from her pocket and text her a "good luck" message. But she was too afraid that her father would question what she was doing and she couldn't risk it. She couldn't wait to call her sister tonight at the appointed time, though, to find out what had happened after she left. _Please let this work_, she silently prayed as they neared the airport.

* * *

><p><em>Two Hours Later <em>

"No, Cynthia, I am NOT going to redo those mockups AGAIN! I've changed the theme twice now; if Leo Brown wants to change it for the _third _time, tell him to take one of his damn shoehorns and stick it up his _ass_! You got it?" Brian didn't even wait for Cynthia to respond before he promptly snapped his cellphone shut. Brian huffed out an angry breath; the man never seemed satisfied lately, no matter how accommodating he tried to be. He was in the enviable point now, anyway, where he could pick and choose who some of his clients were, and the man, whose account had been with him for several years now, was beginning to grate on his nerves. Let Brown stew for a while; he had other things on his mind at the moment that didn't involve work.

He noticed up ahead the sign indicating he had finally arrived at the camp; ever since he had gotten that call from the camp's operations manager, he had found it hard to concentrate on anything except his daughter. He knew Katie could take care of herself, but he still found the entire circumstances disturbing. The fact that some other child would take advantage of her larger size to bully his daughter was incomprehensible to him. He shook his head in disgust. He had had mixed feelings from the outset about Katie attending the camp; while he had been a little nervous about her traveling so far away from him, he had still thought it would be a good chance for her to make new friends and hone her athletic skills. And he knew that with other people Katie could be somewhat caustic at times, even downright blunt; tact wasn't normally in her vocabulary. He thought that by exposing her to a new environment and new cultures, and placing her somewhere unfamiliar to her she might develop a little more empathy toward others, even though he knew that deep down his daughter was actually a little insecure herself.

Apparently his good intentions had backfired, though; what he thought would be a learning experience for her had turned out to be a _different_ type of experience – one involving the sad reality of bullying. Well, at least he was secure in the knowledge that if anyone could take care of herself, it was Katie; he supposed she must have come by her feistiness naturally, because it reminded him of someone else with the same sort of qualities – _Justin_.

He sighed as he turned down the gravel drive toward the camp; why did everything tend to remind him of Justin? God, it was times like these when he wished he could have the wisdom of his ex-partner's judgment and point of view. He swallowed the unexpected, painful lump in his throat that felt like a knife was stuck through it; the word _ex-_partner made his heart ache, even after all this time. Justin was always the more insightful one in their relationship, at least when it came to sorting through emotions. He never did take any bullshit from anyone and he could always cut right through to what someone was _really _trying to say. Funny, though, how the one time that quality would have been the most helpful – during that awful Ethan Gold fiasco – Justin's ability to do just that had failed him, because if he _had_ been able to use his gift wisely, he would have known just how much he had loved him the whole time and why he had felt compelled to do what he had done to him.

He let out a mournful sigh again; yeah, he had showed him just how much he loved him, all right. He had gone out and fucked some insignificant guy whose name he didn't even remember now. How could he have thrown everything away by letting his damn hormones take over for one brief moment of physical release? He closed his eyes briefly as the pain washed over him anew. How he wished he could talk to Justin right now and hear his voice again. He knew his daughter longed for her biological father, too; it was revealed in her drawings and in her tone of voice every time she asked about him and he promptly but politely dismissed her questions. He knew eventually the entire truth would have to come out; he _wanted_ her to know everything – she had a right to know. That didn't mean it wouldn't be painful as hell when he did sit down and explain everything to her. How was he going to explain, though, how he had fucked up a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity in one senseless, irretrievable moment? Perhaps that was why he hadn't told her a lot about his relationship with Justin – it was still too painful for him to discuss, even with his own daughter. One day, perhaps soon, though, he would have to face it. For now, though, as the gravel parking lot crunched under the tires of his rental Land Rover, his thoughts strayed back to the present. He would have to take things one day at a time, just like he always had.

Getting out of the SUV, he paused for a moment to place his hands at the small of his back and bend his torso backward to loosen some of the stiffness as he gazed over at the large reception building where Winters' office was located before he began to walk over to the entrance doors. He took a moment to get his bearings once he got inside before he located the door marked with the manager's name and turned to open it.

Winters looked up from his desk as the door opened and somehow he instantly knew that this was Brian Kinney. Even though he was dressed casually in a black leather jacket, dark blue denim jeans, and a black tee-shirt, the tall, handsome man was impeccably attired and just screamed out 'confidence' from his style of dress down to the way he assertively stared over at him with an unflinching gaze. "Mr. Kinney, I presume?" he said as Brian nodded curtly.

"Yes. Where's my daughter?" he asked without any further preamble.

Winter stood up, somehow knowing Kinney wasn't interested in any further niceties such as a handshake. "She's upstairs in the counselors' area; I'll go get her." Brian nodded again somberly as he walked by him. "There's coffee over there if you want to have a seat; it'll only take a few minutes."

"No, thanks – I just want my daughter," Brian said brusquely; his only focus at the moment was on making sure Katie was okay. He watched as Winters nodded and turned to leave, giving him an opportunity to examine his surroundings a little further. The inside of the room was made of honed pine logs, just like the exterior; there were two bulletin boards on opposite sides of the walls stuffed with photos and memos of all kinds. He walked over to one of them to idly stare at some of the pictures of attendees performing various activities such as hiking, painting, archery, horseback riding and canoeing. All of the participants seemed to be having a grand time; how, then, did such a seemingly innocuous experience wind up being such a disaster? He _knew_ why – the man had allowed an uncouth, overbearing bully to torment his daughter. He vowed to make this the last time he allowed Katie to be so far away from him and out of his control.

He turned as he heard a soft commotion directly outside the door and the telltale sound of wheels clacking on the hardwood floor as he looked up to see Winters standing behind his daughter, his hands lightly resting on her shoulders as if he were reassuring her about something. As Brian stared into his daughter's face, it seemed both familiar but also different somehow. He realized that it was the expression she was wearing; it was almost as if she were seeing him for the first time, which he knew was ludicrous. But she just stood there, almost in shock, as he noticed with some concern that her eyes were filling with tears. "Katie? Are you okay, Princess?" he asked softly, his former demeanor with Winters totally transformed now that he was getting a good look at his daughter. "Come here," he softly instructed her as he held his hands out toward her.

Kaylee bit her lip as she blinked to try and keep the tears from falling, but it was no use. She had longed for this day and it was finally here. The man standing in front of her with his arms outstretched toward her was her other _father_; the man she hadn't seen in years. She didn't quite know how, because she had been fairly young when she had last seen him, but as he stood there, he seemed instinctively familiar to her. The voice, the handsome face; they resonated deep inside her and brought forth a rush of warm, happy emotions as her heart skipped a beat. Quickly, she broke from the other man's light hold on her to rush over and practically fall into her father's arms as she molded her body against his and held onto his waist tightly, her head cradled against his muscled, flat stomach. She inhaled the scent of his masculine, expensive cologne, instantly recognizing it as the same brand of cologne that her other father wore. Was it just a coincidence? Somehow she didn't think so.

Brian frowned at his daughter's emotional reaction to him as he wrapped his arms around her back and hugged her back tightly. Katie normally tried to appear stoic, especially in front of others, although in private she was much more affectionate toward him than people realized, so for her to display this sort of response in public was a little worrisome to him. He looked over at Winters almost accusingly as he softly asked her, "Katie? Are you all right?" An endearment he occasionally used in private to call her with – _Chiquitita_ – was left unspoken as he placed his chin on top of her blond head and waited for her to answer him. For just a moment, he could almost imagine another blond head was nestled under his chin as he closed his eyes briefly to allow the pain to ease before he heard her finally respond.

"I'm so glad you're here, Dad," Kaylee softly told him in a choked-up voice, using the title that Katie had advised she normally used with him.

Brian pulled back just enough to gaze down into the tearful blue eyes and frowned; yes, this was definitely _not_ his daughter's normal reaction to adversity, at least not out in the open. She was almost acting as if she were seeing him after a long separation, not after just a few days. He placed his left hand on Katie's elbow while he cupped a cheek with his right to say to her urgently, "Katie? What's going on? Did that other girl hurt you? Tell me, Katie."

From his place nearby, Winters watched in awe as the formerly assertive, caustic man he had first met a few minutes ago completely dissolved into someone totally different in front of his daughter. _If you only knew_, he couldn't help thinking, as he found himself blinking back sentimental tears over Kaylee's reaction to seeing her father again for the first time after several years. He knew he would remember being a part of this for a long time to come as he continued to watch the tender scene playing out in front of him.

Kaylee impulsively threw her arms around her father's neck to pull his head down, and hugged him tight again as he leaned down to hear her whisper in his ear, "I'm fine, Dad; I just want to go home now."

Brian nodded as they pulled back to stare into each other's eyes and he smiled at her tenderly. "You got it. I'm ready when you are. Let's get out of here." He knew they would still need to discuss what had happened, but for now it could wait until they were alone. He placed his arm around Kaylee's shoulders as the two of them walked toward the door; Brian let go of his daughter to grasp the handle of her rolling piece of luggage as he took a moment to ask Winters, his voice hardening slightly, "What about the other girl, Winters? The bully?"

Winters replied, "She's been taken care of, Mr. Kinney. The counselors determined that she was the instigator in this case and she has been permanently expelled from ever attending here again." He hesitated a few seconds before he offered, "Your daughter is welcome to return any time she…"

"Spare me," Brian told him curtly, his voice like steel. "She will not be coming back here again. I've seen enough." He gazed down at his daughter, who wrapped her arm around his back and pulled him close to her side. "I'm just glad she knows how to take care of herself, or this whole thing could have been a lot worse than it was. That bully should be grateful that Katie didn't damage her permanently; she certainly deserved it. If I'd been here when it happened, the girl would be on crutches right now."

Winters shuddered at little at that thought; he had no doubt that Kinney meant every word. "I'm sorry to hear that she won't be returning, Mr. Kinney, but I suppose I understand. Again, I'd like to offer my sincere…"

"Don't waste your breath, Winters," Brian snapped as he placed his one hand on his daughter's shoulder and turned to go. "Just be glad I'm not suing the fucking pants off this place." He looked down into his daughter's tear-stained face and said more gently, "Let's get out of here, Katie." She nodded as they moved toward the door, but just before they left, she turned her head around unbeknownst to Brian and smiled before she mouthed a "thank you" to Winters. The man's mouth twisted up into a smile of his own before he nodded and they promptly disappeared from sight. _Good Luck, Kaylee. Good Luck to ALL of you…_ With a soft sigh that at least he had produced some good out of an awful situation, he turned and walked back over to his desk to resume his duties.

* * *

><p>Brian kept his arm lightly around Katie's shoulders as they walked toward the rental vehicle; his daughter had her own arm around his back as she leaned into him for comfort, which wasn't like his daughter. Oh, she was affectionate enough in private. Despite her being one of those emotional pre-teens who typically felt that showing affection in public was to be avoided at all costs, when they were alone she was quite generous with hugs and kisses and even a fairly frequent "I love you, Dad," all of which he adored dearly. She was the one link he still had to her father, and he was determined to hold onto it. And he loved his daughter deeply; both of them, in fact. But when they were in public together, especially where other peers could see her? Never. Which made him wonder just what had happened the past few days.<p>

As they reached the vehicle and Brian pushed the key fob to remotely unlock it, he turned Katie in his arms to look down into her eyes. "Are you sure you're all right, Katie?" he asked her as his eyes bored into her blue ones. _God, they were so much like Justin's…_

Under the bright sunlight, Kaylee stared almost wondrously into the hazel eyes of her father – he was so tall and handsome, just like she had remembered him in the picture. He was older, of course, but if anything he was even _more_ handsome than in the photo. She smiled up at him, so elated to actually be talking to him, to be feeling his arms around her, to be able to touch his face as she took one hand and placed it on his tanned, slightly-whiskered face, feeling the warmth and aliveness under her touch. "Yeah," she whispered as she smiled up at him, almost afraid she was going to wake up and discover this was all just a wonderful fantasy. "I'm great, in fact."

Brian frowned slightly; she was acting _dreamy, _almost _goofy_ about seeing him. One elegant eyebrow arched slightly in scrutiny as he finally decided that perhaps it was just one of those stages someone Katie's age went through and he nodded. He took her hand and gave it a small kiss in the middle of her palm before letting it go and saying, "Okay, then. Let's get out of this place." He picked up her suitcase and opened the back door to place it on the seat as Kaylee walked around the vehicle and got into the front passenger seat beside him. A few moments later, both were latched in as he started up the Land Rover and backed it out of its parking space in preparation to leave.

As he turned out of the parking lot and onto the gravel drive, he glanced over at his daughter to find her staring over at him again as if she were seeing him for the first time. _What the fuck?_ He sighed in exasperation. "All right, Katherine Marie… Out with it; what in the world is going on? You're looking at me almost as if I'm some stranger to you. What _IS _it?"

_Uh, Oh_. Katie had warned her about that "Katherine Marie" stuff; she said if their father ever called her that, he was definitely perturbed about something. They hadn't even gotten out of the road from the camp yet and he was already using it. She had better get her act together fast or this would all end way too early for them to do any good.

"I'm fine, Dad," she said firmly, forcing herself to sound confident. "Nothing's wrong. I'm just relieved to get away from that place, and away from that asshole." Kaylee cringed inside; she normally didn't use that sort of language herself, but she knew Katie did.

Brian nodded. "Language, Katie," he chided her, but there was no sting in his voice. Instead, she watched as he smiled over at her in what looked almost like pride as he said, "Actually, I'm _glad_ you stood up to her," he told her. "She deserved it; she deserved even more than that. If I'd gotten a hold of her, she wouldn't have been able to sit down on her fat ass for a week."

Kaylee giggled as Brian grinned at her. "She wasn't _fat,_ Dad; just _big_. REAL big."

Brian laughed softly. "Okay, her _big_ ass, then." He sobered a little as they came to the end of the road and he prepared to pull out onto the main highway. "All the same, Katie, you could have gotten hurt by what you did if she had had time to retaliate. You have to be careful about taking matters into your own hands…even if you ARE Brian Kinney's daughter."

Kaylee couldn't help the warmth that spread throughout her body at the sound of that title. _Brian Kinney's daughter_. God, she loved it! She forced herself not to grin like some fool as she nodded, instead, and reached to take her father's hand.

Brian smiled lovingly back at her as he squeezed her hand briefly; he gently unclasped it before he turned right onto the highway heading toward the airport, glad to once more have his daughter by his side, safe and sound.

* * *

><p><em>Same time - Chicago<em>

From his place opposite them in the limo, Alex glanced over at his boyfriend who had his arm wrapped around his daughter's shoulders; their two identically-blond heads were touching each other as they sat side by side on one of the leather seating areas of his company's vehicle. Instead of sitting next to Justin, which he would have preferred, he had found himself relegated to the opposite couch as he watched them surreptitiously from a few feet away. Both father and daughter currently had their eyes closed. He wasn't sure if either one of them was actually asleep, but it still gave him the chance to observe them closely and ponder his strategy.

If anything, since being reunited with Justin's daughter, the girl appeared to be more hostile toward him than ever. There had never really been any love lost between them – their only mutual interest mainly being Justin – but since they had picked her up at camp, the girl seemed to have found an even bigger backbone, glaring back at him secretly whenever she had the opportunity. As soon as they deplaned a little while ago, she had seemed to find great enjoyment in trading scathing looks with him. Of course, Justin was unaware of their actions the entire time, since they exchanged them when they knew he wasn't looking. He supposed he was being childish about the whole thing – giving her the same treatment she was giving him – but he couldn't help it. He had never wanted a child in the first place, and this particular child seemed to take great pleasure in making his life as difficult as possible, at least where Justin was concerned.

He sighed softly at the thought of his boyfriend, whose beautiful face currently seemed so peaceful in rest. His heart still lurched whenever he saw him, and his feelings ran so deep for him. God, why did he have to fall in love with _this man_? Love wasn't always logical, though; it didn't follow any rules or particular directions. He would never really understand it, but he _did _know one thing for sure: damn it, he loved this man and he wasn't going to let a little thing like this inconsequential brat stop him from getting what he wanted, even if he had to stoop to her level and play dirty. _You don't know who you're messing with, little girl_, he silently decided. _Bring it on_.

The vehicle began to slow down as it approached Justin's brownstone; as it did, he watched as Justin's eyes fluttered open and he sat up a little straighter. He looked over at Alex and smiled a little sheepishly at him as he realized he had been caught napping; he gently nudged his daughter's shoulder as he softly said, "Wake up, Sweetheart; we're home."

Katie slowly opened her eyes as the limo came to a complete stop, finding herself momentarily disoriented as she tried to figure out where she was. "Wha…?" she mumbled as she rubbed her eyes sleepily. She hadn't realized how tired she had been until they had climbed aboard the limo earlier, but as her father wrapped his arm around her, she had felt so safe and secure that she had dozed off in no time. She scooted up in the seat, scowling a little as she realized _HE_ was still with them. Didn't the man have his own place to go? "Home?" she repeated, her heart beginning to race a little at the thought of finally seeing her new home – her sister's home – for the first time.

"Yeah. We're here," Justin told her gently as he dislodged himself from his daughter and stood up. "Come on, Sweetheart; let's get our luggage."

Katie scooted up in her seat and rose to stand next to Justin as her father handed her suitcase and reached over to retrieve his own. Alex stood up and walked over to the door as the limo driver opened it from the outside.

As he climbed out of the limo, he stood aside as father and daughter followed after him. They all stood on the sidewalk near the brownstone's entrance as Justin turned to peer into his boyfriend's eyes. Katie couldn't help rolling her eyes at the look of adoration that Alex pasted on his face as he turned to look at her father. _What a hypocrite_, she couldn't help thinking. "Daddy… I'm really tired; can't we go in?" she prodded him urgently, hoping her father would take the hint. She really was tired, but not that much. And she was eager to see the inside of her father's brownstone, but that wasn't the main reason why she was trying to move things along. She just didn't want to spend any more time around this jerk than she had to.

"Just a minute, Kaylee," Justin told her, a slight note of disapproval in his voice. After all, Alex had gone to great lengths to ensure they could pick her up as soon as possible. He didn't have to agree to use his company's plane to pick her up; he had done that to make Justin happy, and that meant a lot to him. He heard his daughter huff softly in frustration as she pouted nearby while he turned to look at his boyfriend. "Alex… I really appreciate you letting me use your company's jet to pick Kaylee up. I didn't want her to have to stay there any longer than she had to; I really appreciate you agreeing to do that. And… I'm sorry again that I had to cut our vacation short."

Alex reached over to take Justin's hands. "You know I would do anything for you," he said, staring deeply into the soft blue eyes. He saw Justin's face flush in response as he added, "I mean that, Justin. I am disappointed that we couldn't stay for the entire two weeks, but I know your daughter comes first. I know how much you love her, so I was glad I could help. Just promise me one thing in return."

Justin had a good inkling what Alex was going to say, but he waited to hear a confirmation anyway. "What?" he asked softly, afraid that Alex was going to divulge the real reason for their trip; he wanted to talk to Kaylee privately about that, so he shook his head slightly, hoping Alex would understand what he was trying to convey.

Alex bit his lower lip pensively before he added, "Just promise me that you will give serious thought to what we talked about. I'm not rushing you," he hastened to add, knowing how Justin became agitated when he felt like he was being pressured. "But you know how I feel. Just promise me that you will consider everything when you make your decision. Okay?" He softly kneaded the long fingers clasped in his as he stared into Justin's face.

Justin breathed a slight sigh of relief, glad that Alex hadn't been too specific; he had a suspicion, though, that a certain daughter would be questioning him shortly about exactly what was going on, but at least it would give him a little time to think about what he was going to say to her in the meantime. "Okay," he told the other man. "I promise I will think about it. Just… don't expect an answer right away."

Alex nodded; he had figured as much. As long as Justin wasn't dismissing it outright, though, it gave him time to work on him. And he would – subtly but persistently – until he got the answer he wanted. "Good enough," he said as the uniformed limo driver waited nearby for him to re-enter the vehicle and take him back to his own apartment a few blocks away. "I'll call you later?"

Justin nodded; he supposed that was the least he could agree to after what Alex had done for him. "Okay," he agreed as Alex leaned in to give him a kiss on the lips; he could tell the other man wanted to deepen it as he felt his tongue brushing against his mouth, but now was not the time. He still needed to make sure that Kaylee was okay, and he found their actions just a little disconcerting in light of his daughter standing right next to them. Before the kiss could proceed any further, then, he purposefully pulled back as Alex frowned a little in response. "I… I need to get Kaylee inside," he tried to explain. "I'll talk to you later," he promised him.

Alex nodded reluctantly, disappointed that they had to say goodbye and knowing that their day – and their trip – was effectively ended now. "Okay," he told Justin as he grudgingly let go of his lover. "If you need anything, let me know," he said as Justin nodded and turned to go.

"Ready, Sweetheart?" Justin asked his daughter, who nodded and began to follow along behind him, her suitcase trailing alongside her. As she began to walk up the sidewalk, however, she turned one last time to look at Alex who was glaring at her and promptly stuck her tongue out at him before she smiled nicely and turned around to follow her father toward the front steps.

"Fucking brat," he muttered under his breath as he re-entered the limo. How he wished at that moment that he could find a nice foster home for that child! As the limo driver closed the door and it soon began to emerge back into traffic, his thoughts began to concentrate on just how he could take care of that particular problem. The solution, however, was not quickly forthcoming. _I'll find a way,_ he thought with determination. _Enjoy his company while you can, little girl, because you're about to get your comeuppance._

* * *

><p>As she entered the brownstone's foyer, Katie quickly looked around to get her bearings; Kaylee had tried as best she could to provide her with the layout of her home, so at least she had a good idea where each room was located. She knew her and her father's bedrooms were upstairs, separated by a laundry room, and each of them had their own bathroom. And she knew her room was on the far end to the left, so at least she would be able to find her way there successfully. And Kaylee had told her where the living room and kitchen were on the main floor, so as long as she could fake her way around the rest, this part shouldn't be too hard.<p>

"Why don't you take your suitcase upstairs, Sweetheart?" her father said. "I'm sure you're hungry, since you haven't had any lunch yet. I'll go see what I can scrounge up in the kitchen, okay?"

Katie nodded as she turned toward the curved, wooden staircase on the way upstairs. Before she could take her first step, however, her father exclaimed, "Well, I _was_ wondering where you two were! Look who's home!"

Katie's eyes widened as she saw two cats loping toward them; one was black and brown with thick, fluffy fur and green eyes, while the other cat was a Siamese with smooth hair, a black face, white body, and bright blue eyes. She recalled that the fluffy cat was named Picasso and the Siamese was Dali. Proud to remember which was which, she smiled confidently as she said, "Hi, Picasso! Hi, Dali!" She reached down in an attempt to pet Picasso who abruptly arched his back and began to hiss at her; the other cat merely took off running as soon as she bent down to reach for them.

Justin's eyes bulged in shock; normally both cats were total pests when it came to Kaylee – they were totally devoted to her. From the moment she arrived home from school or any other place, the first thing they would do was come running up to her, meowing loudly and brushing up against her legs in an attempt to get her attention. She would have to inevitably scoop up both cats at once so they didn't get jealous of the other one and go sit down on the couch to pet them for several minutes until they were satisfied enough to leave her alone for a while, although they always faithfully followed her up the steps to her bedroom afterward. They prowled around at night, but as soon as she awoke in the morning they would be right outside her closed door, waiting for her to come down with them so she could feed them. He stood there aghast, total incredulous now as they shrunk away from her and hissed at her.

"What in the world? Picasso, Dali… What is wrong with you two? This is _Kaylee_." He leaned down to scoop up the heavy cat and began to soothingly pet it; the damn thing seemed to weight at least 20 pounds now. He looked around for Dali, but he seemed to have promptly disappeared somewhere. "What's the matter?" he softly cooed to the feline as he murmured to him. "Why are you acting this way?" The cat mewed plaintively as it began to purr under Justin's touch while he walked over toward his daughter. "Now you apologize to her, you bad cat," he coached Picasso. The closer he got, however, the more restless the cat became, until he suddenly leaped out of Justin's arms and took off down the hallway in search of the other cat.

Justin frowned; he had never seen either cat act this way before. What in the hell was going on? He turned to his daughter with a look of confusion on his face. "I don't get it," he said to her. "What in the world wrong with them? After a week, they should have been ecstatic to see you."

Katie bit her lip; how was she going to explain their behavior? She just naturally assumed they would act the same way toward her that they acted toward her sister. Thinking fast, she replied, "Maybe it's the hairdo; maybe they don't realize it's me."

Justin twisted his mouth thoughtfully. "I suppose that's possible," he conceded to Katie's relief. "But it's still really odd." He stared down the hallway where the cats had run off to, not seeing either one now, as he shrugged in response. "Very strange," he murmured before he turned back to his daughter. "Well, go ahead and take your suitcase upstairs and I'll find us something to eat, okay?"

She nodded, relieved that he had accepted her explanation as she picked her suitcase up and began to trudge up the steps. _That was a close one_, she couldn't help thinking as she reached the landing and headed down the hallway toward her room. _I wonder what ELSE we didn't plan on?_ she thought as she let out another sigh.


	11. Yes, You ARE My Father

_Back home with their other father, the twins realize it's not so easy to impersonate each other. Justin contemplates whether to accept Alex's marriage proposal while Brian thinks about what might have been._

* * *

><p><em>Chicago – Justin's Apartment<em>

As her father headed toward the kitchen, Katie walked upstairs to check out what would be her new digs for the indefinite future. Kaylee had filled her in somewhat on what life was like at the brownstone, but as she walked down the hallway toward the far end where her sister's room was situated, she stopped in shock as she came to the last room on the right and realized without a doubt that it had to be her sister's room. "Holy shit. You have _got_ to be kidding," she muttered as she proceeded inside and laid her suitcase down on the white, wicker canopy bed. Her mouth hung open as she sat down next to it on the mattress and craned her neck around in an attempt to come to grips with where she would be sleeping; the entire room reminded her of a fairytale on steroids. It was decorated in shades of pastels like a large, melting carton of rainbow sherbet: mint green, pale yellow, and lavender purple. The bed was bedecked with a lacy, white canopy overtop and a matching chenille bedspread with all sorts of stuffed animals lying against the headboard; on the wall were whimsical, winged fairy characters similar to Tinkerbell flitting around some puffy clouds. A matching white wicker vanity with a large, oval-shaped mirror was pushed up against the opposite wall with a makeup case lying on top that would rival the cosmetic counter at Macy's, and wispy, white eyelet curtains were held back with rainbow-colored sashes that let in an enormous amount of light through the tall, narrow windows that faced out onto the street below.

She peered over at all the beady-eyed animals staring at her from the bed accusingly and shook her head. _How did her sister ever sleep with all this going on in her room_? She sighed in resignation before her eyes fell upon one of the several paintings hanging on the other walls; the cutesy aspect of the room was quickly forgotten as she stood up and slowly walked over to the nearest work, lifting her hand to gently touch the oil portrait of her sister. She stood frozen in place, mesmerized by the strong brush strokes and the vibrant colors staring back at her. The work was so lifelike; it appeared to be Kaylee when she was around three or four. She was sitting in a chair, her hands in her lap and her long wavy hair pulled back into a loose ponytail. She was wearing a pastel pink dress with white puffed sleeves and a white ribbon sash; she had a matching, white patent leather purse clutched in one hand and was wearing shiny, white shoes. It appeared to be some sort of Easter outfit from the looks of it; a fluffy, white rabbit was peeking out of a rattan basket lying at her feet on the polished, hardwood floor.

It was almost like looking at a mirror when she was the same age, she thought, except that she wouldn't have been caught dead wearing what her sister was wearing. At that age she would have likely been in a pair of comfortable, faded blue jeans and a plain, no-nonsense sweater. The obvious talent that had been needed to produce the portrait, though, was astonishing in its detail and accuracy. It was almost as if her sister had come to life for her as she stared in amazement at it, realizing instantly who must have painted it. She gazed at it for several seconds, silently hoping that one day her skill would rival her father's, because this piece was incredible. She spent a considerable amount of time walking from one painting to the other in the room, marveling at the wonderful ability her father had to evoke emotions in his works. He had painted impressionist-type paintings using darker shades of the same color scheme her sister seemed to love, along with another portrait of her and Kaylee's grandmother, Jennifer, when she was quite a bit younger. She smiled as she stopped to examine it, recognizing some of herself in her grandmother's face and smile. The painting of her grandmother appeared to have been done in a residence of some kind; she was sitting on a rather non-descript looking beige couch in what seemed to be a living room. She could see some white, built-in bookcases behind her filled with books and knick-knacks and an occasional framed photo that seemed to show her grandmother and her father. She also saw what appeared to be a separate photo of a man who resembled her biological father, only older. She surmised it must be her grandfather. She had been told by her grandmother that the two of them were divorced and never really spoke to each other. The photos in the painting her father had done were so small by comparison, though, that she couldn't be sure.

The last painting that she examined, however, the one that was located near the windows, took her breath away because she instantly recognized the subject matter: _Britin_. It appeared to have been painted in mid-spring because she readily identified the two large, blooming magnolia trees that stood tall and majestic now near the front of the house. In _this_ painting, however, they were quite a bit smaller than they were now, along with some of the holly bushes and trees that her father had painted in the piece. Apparently this was painted quite a long time ago, then, probably when her two fathers were still together and happy. She swallowed hard at the thought, sorrow filling her heart over all the years she and her father – and her sister – had been apart from each other now and over what might have been if things had been different. Her sister had told her she remembered very little of her early life there. Did Kaylee not realize what this painting depicted? She resolved to ask her later when she had the chance. She wondered fleetingly how her sister was doing at Britin. It certainly had to be a major change of pace over this residence.

"Hey," she heard her father say unexpectedly behind her; she hurriedly wiped away the moisture from her eyes as she turned around and observed him standing in the doorway, leaning against the frame with a loving smile on his face. She couldn't help returning his smile, still feeling like she was living in a dream as he said, "I was wondering what you were up to. You ready to eat?"

She nodded as her father walked up to her and frowned as he looked more closely into her face.

"Kaylee? Are you all right? You look like you've been crying." Justin was still not convinced that she hadn't experienced some emotional trauma during her bout with the bully at camp. Normally Kaylee would be quite open about her feelings and whether something was bothering her, but it seemed since he had picked her up in Michigan she had been unusually reticent about speaking up.

Katie shook her head and smiled at him wistfully. "I'm fine, Daddy," she assured him, wanting so badly to ask him about the painting of her home, but afraid to for fear it might give too much away. She knew she had to come up with a reason why she was so emotional, though, one that he would buy. "I'm…I'm just glad to be home, that's all," she finally decided to say, knowing she was repeating the same, lame mantra from earlier but unable to come up with anything else at the moment.

Justin eyed her intently. "You sure that's all it is, Honey? That other girl didn't hurt you?" he quizzed again, his voice taking on a sharper tone at the thought.

She shook her head at him before impulsively moving into his arms as he wrapped them around her slim body; she sighed in contentment as she rested her palms against his chest, feeling his heart beating strongly under her touch. Even though it had been years since she had been with him, this seemed so natural, so wonderful and comfortable as she relished in the feeling of him holding her again.

Justin frowned, still wondering what was going on as he held her tightly. Kaylee could certainly be emotional at times, but there was something different about her that he couldn't quite figure out. It was almost as if she were looking at him for the first time, at _everything_ for the first time. She never really gave much thought to what he had painted for her so long ago, for example; in fact, lately she had been grousing about having her Easter portrait still hanging up, saying it was embarrassing to be seen in her 'prissy little outfit' (as she often put it) when friends came to visit. Instead, she had been pressuring him to have it relegated to her bedroom closet, pushing to have some poster of a teenage boy singer she currently had a crush on be put in its place instead. Justin knew times changed and he could understand her wishes, he supposed, but he still hated to let go of any part of her past; it was almost as if she were growing up way too fast for him. The way Kaylee had been standing next to the painting he had composed of Britin, however, almost seemed like she had been looking at it anew.

Father and daughter finally broke apart enough for Justin to gaze down into his daughter's eyes that reminded him so much of his own; her eyes were still glistening from the tears earlier as he said, "Kaylee, I need you to be straight with me and then I promise to drop the subject. Did that Sandra girl do something to hurt you at camp? You know you can tell me, Honey."

Katie shook her head as she raised one of her hands to place it on Justin's cheek, marveling at the softness there. She couldn't help thinking how beautiful a face he had; where her other father's face was strong and masculine in its profile, her biological father's was more curved. His features were perfectly proportional to each other, from his full lips up to his petite nose and then the blue eyes framed with golden eyelashes. There could never be any doubt that this was her biological father, the one who had helped to give her life. She swallowed before affirming, "No, Daddy. I'm fine. It's nothing. It's just nice to be back home."

Justin stared down into her eyes for a moment before he nodded, deciding it was time to move on to something else. "I'm glad you're back home, too, Kaylee. I've got some lunch fixed for us – let's go eat, okay?"

She nodded with a smile as Justin slid his arm around her shoulder and they walked out into the hallway to proceed downstairs. Katie was secretly glad that Kaylee had sketched out a primitive floorplan of the brownstone so she didn't have to guess where each of the rooms were as she and her father reached the landing and she turned confidently to the right toward the kitchen.

She quietly studied the eat-in kitchen as they arrived, noting the stainless steel appliances and the extra-large, professional model stove. Kaylee had told her that their biological father loved to cook and experiment with new recipes; the six-burner stove and brass pot carrousel hanging over the granite-topped kitchen island was clear evidence of that. She took a seat at the rectangular, oak kitchen table as Justin walked over to scoop out what appeared to be some sort of soup from a large pot on the stove into a couple of royal blue, ceramic bowls. She watched as he pulled down the oven door and retrieved a baking pan from the top shelf, placing the hot dish down on a large potholder on the counter next to the stove.

He turned to smile at her as he advised, "In honor of your return back home, I made your favorite soup and hoagie sandwich."

Katie bit her lip; what exactly _was_ her 'favorite soup and sandwich?' That was one area she and Kaylee hadn't been able to discuss in much detail before they had to part. Fortunately, she didn't have to say much as she watched her father place one of the sandwiches on a matching, blue plate and carry both items over to her place at the table, putting them down in front of her with a flourish. "Here you go, Honey – one portabella hoagie on a whole wheat bun, toasted, and some of my homemade broccoli and cheese soup. I had some frozen from the last batch I made, so all I had to do was heat it up again."

Justin turned to walk back toward the stove to retrieve his meal as Katie wrinkled her nose in disgust. _What in the world was a portabella anyway?_ While her father's back was turned to her, she carefully lifted the top of the hoagie bun to examine the contents further. Whatever it was, it was almost a black color and looked slimy, almost like a cow's tongue – that is, if she had ever seen one cooked. There appeared to be a slice of some sort of melted white cheese on top, along with green and red strips of bell pepper. She hastily placed the hoagie bun back on top as she saw her father returning with his bowl and sandwich to take a place next to her. Forcing a smile of what she hoped looked like gratitude toward him, she lifted her soup spoon and tentatively dipped it into the thick creaminess. Secretly she detested broccoli in any way, shape, or form and she could literally feel her stomach roiling at the thought of having to eat it, but she felt like she was a rabbit caught in a trap and had no choice; how could she refuse her 'favorite meal?'

Justin took a sip of his soup, narrowing his brow as he watched Kaylee idly swirling her soup spoon in her bowl. "Kaylee, is the soup too hot?" Normally she would be attacking both the soup and the sandwich with gusto; every time he fixed this meal she had it completely consumed in no time. He lifted a spoonful to his mouth and tentatively took just a small sip to test the temperature. "It's just right, Honey," he told her as he nodded his encouragement. "Go ahead and dig in before it has a chance to cool off. I know how much you hate cold soup."

Katie knew there was no easy way out of her dilemma; after hardly having anything to eat all day, she couldn't very well tell her father she wasn't hungry, especially when this was supposed to be her favorite meal, and yet it was probably the most disgusting-looking food she had ever seen. _Where was a good pizza when you needed it? _Silently, she vowed to quiz her sister later on exactly what a portabella was as she nodded and picked up her hoagie, staring at it warily as if it were some sort of road kill. She noticed her father holding a spoonful of soup in front of his face, peering at her expectantly as she nodded back at him and plastered what she hoped was an appreciative smile on her face. Opening her mouth, she bit down tentatively on the edge of the hoagie bun, hoping she would snare only a miniscule amount of the portabella and a large portion of bread.

She cautiously chewed it in her mouth, deciding the substance was similar to some eggplant she had eaten once at an Italian restaurant – it was the same texture and consistency and had a somewhat smoky flavor but wasn't solid like a piece of meat. She forced herself not to think about it as she swallowed the bite and then looked down to pick up her soup spoon, hoping her father wouldn't notice her reaction to the abhorrent substance. She raised the spoon to her parted lips and took a small taste. She was relieved that at least the abundance of cheddar cheese helped to partially smother the cardboard taste of the finely-cut broccoli and made it more palatable; it was the same sort of soup that her Grandma Debbie had tried to serve her once at the diner. At least with her grandmother, though, you could be honest if you didn't like something and that would be the end of it. In this particular situation, she didn't dare let on to her father that she could barely stand it.

She lifted her gaze to smile over at her father as she pushed herself to dig into more of her meal. After a few minutes, though, she just couldn't eat any more without holding back her gag reflex. She placed her soup spoon back in her bowl and pushed her plate a few inches away as she looked over at her father and said, "I can't eat any more right now, Daddy. I guess I'm still adjusting to being back home." She knew that sounded like a stupid explanation, but it was the best she could come up with.

Justin peered over at her curiously, not sure what to make of his daughter's behavior. Kaylee had been acting weird ever since they had left Michigan, and this just added to his concern. He couldn't quite put a finger on what was going on, but there was definitely something amiss. "You're not feeling sick, are you?"

She shook her head firmly. "No, no. I'm fine. Really."

Justin scrutinized her for a few moments before he finally nodded. "Okay, then." He smiled as a sudden thought occurred to him. "I know what you might like, Honey! Why don't you go take a bubble bath? I'm sure after being at that camp you'd love to have a nice, hot bath and relax." Kaylee loved to soak in the tub for at least half an hour while she read one of her favorite fantasy novels; he often kidded her that she produced enough bubbles in the tub to just float away, but she loved to do it anyway.

Katie looked over at her father in shock. _A bubble bath_? Yuck. That was so…_girly_. "Uh…Yeah, that sounds nice, Daddy," she responded half-heartedly as she pushed her chair back from the table and picked up her dishes to carry them over to the sink, realizing she had no idea where the garbage was. She sighed softly, understanding once more that this was going to be much more difficult to pull off then either of them had realized. _You'd better get your act together, Katherine Elizabeth,_ she chided herself,_ or you're going to blow it_. Taking a deep breath, she smiled as she turned around to tell her father, "Thanks for lunch, Daddy. It was great." She walked over to place her hands on her father's shoulders from behind as she leaned in to give him a kiss on the cheek. "I'll be upstairs taking my bath."

He nodded and turned his head to smile at her fondly as he watched her walk out of the kitchen and head down the hallway toward the stairs. He noticed that Dali and Picasso were still lying low; they hadn't been seen since he had brought Kaylee home a few hours ago_. The whole thing was damned peculiar_, he couldn't help thinking. _None of this was making sense at all_. Perhaps Kaylee was right, though; maybe it was all attributable to the changes she had made to her appearance and to her bad experience at the camp. He supposed it was possible that she just needed a day or two to get back into the swing of things.

Sighing in puzzlement, he finished eating his soup and sandwich before pushing back from the table and carrying his dishes over to the sink.

* * *

><p>Katie scowled at the fluffy, white terry robe hanging on the back of Kaylee's closet door. The piece of clothing even had a large "K" written in pink, flowing script on the left breast pocket. "No way," she muttered as she opened the drawer of the matching wicker dresser and fished around for some suitable apparel to wear. It seemed that everything in her sister's closet and dresser was either pink, yellow, green, or purple; there wasn't a decent navy blue, gray, forest green, or maroon in the bunch. Fortunately – or unfortunately, depending upon how you looked at it – she and her sister wore the same size clothing, so appropriating her sister's apparel while she was living at the brownstone wouldn't be an issue. Being able to live with her sister's fashion sense, though, was an entirely different matter.<p>

She finally located a fairly innocuous pair of dark-blue thermal type pants and a pin-striped, blue, long-sleeved t-shirt stuck in the back of the closet as she walked back over to the dresser to locate some undergarments, rolling her eyes as she fished out a lacy pair of panties. "God help us," she growled as she gathered up her change of clothing and proceeded over to the attached bathroom.

* * *

><p><em>Twenty Minutes Later<em>

Clad in the lounging-type pants and the tee-shirt, Katie padded barefoot down the hallway and descended the stairs in search of her father. She stood momentarily on the landing below a few seconds later, listening to the soft sounds of piano music filtering out of what appeared to be where the living room was located. Quietly treading toward the sound, she paused mesmerized in the doorway to observe her father sitting in front of a highly-polished, black piano, playing a song while he softly sang along with the music. She frowned as a memory came flooding back to her from a long time ago when she had heard him singing the same song to her as a sort of lullaby whenever they were fussy, although she had no idea her father could play the piano, too:

_When you're weary  
>Feeling small<br>When tears are in your eyes  
>I will dry them all<em>

_I'm on your side_  
><em>When times get rough<em>  
><em>And friends just can't be found<em>  
><em>Like a bridge over troubled water<em>  
><em>I will lay me down<em>  
><em>Like a bridge over troubled water<em>  
><em>I will lay me down<em>

_When you're down and out_  
><em>When you're on the street<em>  
><em>When evening falls so hard<em>  
><em>I will comfort you<em>  
><em>I'll take your part<em>  
><em>When darkness comes<em>  
><em>And pain is all around<em>  
><em>Like a bridge over troubled water<em>  
><em>I will lay me down<em>  
><em>Like a bridge over troubled water<em>  
><em>I will lay me down<em>

_Sail on Silver Girl,_  
><em>Sail on by<em>  
><em>Your time has come to shine<em>  
><em>All your dreams are on their way<em>

_See how they shine_  
><em>If you need a friend<em>  
><em>I'm sailing right behind<em>  
><em>Like a bridge over troubled water<em>  
><em>I will ease your mind<em>  
><em>Like a bridge over troubled water<em>  
><em>I will ease your mind.<em>

Justin sighed as he stilled his hands on top of the keys, feeling the coolness under his touch. He had no idea why he had chosen to play that song tonight; it normally brought back both good and bittersweet memories for him of a time long ago, and this was no exception. He turned as he sensed his daughter approaching him out of the corner of his eye and smiled a little wistfully at her. He scooted over as she sat down next to him on the piano bench. Katie was dying to compliment her father on how well he played, but she couldn't say anything for fear she would give herself away. Instead, she smiled up at him as he reached over and took her hand. "That was always one of my favorite songs."

She nodded as she relished her father holding her hand in his. It was a different touch from her other father's stronger, more firmer clasp, but just like with her other father she found it to be both comforting as well as soothing. "Mine, too," she whispered back sincerely, thankful that it had brought back some distant memories of her own. She had only been reunited with her biological father for a short time, and she was already missing her other father and her horses at Britin terribly, but she wouldn't have missed this chance for anything.

She looked into his eyes, noticing what appeared to be melancholy or worry there. "What's wrong, Daddy?" she asked.

Justin smiled at her fondly. "Nothing, Honey," he told her, not wanting to dredge up painful memories that could not be changed. "I guess I'm just a little tired from the trip myself."

She bit her lip at the mention of her father's 'trip,' bringing to mind something weighing on her mind. "Daddy, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, Kaylee. What is it?"

"I heard Alex talking to you earlier about a decision. What was he talking about?"

Justin winced inwardly; he suspected this topic was going to come up soon. He was trying hard to accurately gauge how his daughter felt about Alex, and how Alex felt about her. It was important to him that Kaylee be receptive to a life with Alex if he was going to even consider accepting his proposal. He released her hand as he slid off the bench and said, "Let's go over and sit on the couch so we can talk."

_Uh, oh_, Katie couldn't help thinking. _This doesn't sound good_. _Had her father told her the whole story before regarding his little trek up north? Maybe they DID get married and he was trying to ease her into the idea._ She warily stood up and nodded as she followed her father over to the dark brown leather couch and sat next to him, her thigh touching his almost in validation that she was, indeed, sitting next to the father she hadn't seen in so long. Was their opportunity to get to know each other better – and her and her sister's most desired wish to reunite both of their fathers once more – about to go down in flames?

Justin reached over and placed a hand on his child's knee as he decided it was time to be completely honest with her about his trip with Alex. "Kaylee, you know Alex and I have been seeing each other for a few years now," he began quietly as he stared into his daughter's blue eyes.

Katie licked her lips nervously, not liking how this discussion was heading as she simply nodded, choosing to let her father try and explain before she jumped to all sorts of unpleasant conclusions.

"Well, what I told you earlier was true, Honey. Alex and I _did_ fly up to Canada for a short vacation while you were at camp, and it was beautiful up there." _It was_, Justin thought, but of course Alex hadn't been merely interested in exploring the scenery or the art museums with him. If he _had_ been, this conversation with his daughter wouldn't be taking place, at least not yet. He suspected at some point, though, it would have had to be addressed anyway.

"Daddy, you didn't…?" Katie couldn't even voice the word aloud. If her father did marry that…that _jerk_, all of her and her sister's plans would be promptly blown to bits before they even got started.

"Didn't what, Honey?" Justin pressed as he noticed his daughter's face unexpectedly clouding over.

Katie inhaled a deep breath and let it out before she asked almost accusingly, "Daddy, you and that man didn't get _married_ up there, did you?" _God, please don't tell me that…_

"No, Kaylee," Justin told her quietly, noticing his daughter emitting what suspiciously sounded like a sigh of relief as he answered her. "We didn't get married. But we _almost_ did."

Katie huffed out indignantly, "What do you mean, you _almost _did?"

"Kaylee…" He squeezed her upper leg briefly as he explained, "Alex did ask me to marry him while we were there. But I didn't give him an answer – at least not yet."

_Shit_. That was almost as bad as her father going through with it. "What do you mean, _not yet_, Daddy?"

Justin eyed his daughter curiously; Kaylee and Alex had never been what he would call 'buddy-buddy,' but they had still seemed to enjoy a civil enough relationship. His daughter almost sounded downright hostile at the moment, though. "What I mean is that I told Alex I wouldn't give him an answer either way until I talked to you first and found out how you felt about the idea. Alex is a good man, Kaylee, and we have a lot in common. He treats me well and respects my work. He's a responsible, decent man." Why did that sound like he was trying to convince himself more than his daughter, though?

"Daddy…"

"Listen to me, Honey. I know if we got married that it would take some compromise for all of us – living in the same household together, becoming adjusted to each other's schedules, and having to get used to each other's differences; plus Alex has never really been around children before. Being an only child, he never even had any nieces and nephews to interact with."

Katie couldn't believe where this conversation seemed to be heading. Was her father out of his mind? "Surely you're not thinking of actually going through with it?" she cried in dismay, her eyes filling with tears of dread. "You can't DO that!"

Justin's eyebrows rose in surprise; his daughter could be emotional at times, but this was over the top, even for her. Her face was scrunched up almost in pain as he peered into her troubled eyes. "Kaylee Marie, calm down!" he chided her firmly, surprised at her vehement tone of voice. "What has gotten _into_ you? You've never acted this way before about Alex. I thought you were okay with me seeing him. Surely this shouldn't be such a surprise by now."

Katie angrily wiped some tears away from her eyes as she looked her father directly in the face and pointedly asked, "Do you love him, Daddy?"

"What?"

"I said – do…you…love…him? Do you love him like you loved Dad?"

Justin's heart skipped a beat at the reference to Brian, the pain muted somewhat but still raw and not completely healed, even now. "Kaylee…" He wasn't comfortable the way their conversation was heading, but he soon realized his daughter wasn't going to let it simply drop when he noticed her stubborn reaction.

Eyes flashing the same way his did whenever he was perturbed at something, she persisted, "I said, do you LOVE him? Does he make your heart do somersaults and do you smile at him the way you smiled at Dad? Do you think about him all the time and feel the same sort of excitement that you felt when you were with Dad?" She noticed her father's face pale a little as he glanced down at his hands that were clasped tightly in his lap. "_Answer_ me, Daddy!"

Justin stood up abruptly in aggravation and turned his back away from his daughter to walk over to the tall bank of windows that overlooked the street below, now shrouded with the twilight-gray tint of impending dusk, her candid words cutting straight to his heart as he stared unfocused into space, his troubled face reflecting back at him in the window. It was a face mixed with turmoil and confusion. How _did_ he feel about Alex? Did he experience the same flare of passion and deep emotion that he had felt with Brian? Did Alex make his entire body reverberate with eagerness merely at the thought of being with him again or at the sound of his voice? Did they make love the way he and Brian had, with unfettered passion and wild abandon at times or sweet, almost aching tenderness the next? Did he constantly think about him whenever they were apart, anxiously anticipating the next time they could be together again? Did his touch generate the same feelings Brian had invoked in him, a sense that their union had been fated from the first moment they had met and that it would last forever? He sighed as his shoulders sagged in realization and he rubbed one hand over his face in tiredness. No, he didn't. He knew that _no one_ would ever make him feel the way that Brian had, and yet they hadn't managed to make it work, either, despite their deep feelings for each other.

Was he holding his former partner up as an impossible standard, though? Was he even giving Alex a fair chance? Yes, it wasn't nearly as sexually exciting as the times when he and Brian had been together; the two of them always seemed to know instinctively how to derive the utmost pleasure from each other. Certainly the sex had been incredible and incomparable to anyone else. But when he and Alex _were_ together, they did enjoy each other's company. Alex had always made him feel special and seemed to accept the fact that he needed to put his daughter's welfare ahead of him at times. He knew Alex didn't exactly welcome the moments when he had to decline doing something with him, but he felt the man grudgingly understood why he had to do it. He could do a lot worse than Alex. _God, I'm so confused_, he suddenly thought as he turned around at last to face his daughter who was still sitting quietly on the couch, staring over at him as she waited for him to answer her.

"You want an honest answer, Kaylee? Is that it?" he asked, his voice rising slightly in irritation that his daughter was dredging up painful emotions in him, ones that he had tried hard to push into a neglected corner of his heart. "Okay, I'll _give_ you an honest answer," he responded, more curtly than he had intended. "No; Alex _doesn't _make me feel the same way that your father did, and I suppose I will never love him the way that I loved your father." He placed his left hand behind his neck and rubbed it, feeling a distinctive layer of tenseness settling there. "I don't think anyone will ever make me feel that way again," he admitted softly.

Katie shook her head in disbelief; loved as in past tense? To her, it was so obvious that her father _still_ loved her Dad; why did everything have to be so complicated, then? The more she heard, the more she didn't understand any of this. "I don't get it," she flatly told him. "I can tell that you _still_ love Dad. You sound like you the two of you had a love that only comes in a lifetime. Why won't the two of you try to work things out between you, then?"

Justin sighed as he walked over and sat down next to her again on the couch, angling his body toward hers as he took her hand in his. "It's not that easy, Kaylee. Life isn't a fairy tale. It's real and it can be painful." He looked down at their clasped hands as he added softly, "Sometimes things are just not meant to be, Sweetheart. Sometimes even when people DO love each other, it's still not enough to fix what is broken."

At that moment, Katie wished she had her sister to lean on, to find out exactly what she had been told by her father before, and to know how to properly respond to that statement. Perhaps it was better that she didn't know what had been said before, though, because somehow she had the feeling that Kaylee wouldn't be as blunt as she was about to be. Well, to hell with subterfuge – even if it meant blowing her cover, she wasn't about to let her father settle for second best and give up forever the best thing that had ever happened to him.

"That's a cop out, Daddy," she said angrily as Justin's eyes widened at her brusque tone of voice. "I never thought my own father would be somebody who would give up so easily."

"Kaylee, you need to drop this," he warned her harshly, feeling vulnerable as well as unprepared for this side of his normally soft-spoken daughter as she dredged up a topic he wasn't prepared to discuss. What exactly had happened to her up at that camp? It was almost as if a totally different person had come back with him. "I don't want to talk about your other father. End of discussion."

Katie snatched her hand away in anger and crossed her arms over her chest, her face red. "No, Daddy, it's _not _the end! You loved him – enough to have _me_! I happen to think you STILL love him, too, whether you want to admit it or not! What happened to the two of you to tear you apart? And why are so mad at me for bringing this up? I'm _his_ daughter, too! I have a right to know what happened, don't I?"

Justin sighed, wondering how a relatively simple discussion about their future with Alex had evolved instead into a long, drawn-out rambling about him and Brian. He had to admit - Kaylee was right; she was getting old enough now that she did deserve some sort of explanation. He wished he could also tell her that she had a twin sister being raised by her other father, a child that Justin longed to see as much as Kaylee longed to see Brian. For the umpteenth time, he wished he could go back in time and refuse that damned custody agreement. By legal rights, Brian wasn't even entitled to keep one of their daughters. But at the time he had felt that sperm donor or no sperm donor, both of them were just as much parents of their twin daughters as any biological, hetero couple would have been. It hadn't mattered to him whether Kaylee and Katie had shared Brian's blood or not; to him, they would always be both of their daughters equally, and despite what had happened he was sure that Brian felt his other daughter's loss just as profoundly as he did. He probably regretted their stupid custody agreement now, too, but what's done was done. Legally they could not reveal the other girl's existence until they were of legal age.

"Daddy, please…"

He lifted his regret-filled eyes to look at his daughter and knew it was time to tell her something. "Kaylee, your father broke a promise to be a long time ago. He did something that he never should have done, something that he couldn't take back. It hurt me. It hurt me a lot. It came down to an issue of trust, and I felt like I couldn't trust him anymore." He stared into her sorrowful eyes as he smiled at her gently. "And yes, if you must know, Honey, I guess I do still love him in a way. I'll always love him. He was my first love and that's always very special to someone. You'll even experience that yourself one day. But that doesn't mean there won't be others you love in different ways like I love Alex. He's different from your father, but he has a lot of special qualities, too."

Katie shook her head, unable to accept that her father would settle for someone like _him_, not when he could still be with her other father. She refused to believe that her Daddy could be happy with anyone else. "I guess it's lonely not having someone to love," she said to him softly, trying hard to understand. Her heart ached at the thought that her sweet, beautiful father would be alone, but this just felt wrong.

He swallowed the lump in his throat over her concern as he corrected her, "But I _do_ have someone to love, Honey. _You_. I've loved you since the moment I first set eyes on you in the hospital and you looked up at me all pink and wrinkly." He smiled at her as she peered back at him through her tears. "I thought you were the most beautiful thing I had ever seen – and I _still_ feel that way. I think about how blessed I am to have you every day, Kaylee."

"But it's not the same, is it?" she responded softly.

Justin gazed at her intently for a few seconds before he shook his head slightly and admitted, "No, it's not. But it's like I said, Honey. There're different kinds of love. I have a love for you – a deep kind of love. And I love your mother as a very special friend for helping to bring you into the world because I can't imagine my life without you in it. And there's my _own_ mother, your Grandma Jen, and your Aunt Molly." He took a breath before he added, "And I've grown to love Alex, too; it's just a different kind of love than what I felt for your father."

Katie's heart broke a little at her father's admission, knowing he must have been lonely all those years without her Dad. If it had been anything like how she had longed to see him, she could certainly understand how that felt. But she couldn't help thinking he was making a big mistake; she just knew it. "You mean what you _feel_ for my other father."

"Maybe," Justin told her with candor. "But that doesn't mean I can't have a good life with Alex, too; that we _both_ can't have a good life with him." He bit his lip pensively as he told her, "I told him I wouldn't do anything or make any decision without your input. I want you to realize, Kaylee. The decision will ultimately be mine, but I care about what you think because I won't be the only one affected by this. As your father, though, I have to do what I think is best for both of us."

She looked into her father's kind-looking blue eyes that mirrored her own so precisely and knew she should give him the easy way out, tell him that he should do whatever he thought would make him happy, and that she would abide by whatever decision he would make and support it. But she knew in her gut that he would not be happy with that other man, that shyster, that hypocritical person who Kaylee warned her about. Even if she hadn't filled her in beforehand, she just knew this man was bad news – she could sense it. She took a deep breath as she replied quietly, "You mentioned trust, Daddy. That Dad did something that made you feel like you couldn't trust him anymore."

Justin nodded sorrowfully, wondering where his daughter was heading with this line of thought.

"Well, I don't trust _Alex_, Daddy."

Justin frowned. "Why?"

She struggled to answer his question, not familiar enough with the other man yet to be too specific. Something told her, though, that it wouldn't be long before she had some ammunition to use against him, especially after she told Kaylee later tonight what was going on; she couldn't wait to see how her sister's first day in Pittsburgh had went and to tell her they needed to ramp up their game plan on reuniting their fathers before it was too late. She shrugged. "There's just something about his attitude," she struggled to explain. "It's just a feeling I have. He doesn't like me." _That makes two of us, you jerk_, she couldn't help thinking to herself.

"That's not true, Kaylee," Justin insisted. "Why would you say that? He's never said anything to me to make me think he doesn't like you." Silently, however, he wondered. His daughter normally was very intuitive about other people; while Alex had never said anything derisive or derogatory about Kaylee to his face, did she perhaps realize something that he didn't? If there was any chance that she was correct, he owed it both to her and to himself not to jump into anything rashly. That was even more reason, too, why he was glad he hadn't gone along with Alex's unexpected proposal up in Canada and married him right away.

"I can't explain it," she told him. "But don't rush into anything, Daddy. _Please_."

Justin studied his daughter's face, still feeling like there was something different about her. It was more than just her attitude; there was something else there. He shook his head slightly; perhaps he was just tired after their long flight today as he had indicated to Kaylee earlier and once he had some more rest things would appear back to normal. He smiled over at her reassuringly. "I won't," he told her. "This is much too important to rush into. I'm going to give it a lot of thought first, trust me."

Katie breathed out a huge sigh of relief and nodded her head. "Good." At least for now she and her sister had some more time to put their plan into motion. She was confident that once both of their fathers saw each other again, there would be no doubt just who loved whom and a certain _designing_ architect would be out of her father's life for good.

Justin nodded before he gave his daughter's hand a brief squeeze and stood up. "Well, if you will excuse me, Honey, I have a painting I need to get back to. I promised to have it done within the week and that trip to Canada has set my schedule way off."

"Can I watch you paint, Daddy?" Katie asked impulsively, yearning desperately to see her father's talent in action and needing to better understand where her own ability had come from. Although her other father was very intelligent as well as creative when it came to inventing slogans for his clients, and ran the most successful ad agency in the entire state of Pennsylvania, the poor man didn't have an artistic bone in his body when it came to freeform design. He always left those tasks up to his art department.

Justin looked at her in amusement. "You want to come and watch? You haven't asked to do that in years, not since you found out you couldn't draw anything better than a stick figure," he teased her.

Katie sighed inwardly; this ruse was becoming harder and harder to maintain – she wished Kaylee had mentioned that fact since her sister knew how much she loved to paint herself. She realized it had to be out of character for her sister to be so interested in her father's work, but she longed so badly to see him paint she couldn't help it. Scrabbling for a plausible explanation, she decided to take a flippant approach. Smiling, she shrugged as she said, "I guess I was hoping maybe you'd rub off on me eventually."

Justin chuckled softly, not bothering to question why his daughter was suddenly interested in keeping him company in his studio; perhaps she was still a little spooked over her unpleasant experience at camp. "Very well, Georgia O'Keeffe, you're welcome to come join me then." At his daughter's quizzical expression, he explained, "She was a famous painter. Maybe we can try channeling her spirit to help you out."

She grinned at him as she stood to join him. Together they walked out of the living room and back upstairs toward her father's in-home studio, Justin's arm lightly around her shoulder.

* * *

><p><em>Several Hours Earlier – Allegheny Airport<em>

Kaylee had managed to hold her tongue for the most part on the way back home to Pittsburgh in her father's company jet, dying of curiosity but hoping that some of the surroundings would look familiar once they arrived but becoming disappointed to find that they did not. She supposed she shouldn't have been surprised; after all, she had been quite young the last time she had set foot here. On the way home she had limited herself to mainly small talk with her father, not wanting to delve too deeply just yet into more ticklish matters until they were comfortably back at home. As she opened the door to her father's royal blue, Lexus sports car and slid into the passenger side, however, the quiet permeating the inside was palpable as her father placed her luggage in the backseat before getting in and shutting the driver's door to start up the car. Within minutes, they had exited the parking lot and were winging their way back to a place she hadn't been to in years – _Britin_; the only home where the four of them had lived together – happily, if her distant, vague memories were any indication. She desperately hoped that eventually it would be the site of many more _new_, happy memories.

Brian glanced over at his daughter, whose head was turned away from as she looked silently out the window. Katie had not been very talkative on the plane, which was unusual for her. Normally she was quite vocal about her experiences, especially when it involved being some place she had never been to before. This time, however, except for occasional small talk about what the weather was like in Pittsburgh or wanting to see her Grandma Jen again soon, his child had preoccupied herself on the plane in pretty much the same way she was doing now in the car – gazing out at the clouds floating by, occasionally leaning her head back in the seat and closing her eyes as she listened to some music on her I-Pod. He was still a little concerned that something more had happened to her at the camp then he was being told, but for now he decided not to pressure her too much. He would give her a little time to get back home first and get safely ensconsed in familiar surroundings before he decided whether to press her further.

As they drove into West Virginia and on toward Britin, Kaylee couldn't help noticing how different the terrain was for it to be so close to Pittsburgh; the farther they drove, the more open and bucolic it became. Soon the subdivision houses that dotted the Pennsylvania landscape gave way to gently rolling hills, grazing cattle, and multitudes of barns and country homes, an occasional rusty metal silo stuck out in the middle of nowhere. It wasn't too different from the scenery near the camp in Michigan, except it wasn't nearly as wooded. Here, there were more fields of crops than thick thatches of woods. It seemed like the last type of place she would have pictured her father living in because Katie had told her about his success as an ad agency CEO; she would have expected him, then, to be living in the midst of big-city life.

But she could definitely picture her biological father living in this sort of setting. In fact, now that his career was firmly in place he often mentioned how much he would love to one day own a residence with a little more breathing room to escape to. He often pointed out to her that that was one of the benefits of being an artist – not only did he get to do what he loved for a living, but he could literally choose to paint anywhere around the world and still maintain his stature as a successful artist. She pressed her face against the cool glass of the passenger window, gazing at the herds of cows, sheep and horses dotting the numerous fields. Safely secured from the majestic horses grazing placidly nearby, she felt awe-inspired by their beauty and strength as she admired their sleek appearance. She knew Katie and her father had horses at Britin, and as an animal lover she was excited about seeing them, but they still scared her to death. She had gotten up close to some at the Illinois State Fair one year when her father had taken her, and she had been astounded by how tall they were and how big just their heads were. When they turned to study her with those large, oval-shaped brown eyes, she had instinctively backed away from them, both mesmerized as well as frightened by how massive they were. Katie had told her how she and her father often went riding together on the grounds, and she had no idea even how to mount a horse, much less travel on one. She didn't know how she was going to pull off impersonating her sister around them, then. What would she do if her father wanted to go riding _now_? She bit her lip in apprehension and let out a soft sigh, an action which did not go unnoticed by Brian.

"Katie?" Brian called to her as she turned her head to look at him. "Did you hear me?"

Had her father asked her something? "I'm sorry, Dad," she replied sheepishly. "Did you say something to me?"

Brian frowned, still not able to figure out what was going on. "Yeah, Princess, I was asking what you wanted to eat for lunch. We didn't exactly get to stuff ourselves on the way home." Even in his own jet, their so-called 'lunch' has consisted of an apple and a sub sandwich with a drink since he had given his pilot little advance notice that he would be needing to use it. He had taken one look at the carb-laden, white bread sandwich that had been hastily scrounged up for them and had managed only a few bites of it as well as the mushy, overripe apple that accompanied it, noticing that his daughter hadn't eaten much of it, either. As a result, she had to be as hungry as he was. "We can stop at McCallum's on the way home and get your usual steak hoagie and thick-cut fries. Would you like that?"

Kaylee wrinkled her nose at the thought of eating all that fried food before she could remember who she was supposed to be portraying. "Eww…My stomach couldn't handle all that greasy, fatty food," was out of her mouth before she could help it. She knew by the shocked look of surprise on her father's face that she had made a major blunder and she secretly berated herself for slipping up. How was she going to load up on all that fattening, greasy junk food while she was pretending to be her sister, though? Just the thought made her nauseous, but she had to figure out a way to do it, at least temporarily. There was too much riding on her and her sister being able to carry this out. She hastily backtracked as she added, "What I mean is – my stomach's been kind of upset all day. I don't think I should eat something like that right now, as much as I'd like to."

Brian narrowed his eyes and glanced over at his daughter, seeing the same sort of look he sometimes saw in the faces of his clients when they were saying one thing and meaning another. He just wasn't used to seeing it on Katie, however; normally, she had no problem with speaking her mind whether he liked it or not. This time, though, her attempt at an explanation seemed to sound a little lame. Once more he had this odd feeling that something wasn't quite right, but she had assured him earlier that the bullying incidents at the camp hadn't affected her that much. He turned his attention back to the road, noticing the sign for the diner coming up. He sighed, deciding that perhaps he was making too much of the whole thing; after all, his daughter was about to go through puberty and become a teenager, a period he wasn't quite looking forward to; he had no experience dealing with a teenage, hormone-driven girl, but he was going to have to deal with it anyway. Maybe this was the start of it. "Okay, then," he told her as he turned right at the next stop sign; they were in what constituted the small town that lay a few miles away from their home.

Really, it wasn't much of a town at all – merely a couple of gas stations, a drug store, a small grocery, and two tiny restaurants – a mom and pop diner and the deli that he and Justin had frequented so often when they were together. At first he had avoided going back to McCallum's; it simply brought back too many bittersweet memories. But eventually Katie had asked about the place as they had driven by it and he had finally stopped in one day when she was in third grade, finding himself being greeted profusely as soon as he had entered by the owner, Maggie, who had remembered him after all that time. He supposed he shouldn't have been too surprised, seeing as how he had stopped in there at least once a week on the way home to pick up Justin's favorite meal of a double steakburger, onion rings, and a chocolate milkshake. In fact, she had asked about Justin in an awkward moment that day, and he had had to tell her that they were no longer together, finding a lump appear in his throat that felt like a knife had sliced through it. Katie had enjoyed her meal that day immensely, however, and they had shared a pleasant time together, which had helped ease his sadness somewhat. Ever since that time, they had made a habit of stopping in regularly. It was a bright spot in his week and helped to take some of the day-to-day stress away from running the biggest, most successful advertising firm in the state. He knew some day that "Daddy's Little Girl" would turn into a young woman who might change into someone who found it embarrassing to be seen with her father all the time instead of with her friends, so for now he was relishing their special time together.

He slowed down as they approached the deli; as usual the parking lot was full of local customers who knew how good Maggie's cooking was. "Last chance, Katie," he murmured as he glanced over at her. "Sure you don't want me to pick up your favorites? You can always heat them up later."

Kaylee shook her head. "No, Dad. I'm sure I can find something at the house later if I want, right?" Of course except for Katie's rudimentary, hastily-scrawled sketch of Britin, she really had no idea what she was literally walking into; she knew, though, that it was bound to be a lot bigger than her brownstone was and probably well-equipped.

Brian nodded, still a little surprised that his daughter would pass up the chance to imbibe in her favorite meal; Katie definitely took after her biological father when it came to her appetite. She could pretty much eat whatever and as much as she liked and never seemed to gain a pound. True, she did engage in a lot of physical activity – riding the horses with him, playing soccer and swimming in Britin's pool, to name a few – but he suspected that even if she didn't she would still be slim. He remembered how Justin never seemed too concerned with keeping up with him in the physical activity department, at least outside the bedroom. The only time he had participated earnestly in any heavy physical exertion was when he had prepared for the Liberty Ride. He swallowed hard as he thought about the missed opportunity they had had to ride together. As much as he had pretended at the time that he loathed the idea of camping out 'under the stars' as Justin had put, secretly he had been conjuring up all sorts of delicious thoughts about what other types of 'riding' they could do when they weren't rolling down the highway on their bicycles. The entire event had taken a dramatic wrong turn, though, when Justin had been called to California and he had made a point of proving to everyone that he was back to full health after his cancer, an action that had backfired when he had fallen off his bike and broken his collarbone.

The cancer had caused him to reassess his priorities at the time; it had made him rethink what – and who – was important to him: his son and Justin. Little did he know at the time, however, just how much his life would change. He never thought, for instance, that both his son as well as his lover would move away from him eventually, or that he would wind up with the wonderful daughter that was presently sitting next to him in the car. _Thank God for Katie_, he thought, while at the same time he mourned the loss of his partner as well as his other daughter. "Okay, Princess," he told her now. "We'll just go on home then."

She sighed imperceptibly in relief as she nodded and turned her gaze back to the window, trying hard for something to jog her memory of her previous life here, but it was all unfamiliar to her. Would she feel the same way about Britin once she returned there, too?

She had her answer approximately ten minutes later as her father turned right into a long, curving driveway heading up to a large, Tudor-style mansion. She bit back the gasp that threatened to escape her lips as she instantly recognized the setting, not because she remembered it from her childhood but because she knew it was the same house that was in her painting in the bedroom back home. She had asked her father about it before, wanting to know what it was, but he had always told her it was just a 'special house' he had seen in his travels and he had wanted to paint a copy of it. She had no idea it was actually the house that she and her sister had been raised in, the house she was about to re-enter for the first time in several years. Her mouth hung open in amazement as they drove closer to the looming structure and her father pressed an overhead button on the visor to open the three-car garage located at the side of the house to advance inside. Her heart pounded in anticipation as he slowed the car to a stop and turned the motor off, the heavy garage door clanging shut soon afterward behind them.

Brian turned to smile at her. "Back home, safe and sound," he said tenderly as he sighed, glad to have his daughter back where she belonged. He had missed Katie more than he would have imagined; who would have thought years ago that Brian Kinney would wind up being a responsible, caring father who actually enjoyed spending time with his daughter? He never would have imagined it, and he knew no one else who had known him would have ever believed it, either. Of course, that had been before Justin had appeared and turned his world upside down – in a good way. He closed his eyes for a couple of seconds, wishing just for a moment that things could be like they were before – before he fucked up so royally. This was the way his life was now, though, and he had a daughter to take care of. Turning to look at her, he curled one side of his mouth upward at her fondly, noticing she appeared to be a little weary. "I'll get your suitcase; I'm sure you're tired after the trip. Why don't you go on in the house and I'll be right behind you?"

Kaylee nodded as she opened the door and walked around the car toward the interior entrance to the house. Turning the knob, she eagerly opened the door and was amazed at the breadth of the commercial-sized kitchen that greeted her. There were stainless-steel appliances and a large, pewter-colored pots and pans carrousel hanging directly about the six-burner stove. Her biological father would have been perfectly at home here, she realized, noticing a lot of similarities between this setup and the one she and her other father had back at the brownstone. Was it merely a coincidence? She remembered how her father had completely remodeled their kitchen shortly after they had moved there. It was incredible how much this kitchen resembled theirs, but then again, perhaps she shouldn't be surprised. Now that she could finally see where she had first grown up, she realized where her father had gotten his inspiration from regarding the changes to their own home.

Slowly looking around to try and familiarize herself again with her living arrangements, she could hear the door opening as she turned to see her father toting in her suitcase – or actually, _Katie's _suitcase. He walked up to her with a soft smile and asked, "Still not up to eating yet? I could heat something up in the microwave for us if you want."

She shook her head, dying to do some more exploring instead. "No, Dad. I don't want anything right now. If it's okay, I think I'll just head up to my room and lie down for a little while."

He stared into her eyes for a moment, trying to figure out if she really was okay before he nodded. "Sure. I need to check some emails anyway and make sure there aren't any emergencies I need to take care of. I'll be in the library if you need me, okay?"

She nodded as he placed her suitcase down next to her and turned to walk down the hallway toward the end of the house where Katie had told her the library was located. She had advised her that it was their father's favorite room in the house. Katie didn't exactly know why – it wasn't really an office, just a rather somber-looking, wood-paneled room with high, narrow windows flanking a majestic, wood-burning fireplace and dotted with massive, leather furniture – but she _did_ know that their father spent an inordinate amount of time in there either working on his laptop or merely sitting in one of the overstuffed chairs, lost in thought as he gazed at a fire that was typically blazing in the fireplace. She had told her that she didn't even think her father usually realized when she was there – it was typically when she crept downstairs late at night for a drink of bottled water or simply because she couldn't sleep and wanted to sit in front of the windows on one of the bench seats and draw by the light of an old-fashioned floor lamp situated nearby until she became drowsy. Whenever she found him in there, though, she usually didn't disturb him – he just seemed like he was far away in some other place and time.

Observing her father walking toward the room now, Kaylee picked up her suitcase and quietly followed a few feet behind, eventually pausing by the doorway as she arrived at the study. She watched as, sure enough, her father poured himself a drink from a glass decanter into a short, stout glass and walked over to sit in the closest chair near the fireplace, which was presently cold and unlit, a thick layer of ashes gathered underneath the metal grid as evidence of several previous fires.

She frowned as she looked around the room, feeling an odd sense of déjà vu; it did feel familiar somehow, but not in a foreboding sort of way. It actually felt nurturing and comfortable to her. She could almost picture her two fathers in here together, sitting side by side on the dark-brown leather couch, their shoulders touching as they quietly sat there talking softly and holding hands in front of the firelight; she and her sister played congenially with some blocks on a sage-green, plush area rug located at their feet. Was that wishful thinking on her part, though, or had it really happened? From what Katie had told her, it didn't sound like she and her father spent a lot of time in here now. Was that just because she had gotten older and simply outgrown 'playtime' or had it been by design on their father's part because it dredged up memories he would rather forget? She knew the answer wouldn't be readily forthcoming as she quietly studied the rest of the room, her father's back angled away from her as, instead of checking in with the office as he had indicated he would be doing, he sat there quietly, occasionally sipping from his glass as he stared off into space, lost in thought.

Her eyes fell upon a large painting hanging on top of the mantle several feet away and she sucked in her breath, instantly knowing who the artist was. She walked a few steps into the study to try and examine it better in the soft glow of a table lamp located to the side of the couch and found that she couldn't take her eyes off it – it was a flowing swirl of dark purples, maroons, and navy blue, dramatic, strong brush strokes applied in all different directions. Even without an untrained eye – oddly enough she unfortunately didn't have an artistic bone in her body – she could still sense a certain passion and drama in the piece. It drew her eye toward the outside of the frame as the lines became less defined and softer, almost as if they were traveling away into infinity. She squinted her eyes from a few feet away to peer down at the lower right-hand corner and smiled, instantly recognizing her father's initials scrawled there in his familiar, flowing script. Her eyes misted over just a little as she thought about him. She had only been away from her biological father for a few days now, but she missed him terribly. She wondered what was happening in Chicago, and how her sister was coping. Her homesickness, though, was eased by the fact that Katie was with him and that eventually, hopefully everything would turn out fine once they were able to reunite their fathers together again. The fact that her father couldn't bear to part with this reminder of her biological father, too, filled her with a sense of optimism that he hadn't given up on that dream, either.

Brian turned his attention back to the present as he heard a soft sound nearby; once more he had been daydreaming about Justin. That wasn't surprising, though; normally when he was sitting in here, his thoughts invariably turned toward the day he had proposed to his partner and they had tenderly made love for hours in front of the fireplace. That night had been one of the most exquisite ones in his life, and their sex then had been tempered by what they had just been through and what they had almost lost. They had fallen asleep in each other's arms afterward, exhausted, waiting until morning to resume a much more frantic pace in the shower, in the kitchen, in the living room, hell, everywhere in the house as they had become familiar with what would be their new home eventually. They had been so happy that day, so full of anticipation and eagerness over starting a new leg of their relationship's journey, one that had threatened to be lost. Their future had been so filled with promise back then. But that was a long time ago, though, and there was no going back now; he had seen to that, hadn't he?

He sighed as he looked over and realized Katie was standing nearby, wondering when she had even entered the room. His daughter looked almost apologetic as she stood there near his favorite painting of Justin's. It was one of his ex-partner's larger pieces that he had drawn; he had given it to Brian as a birthday present a few years before the girls had been born, replacing the horrendous, brass-colored sconces that had previously stood to either side of the fireplace mantel. He had lost count of how many times he had sat in this same chair, staring at the painting. At times it made him feel despair over how something so right had managed to go so terribly wrong; other times he felt oddly comforted to still have a piece of Justin with him. Of course, the beautiful young daughter currently looking at him was the best remembrance of his partner he could ever have. He didn't know what he would do without her, but he thanked his lucky stars every day that she was a part of his life.

He peered over at her curiously; it seemed her daughter was continuing with her odd behavior today. He could have sworn she had just told him she was going upstairs to lie down. "Did you need something, Princess?"

Kaylee shook her head as she slowly walked up to her father and sat down across from him on the couch, dropping her suitcase down on the cushion beside her. She took a moment to once more study her handsome father. She had only been with him again for a very short period of time, but she didn't feel awkward around him; the silence wasn't uncomfortable or disconcerting. She didn't quite understand why, because he was so different than her biological father – more moody, more complex, more introspective – but nevertheless she felt at ease with him. Enough to ask him some tough questions.

She tilted her head over toward the mantle. "Daddy's painting. Why do you keep it hanging over there?"

Brian's eyes widened; that had come out of left field. "Why do you ask?" he asked, his voice a little sharper than normal. It was almost as if his daughter had read his mind when it came to what – or who – he had been thinking about. He had made no secret as to who had painted the piece that had hung over the mantel for years now, but on the other hand the two of them hadn't discussed it in length, either. Why now, then?

Kaylee stared back at him unflinchingly. "I'm just wondering why you would keep that hanging over there if you and Daddy aren't together anymore."

Normally unflappable and glib in any situation, for once Brian found himself sputtering a little as he answered, "Uh…Well…Why wouldn't I? It's still a nice piece no matter who painted it, and it's a valuable asset now." Shit; that sounded lame even to him, he thought, as his daughter looked back at him unconvinced.

"You keep it there because you still love him," she told him flatly. "You come in here so you can think about him, so you can remember the happy times." And despite her somewhat hazy memory of when she and her sister were younger, she could somehow tell. They _were_ happy times – very happy times.

"Katie…" Brian had no idea why his headstrong daughter was bringing this up again. Hadn't they just discussed this very same thing on the way up to camp? "I told you before, it's so hard to explain…"

"Dad...You and Daddy were happy once." It wasn't a question, but a statement.

Brian couldn't help the nostalgic smile that slowly appeared on his face as all sorts of memories flooded his mind. "Yeah," he admitted as he stared over at the large, dramatic painting. "We were." He turned to look into her face to clarify, "We _all_ were."

Kaylee blinked, trying to keep the tears back that were threatening to roll down her cheeks. "We could be again," she insisted softly, her voice coming out as almost a plea.

Brian frowned, at a loss as to why his daughter kept mentioning Justin; twice now within the past couple of weeks. It seemed his daughter was coming of age where she was more and more intrigued as well as troubled over what had happened. He had read that in cases of separation between parents – albeit traditionally hetero ones – often the children were the ones who felt responsible, who carried around a load of guilt over what they perceived to be their fault that their parents had split up. Were his daughter's pre-adolescent hormones kicking in and causing her to feel responsibility for what had happened? Was that why she seemed so intent lately on getting to the bottom of what had occurred? In any case, he needed to straighten her out right now and ease her mind without getting too specific about the cause. He wanted to be honest with Katie, but at her age there was a limit as to how much he could share with her. He didn't want to get her hopes up falsely, either, as much as he might want to change what had happened.

"Katie…What happened had nothing to do with you," he assured her, having to bite his tongue before he divulged she had a sister who was probably going through the same thing with Justin. He took a deep breath before he added softly, "I…I made a mistake – a big mistake. I went back on a promise I made to your father. He forgave me for what I did, because that's the way he always was, but he wasn't able to move past it and overlook it so we could stay together." He blew out some air between his lips before he added, "That doesn't mean that when we were still together, we didn't love each other and didn't have a lot of happy times together, because we did." He placed his glass down on the side table with a heavy clunk as he reached to intertwine his fingers with hers. "That also doesn't mean that we could be a family again, Katie. Too much time has passed now, and we have all moved on with our lives." Of course, Brian knew that was a half-truth; yes, he had managed to survive without Justin – his company continued to grow more and more profitable every year, his daughter was growing up to be an independent, capable young woman, and he kept himself busy at work and at home. Katie kept him on his toes, which was exactly what he needed to avoid dwelling on the 'might have beens' that often popped up whenever something or someone reminded him of his previous life with his partner. To anyone looking in from the outside, he would appear to be the same confident, assertive, no-holds-barred man he had always been.

But if someone were to dig deeper, they would see the fine cracks around the surface, the spark that had gone out of his life when Justin had left, the inability he had now to allow anyone else's heart to pierce his, except for his daughter anyway. Debbie knew – she had always been able to see through him almost as well as Justin had – and Jennifer and Daphne no doubt realized he wasn't the same person he had been before Justin and his daughters had come along.

Michael? Well, he and Michael still kept in touch, but he lived in West Virginia now – at Britin – and since Ben's death Michael had submerged himself into his comic book store and had leaned more on Hunter than on him when he needed consolation. They stayed in touch, they called each other frequently, but their discussions were never the more complex, heart-wrenching, probing ones that they had engaged in before. Too much had changed since he and Justin had split up, and he had Katie to worry about now. His work and friends were still important to him, but his priorities had changed dramatically. His main priority was the young girl staring back so intently at him now, still not understanding in her own simple way why things couldn't be the way they had been before.

"You still love him." Again, the words uttered were a statement, not a query.

Brian sighed. He wouldn't lie to her. "Yes, Katie, I told you before. I still love your father. But sometimes love isn't enough, Chiquitita." He dropped her hand to rub it restlessly through his hair. "Look, I really need to check in with Cynthia. I'm sure you're tired from your trip; why don't you go on upstairs and we can talk about this some other time, okay?" Truthfully, he didn't know what else to say to her. He wasn't about to go into the sordid details of exactly what he had done to break him and Justin up; she was way too young to understand and he didn't want to rehash the painful details again anyway. Someday, though, he knew he would have to be more specific, but he didn't see a need to burden his young daughter with it just yet.

Kaylee bit her lip; she was tempted to push her father more about it, but on the other hand she was anxious to explore the rest of the house and then talk to her sister in private about what was going on back home before they made any more moves. She rose from her seat, then, and nodded. "Okay, Dad," she told her father as she reached down to pick up her suitcase. "I'll see you later."

Brian nodded, relieved that he had dodged the bullet for the time being. "I'll be up in a little while, and I'll bring you a little something to eat in case you get hungry, okay?"

She nodded back at him as, impulsively, she leaned down and took hold of his upper arms long enough to bestow a brief kiss on his cheek. He curled his lips under and smiled up at her tenderly as she turned and wheeled her suitcase out of the room, leaving Brian once more with his thoughts. He stole one more lingering gaze over at Justin's painting before he reached over to grab his cellphone to check his messages, the seeds of perplexity and confusion beginning to sprout but not yet put into focus.

* * *

><p><em>Chicago – Justin's Brownstone Loft – 10:55 p.m.<em>

From her place at a long, padded window seat, Katie constantly darted her eyes from her sketchpad to the street below, fascinated by the play of light and shadow on the vehicles, buildings, and landscaping shrouded in the inky darkness of night and illuminated only by the glow of the streetlamps hanging from the telephone poles. Having lived her entire life out in the country where there were more cows than residents, she found the hustle and bustle outside the window fascinating. Even at this late hour, vehicles of all types were driving by frequently – cars, SUVs, delivery trucks, and taxis to name a few – and it appeared that most of the home's occupants were still awake by the amount of lights shining behind the curtain-shrouded windows.

Normally in late evening Katie would be sitting cross-legged in bed doing her sketching, listening to some music on her I-Pod as she used the power of her pencil and paper to record the sights and sounds from the day's events. Today was no exception except she was sitting lengthwise in the window seat instead, her back against one of Kaylee's white, wooden bookcases and her pad propped up on her knees as her hand flew across the paper, sure and strong. When Katie was absorbed in her sketching, it was almost as if someone else had taken possession of her body; she was in her own little bubble. She bit her lower lip in concentration as finally she placed the last couple of pencil strokes on the paper and leaned her head back to peer down at the sketch she had drawn that depicted the street below.

She smiled in satisfaction, happy that it appeared so lifelike. She enjoyed drawing these types of scenes, but what she really enjoyed sketching were candid black and white drawings of people. How she longed to do that with her biological father as the subject! Being able to draw him in the flesh would be so much more exciting than having to use the photo she had found; there was just something about having an animated, breathing and living subject to inspire her to do her best, and since seeing him again she found that she couldn't take her eyes off him. But she daren't divulge her talent to her father, at least not yet. Hopefully in the future once she and her sister could bring their family back together, she would be able to fulfill her wish to draw him – maybe even draw both of her fathers reunited again, happy and still in love with each other.

She sighed; that was a wonderful vision, but first they had a number of hurdles to cross, most of all _Alex the Arrogant Architect_. She couldn't wait to talk to Kaylee to glean some more information about how to combat that man's penchant for meddling in their lives. It concerned her, too, that her father actually seemed to be seriously considering marrying the jerk. Stopping that from happening had to be their top priority for now, because if that man somehow convinced her father to get married it would be a disaster on so many levels.

Looking over at her sister's bedside table clock that was shaped in the round design of a pink and green flower, she noticed with alarm that it was 11:00 already. Hastily scrambling to pick up her cellphone that she had placed by her feet on the bench, she flipped it open and hurriedly dialed her own cell number, having switched phones with her sister before they departed. The phone had barely begun to ring when it was promptly answered with her sister's worried voice.

"Thank God!" Kaylee cried softly from her place in her sister's bedroom. She was lounging in an overstuffed, navy-blue chaise lounge located in a corner of Katie's room at Britin; she had immediately latched onto the oversized piece of furniture as her favorite as soon as she had set foot in Katie's high-ceilinged room. As she sat there with her legs crossed at the ankles, she still couldn't get over the difference between her sister's room and hers back home. The ceilings in Katie's room must be at least twelve-feet tall, with an impressive, wood-carved fireplace mantel sitting square in the middle of the back wall, scattered with numerous framed drawings of all sizes that contained what had to be her sister's sketches. She was secretly envious of how her sister had obviously been the one to inherit their father's artistic talent, wondering how as twins she hadn't at least picked up some of the same skill. But as her father often pointed out to her, the only way she could paint was with one of those tacky paint-by-number sets, and she hated getting her fingers smeared with paint anyway and especially getting stains all over her clothes.

She glanced around the room as she talked to her sister, noting the room was full of sports equipment in one corner; there was a type of portable, wooden dance floor set up in another corner facing a television with a game system on top, and a huge, walk-in closet that hosted a number of rather Spartan-looking sports clothes in simple, dark colors. She was presently clad in some sort of fleecy, maroon-colored, two-piece sleep suit that she had found in one of Katie's dresser drawers. It was certainly a change from the thin, pastel-colored cotton thermal top and bottom she normally wore at home to sleep in, but it felt comfortable enough. Besides, she knew she was playing a part at the moment and she had to pretend she was someone that she wasn't. She suspected it was going to be hard enough impersonating her sister's life without drawing attention to her distaste over her sister's fashion sense.

"Kaylee? Are you listening to me?"

Kaylee blinked as she realized she had zoned out. She rushed to reassure her sister, "Yeah, yeah, I'm listening. How did it go today?"

She heard her sister sigh. "I screwed up a couple of times," Katie admitted. "This is not going to be as easy as we thought it was going to be."

Kaylee bit her lip apprehensively as she quipped, "Who thought it was going to be easy? What happened? He doesn't know already, does he?"

"No, of course he doesn't!" her sister retorted softly, not wanting to speak too loudly for fear her father somehow would hear her, even though she had the door firmly shut. "He has no idea," she assured her.

"Then what happened?" Kaylee pressed.

Katie snorted. "In honor of _your_ homecoming, our father decided to serve you your favorite meal."

Kaylee smiled; that sounded so much like him. "My portabella hoagie and broccoli and cheese soup? I would die for some of that right now!"

"Well, I _almost_ died when he tried to serve it to me!" Katie huffed back. "What exactly IS a 'portabella,' anyway?"

Kaylee giggled, having eaten it so many times she knew it well. "It's a mushroom, silly," she told her sister. "It tastes great!"

"Well, it looked like blackened cow tongue and the bite I had tasted like charcoaled rubber," Kaylee groused. "My stomach could only handle a few bites of it and the soup before I had to tell our father I couldn't eat any more of it."

Kaylee's eyes widened in alarm. "Katie! How could you DO that? I LOVE that sandwich and soup! You have to play along or he's going to find out!"

"Don't get all spazzed out on me, Kaylee," her sister chided her. "I handled it; I just told Daddy that I was tired from the trip, and he seemed to buy it easily enough." She rolled her eyes, even though she knew her sister couldn't see her. "He suggested I go take a bubble bath to relax. Puh-leeeezz."

"I _love_ bubble baths!" her sister replied defensively. "The more bubbles the better."

"Well, I beg to differ," Katie retorted. "I hate wasting time lying in a tub and getting all wrinkled up like some prune! Thank goodness you have a separate shower in your bathroom."

"Just don't let Daddy know," Kaylee warned her, still feeling slightly insulted. "I never take showers. At least you have the choice there," she pointed out. "All you have here are shower stalls as big as the size of one of our bedrooms back home."

Katie had to smile at that statement. "Yeah, they are huge, aren't they? For some reason Dad always liked showers. We never _have_ had any bathtubs. He told me when I was younger he used to put me in the sink in one of those baby bathtubs to give me a bath."

"Well, that just points out how careful we're going to have to be," Kaylee replied. "We'll have to remember everything we told each other. Anything else happen?"

Katie smiled at an earlier remembrance. "Yeah. You didn't tell me that Daddy could play the piano. He was singing a song I actually remembered from when I was a baby. I had forgotten what a wonderful singing voice he has."

Kaylee shrieked, managing to keep her voice down despite her excitement. "Was he singing _Bridge Over Troubled Waters _again_?" _she asked hopefully.

Katie frowned. "Yeah, how did you know? It wasn't exactly a happy song the way he was singing it, by the way, so why are YOU so excited about it?"

"Because," her sister said triumphantly, "don't you see? I think he plays that when he's thinking about Dad! Why else would he be playing a song that he used to sing to us when we were young? And that would explain why he sounded a little sad, too; he still misses him!"

"Maybe he just likes to play it," Katie ventured, not quite convinced of her sister's belief, but then again, she knew this father better than she did; that's why they had switched in the first place. Could she be right?

"No," Kaylee told her adamantly, unable to keep the eagerness out of her voice. "I'm telling you, he's still in love with Dad; I know it!"

"Well, don't get all excited just yet, because I got news for you, sister; he told me that Alex the Asshole had proposed to him while they were up in Canada!"

Kaylee's euphoria evaporated as she said, "Oh, no! He…They didn't…?"

"No," was the reassuring reply as Kaylee's heart began to pound. "They didn't get married up there; but it sounds like it wasn't for lack of trying on the boyfriend's part. He's waiting for an answer, but Daddy told me he didn't want to give him one until he talked to me – or should I say _you_ – first."

"Shit," Kaylee muttered uncharacteristically, but she figured now wasn't a time to worry about being 'ladylike.' "I hope you set him straight on what a mistake that would be."

Katie idly fingered the top of her spiral sketchpad as she replied, "I certainly tried; but he's not totally against the idea, Kaylee. He's still thinking about it. At least I persuaded him not to make any hasty decisions. Hopefully that'll give us enough time for both of our Dads to realize they still love each other and belong together before that scuzzball manages to worm his way into our lives and messes everything up."

Kaylee sighed apprehensively. "I hope so," she replied. "But I don't trust him as far as I could spit at him. Look, you knew how to take care of Sandra up at camp; you're going to have to do the same with Alex before it's too late. We need some more time."

"And how do you suggest I do that, Kaylee?" Katie prompted her sister.

"I don't know! Think of something!" she hissed desperately. "Make the man's life miserable! Make it hard for him and Daddy to be together! You've got to try, Katie!"

Katie blew out a pregnant breath as she nodded, knowing her sister was right. "Okay, okay, I'll stick to him like wood on glue and watch his every move when he's around Daddy until I can think of something. And if you think of anything about him that might help send him packing, shoot me a text, okay?"

"Okay," Kaylee agreed. "Listen, I'd better go before too long; we can't take the chance that Dad will hear me talking to you. I'm going to try and see if he will let me ride in with him to work tomorrow so I can visit with Grandma Jen. I'm sure she'll have some ideas what we can do to get our dads back together, too; after all, it was her idea to begin with."

"Good idea," Katie told her approvingly. "Tell Grandma I said hello and to wish us luck; I think we may need it."

"I will," her sister assured her. "And give Picasso and Dali a hug and kiss for me. I miss them," she admitted wistfully. "They usually sleep with me at night, at least until I fall asleep. But I leave the door open a crack because they like to spend most of the night prowling around the apartment; are they doing okay, though?"

Katie snorted. "I wouldn't really know; I doubt that they'll even come to bed with me tonight. It seems they can tell the difference between you and me. They took one look at me as soon as we walked in the door and began to hiss at me and arch their backs before they ran off and hid! They don't want anything to do with me. You should have seen me trying to explain _that_ to Daddy earlier."

"No!" Kaylee cried, not even thinking that would have been an issue; her cats normally tried to make friends with everyone, and to have them shy away from her sister who was trying to pass herself off as her could be a, pardon the pun, cat-astrophe. This was no laughing matter, though. "What did you _do?"_

"Give me a little credit, Kaylee!" Katie retorted. "I told Daddy they probably didn't recognize me because of the new haircut. Fathers are so easily duped," she said almost proudly.

"Don't let him fool you," Kaylee told her sternly. "He's no dummy; you'd better be careful or he will figure out something's going on before you know it. He's very smart; Grandma Jen told me he got really high test scores at school. He could have gone to any college he wanted to back then, but he decided to go to art school instead."

"That's where I want to go, too," Katie told her softly. That was her hope eventually that she could follow in her father's footsteps and be a successful artist just like he was. "Okay, I'll be careful," she replied. "What about you? Any slip-ups today with Dad?"

Kaylee sighed. "About the same as you; he tried to stop at some deli in town to get me a steak hoagie, onion rings, and chocolate shake on the way home since we didn't eat much on his jet."

"You mean _McCallum's_? Oh, my God! I would DIE for that right now! You turned him down?" Katie's stomach was growling due to not eating anything since her father had tried to fix her dinner earlier; perhaps before she went to bed she could at least wander down to the kitchen and see what sort of food she could scrounge up. "Do you have any junk food at all in this place?" she lamented. "Or is it all bean sprouts and mushrooms?"

Kaylee snorted. "Are you kidding? _I_ may eat healthy, but Daddy doesn't. Trust me, you won't have any trouble finding what you want down in the kitchen, but for heaven's sake don't let him see you _eating_ it or he'll know something's wrong! I NEVER eat that crap!"

"Hey, watch it!" Katie growled. "I happen to _like_ that crap as you put it!"

Kaylee sighed, looking over at the clock and noticing how late it was getting. "Look, I really do have to go," she told her sister again. "Want to talk again same time tomorrow?"

"Yeah," Katie replied, hearing what she thought were footsteps coming down the hall. She still had her light on because she had been sketching, so she knew her father would know she was still up if he passed by her door. "I'd better go, too, I think Daddy's coming and I have to hide my sketchbook."

"Your sketchbook?" Kaylee cried. "You can't draw, remember? What are you even _doing_ with that? Hide it!"

"I will; give me a little credit!" Katie huffed out indignantly as she hastily pushed the sketchbook under the bench seat cushion; did her sister think she was that stupid? She knew that she was probably taking a chance having it, but she couldn't bear to part with her prized possession. "It's hidden now, don't worry!"

"For God's sake, Katie! You should have kept it in my, I mean, _your_ suitcase! You can't let him see you with that or it will all be over before we've even begun!"

The footsteps were getting closer as she hastily replied, "Don't you think I know that? Now I have to go, Kaylee," she whispered urgently. "Same time tomorrow!" She had just enough time to flip the phone closed and push it under the edge of the cushion next to her sketchpad before there was a soft knock on her bedroom door and her father poked his head in slightly to smile over at her. "Everything okay, Honey?" he asked softly as he walked further inside and stood facing her from a few feet away.

She nodded with a return smile of her own; her father was wearing only a pair of loose-fitting, sage-green pajama bottoms with a mint-green pinstripe running through them and was barefooted; she couldn't help thinking how different he looked from her darker, taller father but he was still beautiful in his own way nonetheless.

"I'm fine," she told him as he walked up to her; she swung her legs around so he could sit next to him on the bench seat as she added, "I was just about to go to bed."

Justin nodded. "Me, too. It's been a really long day." He reached over to lightly ruffle her short hair affectionately. "I'm still surprised you cut all your hair off, you know, but it's growing on me," he joked as she grinned back at him. His face sobered into a tender expression as he admitted, "I'm so glad you're home, Sweetheart. I'm sorry that experience turned out to be such a bad one for you."

She shook her head before saying, "It wasn't all bad, Daddy." She stared into her father's eyes as she smiled tenderly back at him and stated, "Some parts of it were really, really good, in fact."

He nodded. "Good; I'm glad to hear that." He groaned softly as he stood up and stretched backward to release some of the stiff muscles in his back before peering down at her; his time spend in front of the canvas he was working on had begun to take its toll on him. "Well, I'll say goodnight, then. I'm sure you'll sleep a lot better in your own bed now." He glanced around briefly before asking, "Have you seen the cats? They're normally already on the bed by now, waiting for you to join them."

She shook her head, still a little apprehensive that 'her' own cats apparently didn't want anything to do with her; it did make it hard to explain the reason why. "I haven't seen them. I'm sure they'll come around soon, though," she added, trying to sound more confident than she felt. What if she was wrong? What if they continued to avoid her? Wouldn't that look suspicious? She sighed softly; she would just have to cross that bridge when she came to it. In the meantime, she had a certain arrogant boyfriend that she had to work on, and she would start on it first thing tomorrow. She wouldn't rest until that man was out of father's life and the real person he loved was back in it

Justin nodded as he lightly curled one hand around his daughter's neck and leaned down to kiss her on the cheek. "Sweet dreams, Honey," he whispered with a smile as she nodded and watched him turn around to leave.

"Daddy?"

Justin turned around and raised his eyebrows in question. "Yeah, Kaylee?"

"I'm glad to be home again, too. Would you keep my door open a crack in case the cats want to come in later?" She figured it was worth a shot. Who knew? Maybe they would eventually take a liking to her after all. "Oh…and I love you," she added softly, almost embarrassed at the show of affection. She had only been with her father again for less than a day now, and she still had a lot of questions that needed to be answered, but she knew the way she felt about him was not in question.

Justin smiled at her; those precious words were always a balm to his soul. "I love you too, Honey. Good night." He quietly turned then and walked out of her room, quietly closing her door until it was only slightly ajar, his footsteps softly echoing as he disappeared down the hall toward his own room.

Katie sat there for a moment longer until she scooted off the bench seat and padded over to the canopy bed, pulling the covers back and picking up all the stuffed, beady-eyed animals staring back at her to place them on a mint-colored glider rocker nearby. That is, all except one. Sliding in under the cool covers, she reached over next to her and grabbed the lone animal remaining on the adjacent pillow. Why she had narrowed her choice down to a rather shabby-looking, worn, brown bear with a round tag around its neck with the name _Gus_ etched on it she didn't know, but as she clutched it to her chest she found it brought her an unexpected feeling of comfort as she slowly drifted off to sleep.

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><p><em>Thanks to Boriqua522 for checking this over for me.:)<em>


	12. I Know Who You Are

_Kaylee is reunited with her Grandma Debbie and gets some shopping tips from Emmett; Alex and Katie have a showdown, but who wins in the end? One father finally connects all the dots together and comes to an inevitable and astounding conclusion._

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><p><em>AN: Sorry for the longer-than-normal update period. Here's a long chapter to partially make up for it. We're heading for the eventual, long-awaited reunion between the boys. Hope you enjoy this chapter in the meantime! As always, thanks to my friend, Boriqua522, for looking this over for me so quickly.:)_

* * *

><p><p>

_Next Morning – Justin's Chicago Brownstone – 8:00 a.m._

Justin poked his head inside his daughter's door, frowning when he didn't notice her in bed. Normally at this time of day Kaylee would still be snuggled there, her mass of blond hair sticking out from under the covers. When she didn't have to attend school in the summer, it wasn't unusual for her to sleep in until around 9:00. Today, though, the covers had been thrown back and she was nowhere to be found.

"Kaylee?" he called out softly. When he didn't get an answer, he walked over to the adjoining bathroom, noticing evidence of a shower having been taken recently – the stall's walls were still wet and a couple of used towels were hanging rather haphazardly on the nearby, chrome towel rack. Furrowing his brow, he wondered where she was; his apartment wasn't so big that he couldn't find her fairly easily within a few minute's time, and he would have seen her if she had been upstairs.

Turning to exit his daughter's room, he walked down the hall and descended the steps, Dali and Picasso close at his heels; they kept up a constant, soft mewing as he headed downstairs. "It's a shame I don't understand cat language," he told them softly as he paid close attention to their position to avoid tripping on them; both cats had a bad habit of walking too closely to his and Kaylee's feet, and he lived in constant worry that one – or both – of them would break a leg someday as a result. The two cats continued to purr urgently at him, probably more interested in food than Kaylee's whereabouts. "Where did she go? Huh?" He wasn't sure it would help even if he COULD speak their language, though; since returning to Chicago with his daughter, both cats had been acting quite strangely, wanting practically nothing to do with her. In fact, they had been spending more time with HIM in his studio than Kaylee recently, sunning themselves on one of the wide, marble window ledges interspersed throughout the space as he worked.

"Kaylee?" he called out again as he arrived downstairs and walked down the hall toward the kitchen; sensing triumph, the two cats scampered ahead of him and stopped right in front of the cabinet where Justin kept their cat food. He smirked; _manipulative little felines…_

"Okay, okay," he told them agreeably, putting his slight worry aside for a moment as their meows became more urgent. He smiled at their mewing cries as he opened the pantry and, taking out a couple of cans of cat food, hurriedly scooped out the contents into their matching food bowls with a spoon before throwing the empty containers in a nearby recycling bin. As he rinsed off the spoon and went to put it in the sink, he noticed a soiled dinner plate and a fork already there. There appeared to be what looked like remnants of the leftover cheesecake he had picked up at the local bakery recently. "What the…?" Normally his daughter wanted nothing to do with such decadent, calorie-laden sweets, but it appeared she must have come down to the kitchen at some point either tonight or this morning to imbibe in a piece of the sinfully-rich dessert. He shook his head in puzzlement as he picked up the plate and stared at the clear-cut evidencel in disbelief. About a year ago, he had let himself be talked into fixing a tofu cheesecake at Kaylee's urging; his daughter had thought it was great afterward and had eaten every bite of her slice, while he had taken one bite and promptly spit it out. There was no way she would normally eat the real thing.

"What is going _on_?" he murmured as he looked down at the two cats; they were too absorbed in eating their own breakfast, however, to give him any mind as he placed the plate back down in the sink and headed toward the front door. He got to within a few feet of it when it suddenly flew open; there his daughter stood, flushed, panting and sweaty, wearing a pair of cream-colored, knit exercise shorts and a plain, navy-blue tee-shirt he recognized as one his daughter rarely wore. Her I-pod was in her hand and she had a pair of tiny headphones hanging around her neck.

"Hi, Daddy!" she chirped out cheerfully as she closed the door and smiled at him. She walked over and, placing her hands on his shoulders, she reached up to give him a quick peck on the cheek before stepping back to observe his puzzled-looking face. "Is something the matter?"

Feeling sort of like he was in an episode of the Twilight Zone, Justin stared at his daughter in surprise. "Where _were _you?" he asked. "I thought you were still in bed."

She shook her head. "It was too nice to stay in bed," she told him, "so I thought I'd take a run around the neighborhood."

Justin's mouth hung open; it wasn't that his daughter wasn't into physical activity, but her normal interests consisted of things like walking around the zoo or the mall, or maybe going swimming occasionally. She also enjoyed going with him from time to time to the lakeside parks to stroll around the water and people watch. And, of course, there was her cheerleading, which in and of itself could be quite strenuous a lot of the time. But jogging? He had never seen her jog a day in her life. "You went _jogging_?" he asked in astonishment, too surprised to even think about how possibly dangerous it might be for such a young girl to be doing that on her own. Not that he considered their neighborhood unsafe, but not all criminals were homegrown and the world was a pretty scary place now.

_Uh, Oh_. Katie bit her lip as she noticed her father's look of astonishment, suddenly realizing the logistical mistake she must have made. Apparently Kaylee wasn't the jogging type. Back home, she enjoyed either going horseback riding or jogging on the dirt trails around the grounds every morning before she ate breakfast; it was a great way to enjoy the fresh air and get her artistic juices flowing. Invariably on her runs she would see something fascinating – sometimes it would be wildlife such as a doe and her fawn grazing on the back lawn, or a coyote scampering away from her, more afraid of her than she was of it. Or on other days, it would be right after the sun had arisen on a crisp, cool day, the dew still surrounding the multitude of plants and trees that bloomed throughout the property, the lake's water sparkling off the sun like thousands and thousands of tiny jewels. Or there might be beautiful white swans or great blue herons on the lake, gliding placidly through the water. She never knew WHAT she would see, but she derived profound pleasure from her peaceful morning communes with nature.

She knew here in Chicago the scenery would be vastly different, so she was eager to find out more about the neighborhood. When she awoke around 7 this morning like she normally did, she decided to find something suitable to wear and headed out for a run. Now, however, as she observed her father's look of surprise on his face, she knew she had made a tactical error and once more she would have to do some fancy backpedaling to avoid suspicion.

She shrugged indifferently. "Uh…Yeah, Daddy. My coach at cheerleading said if we got into jogging, it would help to strengthen our leg muscles for jumps, so I thought I'd give it a try."

Justin stared intently into her face, distinctly thinking that there was more to it than that, but unable to quite put his finger on it. Finally, he nodded. "Okay. But no more jogs without me, Kaylee Marie; it's not completely safe for a young girl to be jogging alone, even in daylight, understood? If you want to start going for runs regularly let me know and I'll go with you – _somehow_," he added with a smile. He wasn't that good at running – in fact, he was pretty lousy at it – but if Kaylee was a beginner, how fast could she _be _anyway?

Katie nodded, vastly relieved that once more she had managed to escape without arousing a great deal of suspicion. "Okay," she said with a smile as she started to head down the hallway toward the stairs. "I'm going to go change my clothes and then find me something for breakfast."

"Speaking of which," she heard her father say as she stopped to turn around and look at him. "I saw where you had eaten a piece of cheesecake earlier."

_Shit. _Another screw-up; she had meant to put that dish in the dishwasher after rinsing it off but she had forgotten. It had been after midnight when had sneaked down to peek in the fridge and retrieve the half-eaten cherry cheesecake sitting on the middle shelf; it had been too good to pass up. In her haste to get back to bed afterward undetected, though, she had rinsed it off but promptly forgot to put it in the dishwasher to get rid of the evidence. In hindsight, however, she realized that as smart as her father was, he would have probably realized there was another piece missing from the pie later anyway even if she had.

"Uh," she stammered out, trying furiously to think of something, _anything_, that would explain her sudden change in eating habits. She breathed a sigh of relief as a sudden knock sounded on their door. "I'll get it!" she volunteered just a little too eagerly as she turned around to answer the door before her father had a chance to press her about it further. Justin opened his mouth to call out to her, but it was too late; she was gone in a shot. He sighed in exasperation as he heard the door being opened.

Katie's relief at their welcome interruption turned to disdain as she realized who their early-morning visitor was. "Oh, it's YOU," She muttered with a scowl as she held the door open several inches but not enough for anyone to enter.

"May I come in?" Alex replied stiffly, irritated as well as disappointed that Justin hadn't answered the door instead.

"Why?" she asked pointedly as she glared back at him.

"Alex?" Justin called out from behind her as he walked toward the door. "Kaylee," he replied, softly chiding his daughter for her lack of manners, "open the door and let him in."

Katie pursed her lips tightly together and stared icily at Justin's suitor as she reluctantly did as her father asked, watching the man warily as he entered the brownstone.

"Justin!" He exclaimed, his face in a beaming smile. "You're never going to believe this!" He walked up and abruptly swept his boyfriend up into a tight embrace, lifting his feet slightly off the ground.

"What?" Justin answered with a laugh, a little surprised by Alex's jubilance.

Alex lowered Justin back down to the ground as he reached inside his leather jacket pocket to produce a white, business-size envelope. "Open it," he said almost smugly.

Justin eyed him curiously as he slowly opened the flap and pulled out the contents inside. "The Chicago Institute of American Architects?"

Alex beamed as he nodded. "Read what it says."

Justin scanned the contents until he came to the part that Alex wanted him to see. He lifted his gaze to smile over at his lover. "You've been nominated for one of the Design Excellence Awards?"

Alex nodded excitedly, his face alit with happiness. "Yeah! Out of 285 entries my design for the sports arena was picked as one of the ten finalists! Isn't that fucking _awesome_?"

Justin smiled in reaction to his excitement and nodded. "That's great, Alex! I'm very proud of you. But I'm not surprised – you know that's my favorite design of yours." The sports arena had been built with 100% green materials, and Alex had used all sorts of innovative ideas to not only bring in natural light but provide water and electricity for the facility at a substantial energy cost savings for the sports teams that it housed. The curved angles on the exterior of the innovative building had appealed to Justin's sense of artistic style at the time, so he wasn't surprised that it had been recognized as a possible award winner. He quickly scanned the rest of the letter. "Looks like you'll know soon if you won or not, huh? I see that the awards are scheduled to be given out later this week."

Alex nodded. "Yeah – I couldn't wait to _tell_ you!" He stared intently into Justin's face as he grasped his shoulders and advised, "The awards banquet is Friday at 8:00. It's a very classy affair; five-course gourmet cuisine, a 35-piece orchestra for dancing, and a full bar. Just being nominated is a great honor whether I win or not, and they make it a point to recognize all of the nominees that night. I'd really like for you to go with me, Justin. Will you?"

Justin gazed into Alex's eyes; he still was torn over what answer to give him regarding his marriage proposal. He had promised Kaylee that he would give it very serious thought before he made his decision. There wasn't any reason in the meantime why he couldn't support Alex during this very important night for him, though. He knew how much this meant to him and how seriously he took his work, and Alex had always supported _him_ when he had been given accolades for his art. "Of course I'll go with you," he told him with a smile as Alex beamed in response.

He glanced over at Kaylee, who appeared perturbed by his decision for some reason. "I'm sure Kaylee can stay with Mrs. Bailey next door while we're gone." Mrs. Bailey was a widow in her 70's who had lived in her brownstone apartment for the past twenty years; she had quickly grown fond of Kaylee when they had first moved here and had been invaluable to him whenever he needed an impromptu babysitter. Kaylee was quickly getting to the age where she resented the thought that she even _needed _a babysitter, but Justin had the impression that that wasn't what she was bothered about at the moment. She was looking over at them with a distinctive mixture of both dismay as well as disappointment for some reason.

Justin's thoughts about his daughter were interrupted as Alex leaned in to give him a kiss of gratitude, gliding his tongue over the full mouth to request further entrance; but Justin's lips remained closed to his entreaty just like the other day. To his disappointment he felt Justin pulling back as he reluctantly broke apart from him. As they did so, he spied Kaylee over Justin's shoulder, standing with her arms crossed defiantly over her chest and her back leaning against the wall, her face clearly displaying the disdain and distrust she felt for him. He returned her expression with a brief smirk of one-upmanship as he refocused his eyes on Justin to say, "Thanks. Now I have something to _really_ look forward to at the end of the week. How about I take you out tonight for dinner to help celebrate my achievement in the meantime?" He had been dying to get Justin alone again ever since they had had to leave Canada prematurely. When Justin appeared to hesitate, he decided to pull out the 'big guns,' knowing Justin's sense of decency wouldn't be able to resist. "You can consider it a payback for flying you and Kaylee back home and cutting our vacation short. What do you say? I'll even spring for Italian at Josie's." He knew that was his lover's favorite restaurant.

Justin twisted around in Alex's arms to look over at his daughter. "It would just be for a few hours," he told her as Alex smiled over at her smugly. "I'll ask Mrs. Bailey if she could come over to stay here with you until I get back, okay?"

Katie seethed inside, not wanting her father to go but not having a legitimate reason to prevent him from doing so. She was also a little nervous about this 'Mrs. Bailey.' Her sister had neglected to tell her about this woman. "I guess," she finally said glumly and without any enthusiasm. She tried one, last desperate tactic, not having any idea if it was accurate or not as she added, "But she likes to go to bed by 10."

Justin frowned at her as Alex rolled his eyes behind him, realizing all too well exactly what she was trying to do. "I thought you told me she was a night owl?" He shrugged, figuring it wasn't too important either way. "We should be home way before then anyhow," he told her reassuringly.

Alex bit his lip, wanting so badly to tell Justin to stop letting this child control his life, but he also knew that wouldn't go over very well with his boyfriend. He pasted a pleasant-looking expression on his face before Justin turned back to him and asked, "That shouldn't be a problem, should it?"

"No," he responded, forcing a slight smile on his face. At least he would have a couple of hours alone with Justin – and without his brat of a daughter. His initial impression of Kaylee as a mere nuisance was quickly turning into something much more abhorrent; for some reason, since she had gotten back from that camp she had turned into a real headache – one that he wanted desperately to get rid of but knew that he couldn't; sort of like a recurring migraine. If he didn't want Justin so damn much, he would have been long gone by now. There had to be a way to have the best of BOTH worlds, though, and he was damn well going to find it…

"Josie's, huh?" Justin prodded him as he turned his focus back to his lover.

"I'll take you anywhere you want to go, Mr. Taylor," he told him softly. "I'll be here at 7:00 and you can tell me then."

Justin nodded as they broke apart. "I'll give the matter very serious thought," he said solemnly before his face broke out in a grin.

Alex couldn't help smiling back at him as he turned to leave. "I've got to go into work now and do a little gloating in front of my colleagues," he said with a lopsided grin. "I'll see you later then."

"Okay, bye," Justin responded as Alex turned to go, walking back into the kitchen to prepare breakfast. He failed to see - or hear – the exchange that took place as Alex walked over to the front door to leave. Katie plastered an open glare on her face as Alex stared down at her suspiciously, feeling her heart beating rapidly at his naked look of scorn but not allowing him to see the fear on her face.

Alex wanted so badly to say something to her – to put her in her place – but he somehow knew if he did that she would waste no time running straight to Justin to rat on him, and it would be her word against his. At that moment, unfortunately he didn't know if he would win or SHE would. He _did_ know, however, that he was going to straighten her out very soon as to who was going to be running this household in the near future, and it most certainly wouldn't be HER.

He opened the door and, before he had a chance to close it, he heard it slam loudly behind him. "Damn impertinent BRAT!" he growled. He smiled, however. _Let her think she has the upper hand for now, because I KNOW better…_

He and Justin would have some alone time tonight at dinner and also on Friday during the awards banquet; they could discuss their future some more during both occasions. And he could also begin to broach the idea of Kaylee 'furthering her scope of experience and education' after they were married by suggesting she be sent to a private boarding school somewhere – somewhere FAR away from Chicago.

* * *

><p>"Kaylee? Ready for some breakfast?"<p>

Katie took a deep breath to calm herself and let it out before calling back, "Yeah, I'm coming, Daddy." Her face was red with anger. The more she was exposed to this Alex person, she more she detested him. Kaylee had warned her about him, but she hadn't been strong enough in her condemnation of him. The man was a conniving, two-faced asshole, and he was interfering with her and her sister's plan to get their fathers back together. Even if her other father hadn't factored into the picture, she would _still_ be trying to get rid of him! Her father deserved so much better than THIS man; how could he even be thinking of marrying this guy? She had to find a way to convince her father that marrying him would be a huge mistake without giving away her true reason for doing it.

"Kaylee? I need you to tell me what you want for breakfast."

"I'll be right there!" she called out as she walked toward the kitchen, resolving to text her sister afterward to let her know that the 'enemy' was on the move again.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Pittsburgh – Liberty Diner<em>

Kaylee's mouth hung open as Brian walked the two of them toward the diner; she had been given what she hoped was sufficient information about the various friends that their father might be expected to run into at the diner, but she was still a little nervous about slipping up, especially after yesterday's mistake about what she wanted to eat. As much as it might disgust her, she would have to concentrate today on eating _junk_ food, or at least something that was unhealthy and fat-driven. Her stomach was in knots at the moment, however, not at the thought of having to eat something like greasy eggs and bacon like her other father liked to eat back home, but rather the thought that for the first time since she was a baby, she would perhaps be coming face to face with her other grandma Debbie – the lady she had spoken to on the phone several days ago. Kaylee had warned her that their grandmother was a little 'over the top,' in her words, but that just made her all the more curious to see her.

She had succeeded in talking her father into letting her ride into work with him today and meeting her grandma Jen at the diner for breakfast; she had called her last night, asking if she would let her spend the day with her today while her father was working, and then he would come pick her back up here at the diner later after he was done. Her Grandma Jen, wise to what the girls were up to, had readily agreed, so at least if she started to mess something up hopefully her grandma Jen would be there to prevent her from making any obvious mistakes that might reveal who she really was.

As Brian opened the door and let her precede him into the diner, her senses were assaulted by all the sounds and colors that greeted them – there were signs and posters plastered everywhere on the walls, in addition to several works of art framed neatly along the side wall. She worked furiously to hide her shock as she immediately recognized three or four of the paintings as belonging to her Daddy; she would know his works anywhere by now. She noticed that her father didn't seem to pay them much mind, however, which led her to believe that they had been hanging there for some time. She tried not to show the surprise on her face as her father took her gently by the elbow and led her over to the counter where there were two side-by-side stools left. As they sat down, she took a few moments to crane her neck around to gawk at the circus of people eating there as her father took out the folded newspaper he was carrying and began to peruse the front page. There were all types of groups eating in the bustling diner – men with men, women with women, men with women, even some kids; some of the people she couldn't decide were men dressed as women or just ugly females. Most of those dining there were dressed fairly conservatively in either business attire or casual wear, but she _did_ notice two leather-clad men sitting side-by-side in one of the booths, silver chains hanging around their necks and studded leather bracelets on their hands. She quickly averted her eyes as they must have sensed her staring at them and turned to look over at her curiously. This place was definitely nothing like Chicago, she quicky decided, but it was sure interesting. She would have loved to whip out her sketchbook and draw everything going on, but she didn't have one with her. And even if she had brought one, she never could have started drawing anything in front of her father, anyway.

"Hey! Waitress!" Brian groused loudly at Kaylee's side. "How about some _SERVICE_ here?" Kaylee's eyes widened as she watched a curly-haired redhead turn around and stare back at them, her hands on generous-sized hips; the woman's eyes latched onto her and she saw the beginning of tears immediately forming as she recognized who she must be. _No…Please don't give me away!_ She cried out to her silently as the person who had to be her grandma Debbie came rushing over to greet them. She had a pen stuck behind her ear and a multi-colored headband scarf around a wild set of curls; a bright green shirt with the words _Life Isn't Good Unless It Sucks_ was sticking out from her bright yellow vest festooned with buttons of all sizes and colors. She jingled as she walked, the result of several, thin metal bracelets worn on her right hand.

Kaylee watched with a mixture of both anticipation as well as apprehension as her grandmother approached them; to her enormous relief, she watched as the woman stopped to seemingly compose herself before she waltzed up to them and muttered to Brian, "What the fuck do you think I'm _doing?_" Debbie growled. "Same exquisite manners as always." Kaylee watched as her grandmother deftly turned over a white china mug and poured a cup of coffee into it before she whipped out her order pad and pencil to announce matter-of-factly, "White egg omelet, two strips of turkey bacon, one piece of whole wheat bread, dry." She eyed Brian intently as she asked, "Sure you don't want to live on the dangerous side and add a pat of butter and some jelly to that?"

Brian sighed melodramatically as he set down the newspaper he was reading. "Deb, I'm rushed for time today; just get me my order, okay?" He turned to his daughter, noticing she seemed to be almost in a trance as she stared over at her 'grandmother.' "Katie – want your usual?"

"My _usual_?" she couldn't help stuttering out. _What in the world WAS her 'usual?' _She silently chided her sister for not disclosing that particular bit of information as she looked over at her grandmother in a silent plea for help.

"It's okay, Baby," Debbie replied tenderly with a warm smile. "I've got your back. French toast with extra maple syrup, two sausage links, hash browns and a large orange juice," she supplied smoothly. "Coming right up." Unbeknownst to Brian she gave Kaylee a quick wink before leaving as the girl uttered a silent prayer of thanks for her help.

She bit her lip, however, as she realized what her grandmother had just ordered for her; there had to be two thousand calories and who knows how many carbs in that meal! How did Katie stand all that? She wrinkled up her nose in distaste at the thought of how much fat she was about to consume. She would have to at least make a pretense of enjoying her meal, however; how she would eat a lot of it, though, was a mystery to her.

She turned her head as the alert bell jingled over the diner's front door and her face broke out into a big smile. "Dad, there's grandma," she told Brian as Jennifer smiled back at her and came walking over. She was dressed smartly but casually today in a pair of dark-blue jeans, beige loafers, and a V-necked, short-sleeved, navy-blue knit shirt. "Hi, Honey," she greeted her as she grasped her granddaughter's shoulders from behind and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I'm so glad to see you," she whispered as Kaylee smiled back at her.

"Brian," Jennifer acknowledged her 'almost son-in-law.' "Mind if I join you?"

Brian shrugged, his hand indicating a third seat that had since been vacated next to Kaylee. "Feel free," he said. He looked up from his paper at her to say, "So you and Katie are spending the day together."

Jennifer nodded as Debbie came back over and poured her some hot water, knowing she would be wanting her usual order of Earl Grey. "Yeah, we girls are going to do some shopping while you're at work." She glanced over at Kaylee and winked at her, thrilled beyond words that the 'great switch' had occured without a hitch. Now all they had to do was successfully carry out the rest of the plan. "How about we go to the mall…_Katie_?"

Kaylee smiled at her grandmother gratefully as Debbie stood there, not trying to hide her own pleasure at finally being reunited with her other granddaughter. She was itching to sweep the girl up into a huge bearhug to ensure she really was there, but she knew she didn't dare reveal that she knew the truth. Inside, though, she was doing somersaults of jubilation.

"Deb? Our breakfasts?" Brian glanced down at his Rolex to note the time. "My business doesn't run by itself."

"Don't twist your ball, uh, _balls_ in a knot," Debbie growled as she glanced over at the cook's window to make sure their food wasn't ready yet. "I'm keeping an eye on it." She stared at Kaylee, noticing how uncanny the resemblance was between her and Katie. She couldn't help staring at her. _My God – if they were sitting side by side, it would be impossible for her to tell them apart, which she supposed was exactly the point…_

The ding of the order-up bell sounded as she reluctantly strode away to go pick up Brian and Kaylee's orders. A few seconds later she had placed Brian's omelet and turkey bacon down and then Kaylee's more sinful, calorie-laden plate, thankful there was a temporary lull in the patrons so she could spend a little more time with her granddaughter. She noticed Kaylee raising her fork hesitantly, eyeing the stack of French toast warily as if it were a mortal enemy. Not knowing Kaylee's abhorrance for fatty, sugary foods, she couldn't help frowning a little as she asked, "Something wrong with it, Baby?" She snorted. "It can't be because it's too hot – Carlos only knows two temperatures back in the kitchen – cold and lukewarm."

Kaylee's felt the heat on her face as she noticed both grandmothers and her father staring at her. Try as she might, she couldn't imagine eating such monstrosity; the French toast appeared to be deep-fried and was dripping on top with butter. Smiling a little awkwardly at them, she thought furiously for a plausible explanation. "Uh…I guess I'm just not hungry," she finally offered lamely. "My stomach's feeling kind of queasy." At least _that_ part was the truth.

"Are you feeling sick, Katie?" Brian asked with concern. This wasn't the first time Katie had been weird around her food; in fact, ever since she had been at that damn camp she hadn't really been herself. "I'm beginning to think you picked up something at that camp."

Jennifer had to bite her tongue to keep from snorting at that comment. _If you only knew…_

"Maybe you'd better postpone your shopping trip and just go home with Jennifer and take it easy instead."

"No, Daddy!" Kaylee protested, not wanting to miss out on getting to know her father's hometown better or being able to spend time with her grandmother. "I'm okay – really. I'll drink my juice," she finally decided, hoping that would at least mollify her father a little bit. "And Grandma Debbie can put my food in a carryout container. I'll eat it later."

Brian furrowed his brow as he stared over at his oddly-behaving daughter, wondering just what it was about her that made him think something strange was going on. The beseeching look on his daughter's face, however, made him decide to entrust her in Jennifer's hands as he finally nodded, wiping his mouth with his napkin as he set his utensils down. "All right, if you're sure," he told her as he looked over at Jennifer. "Make sure she doesn't overdo it." He stood up as Jennifer nodded at him, picking up the two checks so he could pay on the way out. "I'll meet you back here at 5:15." He leaned down to kiss Kaylee's cheek. "Later, girls," he called as he walked away.

Kaylee breathed out a sigh of relief as he left them. "That was a close one," she murmured as she pushed her food away from her.

Jennifer, having visited Justin and Kaylee numerous times in Chicago, immediately discerned what the problem was. "Couldn't hack all the sugar and calories, could you?" she stated knowingly. "You're going to have to try to compromise a little, though, Honey; your father's a very smart man and it wouldn't take much for him to figure out what's going on."

Kaylee scrunched up her nose. "How does she _eat_ all this stuff?" she groused with a sigh. "I'm trying, Grandma," she countered as she stared in disgust at the pile of food. "But I take one look at all those carbs and I just can't handle it. I knew Katie liked to eat this kind of stuff at camp, but I had no idea she could eat THIS much!"

Jennifer smiled at her sympathetically. "I know, Sweetheart, but you're going to have to be careful."

Debbie squatted down to retrieve a white Styrofoam container from beneath the counter; she stood back up as she leaned on the laminate surface to lay it near Kaylee's plate. Placing a hand on her granddaughter's cheek, she couldn't help the tears that sprang once more to her eyes as she no longer tried to hide her reaction at seeing her long-lost other granddaughter. "I am so…fucking…glad to see you, Kaylee Marie," she told her softly. "It's been such a long time; _too_ long." She shook her head in amazement. "You are the spitting image of your sister. I wasn't sure you and Katie could pull this off, but after seeing you, I think I've changed my mind. Holy shit."

"Debbie…" Jennifer warned, not sure if their young granddaughter should be exposed to Debbie's full range of flowery vocabulary.

Debbie shrugged as she cracked the piece of gum in her mouth. "It's who I am, Kiddo," she said to Kaylee. She grinned. "But I'll try to tone it down for you." She turned to look over at Jennifer. "So what's the plan?"

"Plan?"

"Yeah, you DO have a plan?"

Jennifer and Kaylee looked at each other as she admitted, "We're playing it by ear so far. But eventually we really won't NEED a plan; they'll have to return the other daughter eventually once they find out what's going on." She laughed. "And I'M certainly not going to help them."

Debbie nodded thoughtfully. "I'm not sure they're going to be too happy when they find out what's going on."

"No," Jennifer admitted as Kaylee listened intently. "Not at first. But I'm tired of them using me as the go-between to know what the other is doing. And I'm tired of them trying to deny that they don't still love each other. This will be a good way to find out one way or the other. Most of all I'm tired of these two girls being apart. That had to be the dumbest custody arrangement I've ever heard of." She looked over at her granddaughter. "It's time to work on bringing this family back together."

Kaylee smiled as she nodded firmly in agreement. "I can tell Daddy still loves him. There's no way we can let him marry that jerk Alex."

Jennifer's mouth hung open; this was the first she had heard about that. _"Marry?_"

Kaylee nodded. "That's what HE wants, anyway; Katie told me last night that he had asked Daddy to marry him when they were in Canada." She pursed her lips tightly together. "I don't like him," she told her grandmothers flatly.

Jennifer's head was spinning; she was aware of Justin's boyfriend, but had no idea things had progressed to that point, although she shouldn't have been too surprised – the man had been pursuing her son for years now, and despite Justin's ongoing relationship with him, she strongly suspected the man's feelings for her son were nowhere near returned. "They were in Canada?"

Kaylee nodded again. "Yeah, _Mr. Big Shot_ took him on a vacation when I was at camp." She grinned. "I think mine and Katie's plans spoiled _his, _though; that and the fact that Daddy didn't give him the answer he wanted."

Jennifer sighed in relief as Debbie shook her head and asked, "How serious IS Sunshine about this Alex?" She had never met the man, but from Kaylee's tone of voice she already didn't trust OR like him.

Kaylee played with the straw in her orange juice as she replied confidently, "I know he doesn't love him; I know in my heart that he still loves Dad. But he's lonely, Grandma. And I'm afraid if we don't get them back together soon it might be too late and he just might say yes anyway." Her eyes filled with unexpected tears as she added, "We can't let that happen."

"I agree," Debbie spoke up. "I don't know who this Alex thinks he is, but he's not the man for your father," she said firmly. "_Brian_ is." She never could understand why they had broken up in the first place; even Jennifer was sworn to secrecy, despite her repeated attempts to find out. She simply told her that Brian had broken a promise to Justin and it had been irreparable. Well, maybe back _then_ it felt like it was, but a lot of time had passed since then. Surely it was time at last to right those wrongs. But was Kaylee right? Were they running out of time? "Maybe you should just tell your father who you really are," Debbie told Kaylee. "What would be the harm in that?"

"Well, for one thing both Brian AND my son are liable to be furious when they find out that I had a hand in switching them without their knowledge," Jennifer pointed out as she took a sip of her tea. "But then again, I guess it wouldn't have worked any other way; the rest, though, from here has to be up to _you _two – and your stubborn fathers. Maybe Debbie's right, though; maybe it IS time to just tell Brian and bear the consequences."

Kaylee shook her head. "I don't want him to know just yet," she told them.

Jennifer frowned. "Why? It would certainly be a step in the right direction. You've gotten reacquainted with your father again; what's the point in keeping it from him _now_?"

"Yeah, Baby, now you can convince your father to take you back home to Chicago – and he can talk to Justin finally and they can start to work things out."

"I know," Kaylee admitted as she began to scoop her untouched food into her takeout container; she wrinkled her nose at all the syrup and butter the French toast was swimming in. "But I kind of like him not knowing – at least for a little longer. I like getting to know him better while he doesn't suspect. I'm afraid once he finds out who I really am, he will change somehow and try to act like he thinks _I_ want him to be, not like he really IS."

"How, Honey?" Jennifer asked her curiously; Debbie ignored the pleas of nearby diners growling for their meals, too intent on following their conversation as she leaned both elbows on the counter and stared at her granddaughter's face.

Kaylee shrugged. "I don't know," she admitted. "Right now I get a chance to really get to know what he's like; what he likes to do and what it might be like to live with him every day." She sighed. "What it might be like for Daddy and me to live with him and Katie all the time." She smiled. "I even remember bits and pieces of the house now...And it's a _good_ feeling. It feels _right._"

"You _do_?"

Kaylee nodded at Jennifer. "Yeah. I remember eating breakfast in the same kitchen, and Dad giving me a bath." She laughed. "For some reason, though, it seems like he got wetter than _I _did."

Jennifer's laughed softly in reminiscence as she nodded. "I remember Justin telling me what a happy baby you always were when Brian gave you your baths; he said you flapped your hands up and down so much in the bathtub to splash water all over that your father normally wound up getting drenched every time." She paused for a moment to look her granddaughter in the eyes and tell her softly, "He never stopped loving you, Kaylee; and I know he's missed you terribly, just like Justin has missed seeing your sister grow up."

"Deb! Orders up! Come ON!"

"Shit!" Debbie groused as she glanced over at Carlos' angry scowl through the open pass-through to the kitchen. "Listen, I have to go," she said reluctantly as she reached over and cupped Kaylee's cheek. "Why don't you and Brian come over for dinner sometime? I know we can't really talk about what we WANT to, but at least I can spend some more time getting to know my granddaughter again."

Kaylee nodded as she whispered shyly, "I'd like that…_Grandma_." She was still getting used to Debbie and calling her that, but she had decided immediately that she liked this woman; instinctively somehow she knew this woman would always protect and take care of her. She was rewarded with a bright smile as Debbie lightly patted her cheek.

"Shit," she muttered self-consciously as she wiped some sentimental tears away. She started to leave before she turned around and waggled a red-lacquered fingernail at her. "Don't you forget now," she scolded her before she finally rushed off to pick up the quickly-cooling breakfast plates.

Jennifer smiled in amusement at Debbie's show of emotion; she knew it must have been hard for her friend not to sweep Kaylee up into a vice grip as soon as she saw her, but Brian's appearance with her had promptly prevented that. Probably just as well; Debbie's greetings were legendary by now and a hazard to a growing girl's health. "She's really something, isn't she?" she murmured to her granddaughter, who seemed lost in thought. "Kaylee?"

The girl blinked as she turned to look at Jennifer. She nodded. "Yeah…I bet she can stand up for herself really well."

Jennifer laughed. "You could say that," she responded. "But you don't know how much she has been wanting to see you again."

Her granddaughter stared after her, lost in thought. "You know, now that I've talked to her some more, I think I CAN remember her. Did I used to come in here to see her?"

"Are you kidding?" Jennifer exclaimed. "Your dads had a standing mandate to bring you and Katie in here every time they were in town," she told her with a grin. "AND an order to bring both of you over to your _other_ grandma's condo, too."

Kaylee smiled, her heart fluttering at the thought of how much she, indeed, had been loved and wanted. What had gone so terribly wrong to destroy that? "Grandma? Can I ask you something?"

Jennifer smiled. "Of course, Honey, what?"

"What exactly happened between Dad and Daddy to break them apart? They sounded like they were so much in love; like they still _are_. What happened?"

Jennifer looked away in discomfort; the last thing she wanted to do was either lie or hurt her granddaughter; but she was in deep enough as it was. This particular discussion was best handled by her fathers; it was not her place to delve into such a hurtful topic. "Sweetheart," she began softly as she turned back to look at her curious granddaughter. "I'm sorry; really I am. But you'll have to talk to them about that. I'm not sure even _I _know the full story behind it. Has your father not told you anything about it? I'm sure you've asked him about it before."

Kaylee nodded. "Yeah. I've asked Daddy before; both of them actually. They both said they still love each other, Grandma, but they won't tell me why they broke up! That's what makes this all so HARD! If they still love each other, what could be so terrible that they couldn't fix it? I thought if you loved someone you learned to forgive them for their mistakes, too."

Jennifer reached to clasp her granddaughter's hand in comfort; she wished it were that simple. "It SHOULD be enough," she agreed. "But once a heart is broken, sometimes it can be hard to mend, no matter _how_ much you might love someone."

Kaylee shook her head adamantly. "No, Grandma; you didn't see Daddy or Dad when I asked them about the other. I don't care WHAT happened; they loved each other and they still do. And Katie and I aren't going to stop until they admit that to each other and talk over whatever it was that happened to break them up. They belong together; WE belong together."

Jennifer couldn't help smiling fondly at her tenderhearted granddaughter's determination. It was hard to argue against such conviction; it was contagious. "Maybe you're right, Kaylee," she whispered as she pulled her granddaughter toward her and curved her hand around her neck to pull her face against hers. "If anyone can do it, I'm sure my granddaughters can." She gave her a small kiss on the cheek as she broke apart from her.

"_Katydid_!" came a shouted greeting from nearby. "Hi, Darlin'! How's my favorite niece and her beautiful grandma?"

Kaylee whipped her head around at the sound; her mouth hung open at the sight of their boisterous greeter. He was a tall, slim man with light brown hair and mischievous, sparkling bluish-green eyes. His eyes were outshone, however, by the shimmering, body-hugging bright purple tank top and a pair of tight, shiny leather, cream-colored pants. The man smiled warmly as he sidled up to them and slid onto the next available stool. "Why, I think you've grown a few more inches since the last time I saw you, little lady!" he exclaimed as he eyed her up and down critically; the intense scrutiny made Kaylee blush slightly as she silently looked over at her grandmother for help.

"Emmett," she heard her say, and instantly Katie's description of their father's flamboyant friend sprung to her mind, although as she stared agape at him she didn't think her sister had done Emmett justice. She had never seen anyone dress like this – well, at least a man – and she was astounded by all the color. Her face slowly broke out in an amused smile; she decided she rather _liked_ his style of dress. It certainly beat the drab-looking clothing she had been finding in her sister's closet lately. "It's only been a couple of weeks since the last time you saw her."

Emmett grinned as the words rushed out in a torrent. "I know…but you know preteen girls – only thinking about one thing. Oh, no, wait! That's preteen _boys_; oh, well," he added with a shrug as he turned to look over at Kaylee with a smile as she returned the expression. "She's going to be a real head-turner, Grandma, better watch out for those admirers. Although…You really should think about growing your hair a little longer, Honey – that would _really _go well with your skin tone."

Kaylee longed to open her mouth to tell him she agreed with him _totally_ – she was getting used to her shorter hair, but she still missed the versatility of it being long – but she knew that wasn't possible. To Emmett, she had never HAD long hair in the first place. She finally managed a "I'll think about it" in response as Emmett nodded.

"So what are you two ladies up to today? I'm assuming the Big Bad Wolf is off to work?"

Kaylee giggled as Jennifer nodded. "Yes, we're going to take advantage of it and do some serious shopping in his absence...and with HIS Visa card, too," she added with a grin.

Emmett's eyes lit up as Kiki walked over to pour him some coffee. "Oh, the scrambled egg special," he told her as she wrote it down with a nod and left to place his order. "Ooh…I'd love to go with you! You know how I've been itching to do a makeover for Katydid here!"

Kaylee's heart beat in excitement. "Can he, grandma?" she asked eagerly as she admired the way Emmett's iridescent shirt seemed to change color under the lights of the diner. She had heard about Emmett's past role as a fashion critic on television, and after seeing his unorthodox, colorful mode of dress, she was desperately hoping he could help her put some flash into her sister's wardrobe.

Jennifer hesitated; Kaylee was supposed to be impersonating her sister, who dressed quite a bit more conservatively. She knew she hated that form of dress, though. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if they _did_ liven up Katie's closet just a bit…

She smiled over at her dining companions. "Why not?" she decided as Kaylee's face broke out into a pleased smile of her own. "If you want to come, we could use a fashionista's opinion."

Emmett clapped his hands. "Good!" In a stage whisper, he leaned into Kaylee to add under his breath, "Now if we could just add some hair extensions…"

Jennifer laughed. "Don't press your luck, Em. Trust me – this will be radical enough for now." Silently, she hoped it wouldn't be TOO radical; after all, her granddaughter was still playing the most important role of her life.

* * *

><p><em>Liberty Diner – 5:15 p.m.<em>

Brian opened the door to the diner, craning his neck as his eyes swept around the busy room in an attempt to find his daughter and Jennifer; it was Pride Night in the Pitts, and the diner was bustling even more than normal. Every available booth and counter seat was filled with a variety of diners, from 'normal-looking' diners to drag queens to bears. No Katie or Jennifer, though. He sighed, wondering where they could possibly be, before the bell over the door clanged and an overload of color came rushing excitedly into the diner, followed by Jennifer holding two stuffed shopping bags in both hands.

Brian blinked twice; unable at first to believe this was his conservatively-dressed daughter. Kaylee was dressed in a bright tie-dyed, multi-hued sleeveless cotton shirt and a pair of the brightest lime-colored jeans he had ever seen; a silver-looped belt was hanging low on her hips and pink-nailed toes were peeking out of matching hot-pink flip-flops. A matching, cinched tie-dyed bag was hanging over her shoulder, and her ears were adorned with silver peace-symbol earrings that matched the long, silver chain around her neck.

"Hi, Dad!" Kaylee chirped brightly at him as she rushed up to him; she placed her hands around his waist as she gave him a hug.

Brian pulled back, his mouth agape in shock at his daughter's flamboyant dress. He looked over her shoulder at Jennifer as he asked, "Where's my daughter? This isn't Katie." He missed the look of apprehension on Kaylee's face as she averted her gaze; _did he know_?" Her father's next statement, however, allayed her fears.

"No daughter of mine would be wearing something like this. What did you do to her?"

Jennifer smiled, relieved that Brian wasn't aware of what was going on. "_Emmett_," she replied simply.

Brian nodded knowingly. "Oh, my God; say no more. You let that peacock go shopping with my _daughter_?" He took Kaylee's hand and slowly twirled her around as he took in the entire package. He had an inkling that if there was a full moon tonight it wouldn't matter; he would have no problem whatsoever finding his way back to his car. All he would have to do was make sure his daughter was with him.

Brian shook his head. "You like this outfit, Princess? I would have never thought of you as the hippie type. I think Auntie Em forced you to put this on and shoved you out the door before you had a chance to change your mind." This was about the total opposite of what he would have expected his more…_tasteful_ daughter to be wearing. He shook his head; again this nagging feeling kept reverberating through his head that something was off, something he should know. But as he looked into his daughter's radiant face, he couldn't for the life of him figure out what it was. "You really like this," he repeated.

Kaylee beamed at him. "I LOVE it!" she cried out as she twirled around again, loving the sound of the tinkling metal-loop belt and the way the peace jewelry swung back and forth. She felt like a child from the sixties. She _loved_ the rainbow of colors on her shirt, and the small amount of spandex in the jeans and the soft feel of the cotton felt wonderful against her skin.

As Kaylee smiled at him, Brian noticed a metal filling at the back of her mouth and frowned; he didn't remember Katie ever having any cavities at the dentist. In fact, Dr. Goodwin was always complimenting her on how perfect she kept her pearly whites. When did she get a cavity back there?

"Brian?" Jennifer asked in concern, noticing the puzzled expression on his face. "Something wrong?"

Brian stood there for several seconds, his mind counting off all the strange occurrences that had happened since Katie had returned from her camping trip; a camp that _Jennifer_, Justin's MOTHER, had discovered. She had pushed Brian persistently about the idea of Katie attending this particular camp until he had agreed for her to go.

"Brian…?"

He blinked as he turned his attention back to the present. "No," he finally managed to say as an unbelievable theory began to coalesce in his mind. _No way…it can't be…It's not possible...  
><em>

"Uh, well, we'd better go," he told Jennifer a little distractedly as he took hold of his daughter's shoulder and gently pushed her toward the door, weaving in between the bustling crowd. As they slowly made their way outside, he turned to Justin's mother to say, "Thanks for spending time with Katie today. Looks like she had a great time with you."

Jennifer smiled at him. "The feeling was mutual." She reached over to give her granddaughter a kiss on the cheek and whisper in her ear, "Remember what I told you." Kaylee nodded as she stood back up and told Brian, "By the way, Debbie said she wants you and Katie to come over for dinner sometime soon."

Brian nodded, not missing the whispered, almost conspiratorial words between Justin's mother and their daughter. "I'll give her a call," he told her as he studied his daughter intently. Taking Kaylee's hand, he said, "Come on, Princess; we'd better get going. With rush-hour traffic, it's going to be slow-going."

Kaylee nodded. "Bye, Grandma!" she called out as they walked away toward Brian's car parked nearby.

"Good luck, Kaylee," Jennifer whispered when they were out of earshot.

* * *

><p>"So you and your grandma had a good time today?" Brian asked her as they settled into the car and he stowed her shopping bags behind the seat.<p>

Kaylee nodded over at him; her face aglow with happiness. She idly played with the long, silver chain around her neck as she waited for them to leave, thrilled with her adventure today.

Brian nodded silently as he stared over at her, almost like he was seeing her for the first time. Yes, if he didn't look too closely he could believe completely that it was Katie. Same hair, same profile, same eye color. But too many things had happened over the past few weeks to be ignored. As he started up the car, he ticked off all the differences he had noticed and he came to a startling, mindblowing conclusion. Yes, this was his daughter. But it just wasn't _Katie_...

"Dad? Is something wrong?" Kaylee whispered curiously, noticing his silence.

Brian's mouth turned up into a lopsided smile as he finally shook his head. "No, Princess. I think eveything's just _fine_. Let's go home." Kaylee nodded in relief as Brian pulled out into traffic, lost deep in thought.

* * *

><p><em>Friday Evening – Justin's Brownstone<em>

Justin scrutinized his appearance in the narrow mirror mounted on the back of the master bedroom door, noting the expensive, classic Hugo Boss suit fit him just as well as it did the first – and only – time he had worn it. He sighed. Had it been that long ago that he and Brian had been preparing for their wedding in these suits? Since then, he had had occasion to wear a tux or two, as well as a dressy suit for gallery showings and charity events; but up until now he had never put this particular suit back on. He wasn't even sure why he had decided to wear it tonight; perhaps he was feeling nostalgic in a way. All that talk of him and Brian with his daughter earlier had caused him to dwell on what might have been. He could still recall the way that Brian had made him feel when he had told him that he looked beautiful in it. He had never told him that before, and when he had said it, his heart had promptly exploded into joy at the sound. As he stood there, the memories washed over him as well as the "_could have beens."_ Maybe in a way, he was trying to imagine that it was _Brian_ who was taking him out to some fancy dinner and dance tonight and not Alex.

_Stop it, Justin! _He berated himself as he rolled his eyes in disgust. _What's done is done; it's in the past. You can't go back; you have to move forward._ Taking a moment to smooth back his hair and straighten up his tie, he finally opened the door to go in search of his daughter.

Walking down the hallway, he called out her name, but there was no response. Stopping at his daughter's open bedroom doorway, he peered inside, but there was no sign of her. "Kaylee? Are you up here?"

From behind the closed bathroom door, Katie hurriedly dipped a washcloth in the steaming water from the sink and let out the plug; she reached over to hurriedly empty out the hot water in the Dixie cup nearby in which an old-fashioned thermometer was resting. Quickly wiping the instrument off with a dry towel, she gently placed it down on the vanity. "I'm in here, Dad," she called out weakly as she knelt down in front of the toilet with the wet washcloth and held onto the rim of the basin, taking her stance just as her father gingerly opened up the door.

Justin frowned in concern as he rushed into the bathroom, heedless of possibly soiling his expensive suit as he noticed what appeared to be vomit in the toilet. "Kaylee!" he cried out as he knelt down beside her and placed a hand comfortingly on her shoulder. "What's wrong, Sweetheart? Did you throw up?"

Katie's hair and forehead were slightly wet as if from sweat as she nodded. "My stomach hurts, Daddy," she croaked in a whisper. "And I think I have a fever. I was going to take my temperature…"

As Justin reached over to feel her forehead, Katie silently held her breath and hoped that the heating pad she had placed against her head a few minutes ago would do the trick.

Justin frowned as he removed his hand. "You do feel warm to me," he observed as Katie sighed to herself in relief. She wiped her mouth off with the warm washcloth for effect as she watched her father reach over to the sink and retrieve the old-fashioned thermometer. _Thank God he never got around to getting a newfangled kind…_

"Here," he said softly as Katie opened up her mouth and held the thermometer between her lips. Justin observed the flush on his daughter's face, not aware that it was from her pinching her cheeks repeatedly and not from any sickness. He remembered that his daughter hadn't seemed to have much of an appetite earlier today, which was decidedly not normal for Kaylee. Even though she tried to always eat healthy, she still had inherited his love of food and robust appetite; anytime she didn't want to eat, then, he knew she was either sick or something was bothering her.

"Want to sit up?" he asked her softly as she nodded. He helped her over to sit on the ledge of the bathtub while he waited for the three minutes to pass.

"Okay," he told her a few minutes later as he slowly pulled the thermometer out and turned it to read the result. "101.2," he announced as Katie silently celebrated. _Yes!_ "You've definitely got a fever, young lady. When did your stomach start hurting? I noticed you didn't eat much today."

Unbeknownst to Justin, Katie had definitely not starved herself, though; while her father had been busily working on a piece upstairs in his studio, she had been pigging out on some junk food she had managed to stash in Kaylee's room in a couple of shoeboxes in the closet. She had managed to squirrel them away the other day when her father had been too busy to notice her sneaking out of the house and she had time enough to walk down to the corner drugstore. She had been out and back before he had even noticed. She didn't know at the time, though, how useful it would be for today's acting role.

"It started early this morning," she told him, making sure her voice sounded a little hoarse. "My throat's hurting a little, too," she added for emphasis as she handed the thermometer back to her father. As Justin sat down next to her and placed a hand on her knee, she played her trump card. "But don't worry about me, Daddy; I feel a little better now that I've thrown up." _Thank God for coffee creamer and mashed bananas_, she thought silently. She shivered a little as if she were having feverish chills, congratulating herself on her ingenuity.

"Kaylee, I can't leave you like this," Justin told her. He always _had_ been a sucker when it came to his daughter being sick; he knew sometimes he could be thought of as being too overly protective, but he couldn't help it. He had already lost one daughter; if something happened to Kaylee he would never forgive himself.

"I'll be all right," she reiterated, praying her father wouldn't go ahead and leave her with that Mrs. Bailey person; the woman had been nice enough the other day, she supposed, but her idea of a good time was watching Wheel of Fortune and then eating burnt microwave popcorn during Jeopardy. "Mrs. Bailey can keep an eye on me."

Justin furrowed his brow in concern as his felt his daughter shivering violently now. "No," he told her, his mind made up as he stood up and gently pulled his daughter to her feet. "You're going to bed, Kaylee," he told her as he led her into her adjoining bedroom and pulled the covers back. "I'll go get you some medicine, and you get into bed."

"But the awards banquet…" Katie replied, coughing as she shivered.

Justin shook his head. "Alex will understand," he told her with a reassuring smile as Katie crawled into the bed and he propped her up with a couple pillows against the headboard, silently wondering if that would be the case or not. He knew Alex was eagerly anticipating this evening and counting on him to be his date. But he had to put his daughter first. It was unfortunate timing, but he didn't feel right passing on his daughter to Mrs. Bailey, good neighbor or not.

He pulled the covers over his daughter's chest, reaching over for his old teddy bear Gus. She rolled her eyes at him. "Daddy…"

He smiled back at her sheepishly. "Just thought you might want some company until I get back," he told her tenderly. "I'll be right back with your medicine, okay?" She nodded as Justin turned and walked out of the room toward his own bathroom where he kept the medicine.

As he left, Katie felt just the slightest twinge of guilt – not over spoiling Alex the Asshole's plans, but over having to lie to her father. It hadn't taken long for her to fall back into love with her sweet, caring father that she hadn't seen in so long. He had wound up being even more wonderful than she had imagined, and each lie she told to him made her feel terrible. But she consoled herself with the fact that it was all for a good cause – getting her family back together; her, her sister, and BOTH her fathers…

She pulled out her nightstand drawer to retrieve her sketchpad, flipping it open to stare at the latest drawing she was working on. It showed the familiar grounds of Britin; she and her father were astride their two horses, sitting side by side like they often were, only this time they weren't alone. There were two _more_ horses with them, and Kaylee and her other father were there, too. Both of her fathers were smiling over at each other from the back of their horses, their love for each other shining clearly on their faces.

She sighed; it was the way she imagined they might be; the way they _could_ be if everything turned out the way she and Kaylee hoped. She took the fingers of her right hand and slowly caressed her father's face. "I know you love him, Daddy," she whispered. "And he loves you. It won't be long now," she promised as a smile came to her face at the thought.

Her heart began to hammer, though, as she heard her father's footsteps on the stairs. Realizing she was running the risk of being caught with her sketchpad, she hurriedly reached under her mattress and shoved it out of sight, just before her father returned with a tray; a glass of water and some capsules rested on top.

Justin sat down on the edge of the bed and placed the tray down on the nightstand. "Here," he said, reaching over for the capsules and the water.

Katie hesitated. "What _is_ it?" she asked a little apprehensively; she was allergic to so many medications, her father had to keep a running account of them taped to the inside of her bathroom mirror at home.

Justin frowned a little; it was the same flu medicine he always gave Kaylee when she was sick. He chalked it up to her not feeling well as he reassured her, "It's what I always give you, Honey. _Ibuprofen Cold & Flu Jr_."

"What's in it?" she asked warily.

Justin's frown deepened. "Ibuprofen, pseudoephedrine, and hydrochloride." He stared at her look of apprehension. "Kaylee, it's what you _always_ take for the flu. Now take it; it'll help you feel better and reduce the fever."

Katie nodded, not wanting to give herself away. She knew she was allergic to Tylenol, but she had never had any problems with ibuprofen. She hoped silently that the other ingredients wouldn't make her REALLY sick as she nodded and accepted the glass of water and the two capsules, talking a large gulp of the water to knock back the medication and swallow it.

Justin nodded in satisfaction. "Good girl. Now lie down and get some rest, okay? I'll be right downstairs if you need anything, and I'll keep the door open." Katie did as her father asked as Justin gave her a kiss on the cheek. He smiled tenderly at her as she reached over and hugged Gus to her waist, wrapping both of her arms around him in a firm type of embrace.

"I'll be right here, Sweetheart," Justin told her softly as he turned and slowly strode out of the room. He paused for a moment in indecision before he walked down the hallway and entered his master bedroom to begin shedding his outfit. His tradition of never wearing it for any other occasion was apparently not going to be broken tonight.

The sound of the doorbell downstairs a couple of minutes later made him rush into his pair of jeans and brown, long-sleeved tee shirt. Still clad only in his socks and no shoes, he rushed down the hall and toward the stairs, quickly descending from the second floor. Seeing Alex's profile reflected in the outside, overhead porch light, he took a deep breath before walking over and opening the door.

He had to admit as he gazed at his boyfriend; Alex was impeccably and exquisitely dressed in his black tux, white shirt and candy-apple bow-tie. A small sliver of red handkerchief poking out of his breast pocket perfectly matched his tie and gave it just the right amount of color. The tux was perfectly matched to the other man's lean, slightly muscled frame. If it wasn't for the slight frown of surprise on his boyfriend's handsome face, he would have looked flawless.

Alex walked into the apartment as Justin silently opened the door to allow him entrance. He turned to Justin with a mixture of confusion and irritation on his face as he asked, "Justin, the dinner is in an _hour_! I told you I would be here at 7:00, and you're not even dressed yet!"

Justin shifted uncomfortably on his feet as he looked down at his feet. "Alex…"

"Oh, no," Alex instantly countered as he placed his hands on his hips. "Tell me that you're NOT backing out at the last minute, Justin!" Justin sighed as he lifted his gaze to meet his boyfriend's eyes and Alex had his answer instantly; his eyes flashed with anger as he asked, "Why? You told me you would GO! What happened since the other day when you agreed to it?" He shook his head in disbelief.

"Kaylee's sick," Justin told him apologetically. "She started feeling bad early this morning, and now she has a fever over a hundred and one and is throwing up. I think she has some kind of bug. I can't leave her alone like that."

Alex twisted his mouth into an expression of aggravation. "Come _on_, Justin! That's the oldest damn trick in the book! Don't you get it? She's faking it so you won't _go _with me! She hates me and doesn't want us to be together. It's SO obvious; how can you not SEE that?"

Justin sighed heavily, feeling like he was talking to an impetuous child instead of his boyfriend. "I told you, Alex; I took her temperature myself and it said 101.2. I found her a little while ago sitting in front of the fucking toilet after she had thrown up! She's got the chills and her stomach is hurting; what more proof do you _want_?"

"You are SO naïve, Justin!" Alex yelled. "She's got you wrapped around her little finger! Can't you see what she's doing? What do _I_ want? I'll _tell _you what I want; I want YOU to act like the adult here and quit letting her pull the wool over your eyes!"

"That's enough, Alex," Justin responded with deadly calm as his temper rose. "I have a sick child upstairs; now if you can't respect my wishes to take care of her and make her a priority above your awards banquet, then I think it's time we face the facts that we want two very different things in life."

Alex glared at Justin. "What are you saying, Justin? Spit it out."

Justin clenched his teeth as his face turned red. "Fine. I'll spell it for you, then. This is IT, Alex! I should have realized a long time ago that you would never accept me AND my daughter. I told you all along that that was a condition of our relationship and you've constantly fought me on it every step of the way! Go! Go and collect your fucking design award! Just don't expect me to be standing up in the audience cheering you on!"

Alex huffed in disbelief. "This is unbelievable! I've wasted the last several years waiting for you to realize we belong together, and this is what I get? Well, fuck you, Justin! I'm sure I can find someone much better! Someone who appreciates me and doesn't live their life 24/7 bound hand and foot to their child!"

Justin's blood boiled as he tromped over to the front door and flung it open. "Get out," he demanded through tightly pursed lips. He watched as Alex stared back at him silently for a few moments as if he were making up his mind before he followed Justin over to the door. This time when he spoke his words were softer. "I feel sorry for you, Justin; you don't realize how much that little brat has tied you down. As long as you allow her to control your every move, you'll never be able to have a meaningful relationship with _anyone_." He shook his head. "What a pity; we could be so fucking good together."

Justin snorted. "You don't need anyone else, Alex; you have yourself; that's all you EVER needed. Now get the hell out of my apartment!" Justin barely waited until his now ex-boyfriend had left before he slammed the door in his face and sighed in disgust. He supposed somewhere in the back of his mind he always knew that Alex didn't really care for Kaylee; this just solidified his suspicion. Well, now he knew for sure. It left him feeling strangely hollow inside and just a little bereft, but he knew he had done the right thing; his daughter would always come first for as long as she needed him. If a potential partner couldn't understand that or accept it, then so be it.

Upstairs by her door, Katie silently celebrated her victory as she listened raptly to every heated word below; Alex the jerk was finally gone for good! One obstacle to getting their fathers back together was eliminated, and she couldn't wait to tell her sister. Reaching over to retrieve her cell phone, she quickly sent a text to Kaylee: _Daddy and Alex just broke up! Woohoo! Details later. Hugs, K _

Several seconds later, a buzz alerted her to a return message from her sister. _That's gr8t! I knew u could do it! Way 2 go! I want all the dirt. CU soon. Luv u – K. _

Smiling in delight over her triumph and eagerly anticipating when she would see her sister and other father again, Katie walked over and returned to her bed to play the dutifully ill daughter; her mind put more at ease, she hugged Gus to her chest as she quickly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

><p><em>Britin – Next Morning<em>

"Okay, Dad, here I am. Now where are we going?" Kaylee asked Brian as she re-entered the kitchen after changing from her new, lacy, mint green pajamas and into her tie-dyed shirt and blue jeans; that particular outfit Emmett had helped pick out for her was quickly becoming her favorite. At the time, she had had to do some fancy explaining to make her father understand her abrupt change in clothing taste, but she had finally managed to convince him that she was simply becoming bored with the same old understated clothes and just needed a change. It sounded like a lame excuse even to her ears, but it was the best she could come up with and to her relief her father had accepted it fairly easily.

Brian smiled over at his daughter clad in her colorful clothes. At breakfast a little while ago, he had told Kaylee to go get changed into 'comfortable' clothes and they would spend the day together. Normally on Saturdays Brian still had to do some work at home in his personal office, but one of the advantages to working from home was that he could vary his hours. Today, he decided he had something much more important to do.

He looked over at his curious daughter as he walked over to the French doors leading to the outside and opened one of them up. "Well, it's nothing we haven't done before, Princess, but it's been a while since the last time. It's such a beautiful, sunny day; I thought we'd take the horses out for a ride this morning to stretch their legs. I know this is your favorite time of the day to ride."

Instead of the typical, excited yelp and hug from his daughter, instead Brian could have sworn Katie's face turned a little pale as she stammered, "A…ride? On the horses?"

Brian studied his daughter carefully; her response solidified his beliefs even more as he responded with a smile, "Of course! Although, you know…You're almost becoming a better rider than _I_ am. But that's okay; you can show your old man some pointers, then. Let's go; I've got the apples in my pockets." He patted his leather jacket; their horses always loved the crunchy treat, and were so spoiled they always expected one each time they went out to the stables to ride. If they ever came empty-handed they could expect to receive a look of irritation from each beast, almost as if they were turning their backs on them.

Kaylee swallowed the nervous lump in her throat; she had been around horses before at the fair and the only thing she remembered about them was how huge they were; even their heads were monstrous! And those eyeballs – it was almost as if they could see right through her. She thought they were creepy and intimidating; how was she ever going to approach one, let alone _ride_ on one? And she was supposed to be a good rider, even better than her father?

"Katie?" she heard her father say as she lifted her gaze to meet his. "Come on, Princess! Time's wasting!"

Reluctantly Kaylee nodded as she followed along slowly behind her father toward the stables located a few hundred yards away. She could already see the two chestnut-colored horses placidly grazing in a grassy, fenced pasture next to the structure. Even from here they looked humongous; the closer she got to them, the more her fear mounted as Brian walked over to the fence and the animals meandered over to greet him. "Hey, Cerus," he murmured fondly to the larger one as he held the apple out; the horse's flowing mane was softly blowing in the slight breeze that was quickly warming the morning air as the large stallion nuzzled Brian's open palm with surprising gentleness. As he used his teeth to pick up the apple and put it into his mouth, Brian turned to his daughter to say, "Here, Honey – you give the other one to Eton now." He reached inside his opposite pocket to draw out the other piece of fruit and hold it out to her.

Kaylee hung back, warily eyeing the huge animal looming over them. This one had a large, star-shaped white patch of hair on his forehead, with white-ringed hooves. He was beautiful, Kaylee had to admit, but he was also enormous and he scared the living daylights out of her. "No, Dad," she whispered, unable to keep the slight fearfulness out of her voice. "You go ahead; it's okay."

Brian studied his daughter's rigid stance for a few moments before he said, "What's wrong, Katie? You _always_ love to feed Eton his apple; he's waiting for you."

Kaylee, unable to come up with a good excuse this time, nodded as she timidly approached the other horse. Taking the apple from her father's hand, she licked her lips nervously before she reached out her trembling hand toward the beast towering over her and held it close to his head. The horse whinnied softly, torn between taking the apple from the girl standing before him that looked so much like his normal riding companion that spoiled him completely, feeding him treats all the time and lovingly brushing his long, golden-brown cascade of hair and feeling remiss that something wasn't quite right. Finally, Brian reached over and gently took the apple out of his daughter's hand to hold it under Eton's nose as the horse scooped it up into his mouth and began to eat it with a decided crunch, his lips moving back and forth as he chewed it with relish.

As the two horses enjoyed their treat, Brian turned to his daughter to say softly, "See…there's nothing to be afraid of, Katie. Or should I say..._Kaylee._"


	13. Undeniable Hunger

_Brian finally discovers the truth about Kaylee and Katie; what will happen when he makes plans to return Kaylee to Chicago?_

_Thanks to Boriqua522 for reviewing this for me; it was great meeting you at "Red," my friend!_

* * *

><p><em>Last Chapter...<em>

Brian turned to his daughter to say softly, "See…there's nothing to be afraid of, Katie. Or should I say..._Kaylee._"

* * *

><p>Kaylee's eyes widened. Did her father just call her by her real name, or did she just imagine it? She chose to pretend that she hadn't heard him right. "What…what did you just say to me?" she whispered as her father's eyes bore into hers from a few feet away. She watched as her father wiped his hands on the thigh of his jeans, almost as if he were nervous himself.<p>

Brian rolled his tongue around in his jaw as he repeated softly, "I _said_…there's nothing to be afraid of, Kaylee." Brian stared over at his daughter and somehow, despite how incredibly identical she appeared to her sister, he could see it now; this WAS Kaylee, his other daughter, the child he hadn't seen in so many years but had never stopped thinking about or loving. It had to be. Her difference in eating habits, her fear of the horses that Katie loved more than anything, and her unexpectedly emotional reaction to seeing him at the camp when he had come to pick her up; so many little things began to coalesce in his mind into one indubitable conclusion…This was his daughter, all right, but it wasn't Katie. It was all beginning to finally make sense to him at last.

The pieces fell into place like some intricate, outlandish jigsaw puzzle. He had no fucking idea how it had happened; no idea how his daughters had found out about each other, but somehow he knew that they had. This was _Kaylee_. If he had had any residual doubts at all, they were promptly washed away by the transparent, guilty look that was presently on his daughter's face.

He slowly walked over to her until he was only a few inches away and stared intently into her eyes, memorizing every feature on her pale face, swallowing hard as he saw a miniature version of Justin staring up at him. He reached out and softly cupped her cheeks with his hands as long eyelashes blinked in response to his touch. "My God, it's been way too long, Kaylee Marie…Way too long," he murmured as he promptly swept her up into his strong embrace and hugged her tightly. He heard a soft whimper from his daughter as she wound her hands around his waist and nestled her head against his lower chest in reaction. He slowly stroked his daughter's back soothingly as he simply continued to hold on tightly to her as if he were holding her for the first time. In a way he was; now that he knew it was his _other_ daughter he was embracing, he felt like he had been given a second chance and he didn't want to ever let her go again.

At last, though, he reluctantly pulled back enough so he could stare into her eyes once more. The wide-eyed orbs peering back at him were an expressive, soft blue, so like the man he had fallen irretrievably in love with so long ago. "Kaylee," he murmured as a flood of memories came rushing back to him. Giving her a bath in her plastic bathtub as she used her chubby little hands to splash the water in his face and chortled at her antics, scrunching up her face until it was red from displeasure every time he tried to put a frilly little hat on her head, holding out a piece of milk-soaked Cheerio's for him to eat at breakfast, and those little, soft whimpers of bliss she always made whenever he was rocking her to sleep at night in a rocker-glider in the nursery at Britin. As she peered up nervously into his eyes, his own filled unexpectedly with tears – tears born of regret and sorrow over what they had lost all these years and could never get back again. He still had no idea how this had happened, but he _did _know one thing; he wasn't ever going to let her get away again, not without being in her life consistently now.

Kaylee looked anxiously into her father's eyes, afraid what she might see in them now that he knew who she really was; there was no point in trying to deny it now. The hazel eyes intently boring into hers, however, weren't reproachful or scolding; instead, they were kind and loving, just like she remembered they had been so long ago.

She bit her lip and swallowed hard. "How…How did you know?" she whispered back at last as she found the courage to speak. She thought she and Katie had been so careful not to expose their secret, but somehow her perceptive father had discovered their subterfuge anyway.

Brian smiled down at her as he slowly stroked her back reassuringly. "It wasn't one thing by itself," he explained to her softly as he continued to drink in the sight of her. "It was a lot of little things; how you didn't like junk food, how you seemed to hate the clothes you were wearing, how you seemed unsure of your surroundings. Most of all, I think it was your reaction to Cerus and Eton and your hesitation in going for a ride with me. Normally I can't pry Katie away from them; if it was up to her, I think she'd even move her bedroom out here to the stables," he told her with a grin. "Then earlier today when you turned around to let me see your new outfit, I saw a filling in your mouth and it all clicked. Katie's never had a cavity in her life; I knew at that moment that you couldn't be her. The only other explanation was that it had to be you instead." He stared into his daughter's eyes. "How did you even find out about your sister, Kaylee?" he asked her curiously. "We never told you about each other." He noticed his daughter seemed worried for some reason. "You don't have to be afraid to tell me the truth, Honey."

She nodded; she trusted him. "We met at camp," she explained simply. "We were both there at the same time and ran into each other."

Brian frowned. "You mean Camp Pineland?" As Kaylee nodded, it all came into instant, clearer focus as he thought about the way in which she had wound up there in the first place. "Shit," he couldn't help replying. "Jennifer," he muttered under his breath. It all made perfect sense all of a sudden. His ex-partner's well-meaning but scheming mother had apparently set him up with that brochure and her insistence that sending Katie there would be 'good' for her. Despite his aggravation, he had to hand it to her, though; she had managed to do something that he had longed to do but could never carry out due to the damn custody agreement. "It's okay," he told Kaylee as he noticed her concern regarding the somewhat unreadable look on his face; his expression softened as he explained, "I just realized how you and your sister met and found out about each other. I'm sure we can thank your Grandma Jen for that happy little _coincidence_," he told her dryly. "Did she by chance suggest to your father that you go to camp there, too?"

Kaylee's face blushed in response as she nodded in confirmation. "Yeah, Daddy told me that Grandma Jen used to send him there when he was a kid all the time, and she thought I would like it, too."

Brian huffed. "I'll bet," he told her with a slight grin. _Conniver_, he thought to himself. He loved Jennifer and had always respected her, but she sure had mucked up everything thanks to her 'suggestion.' But perhaps this might just work in his favor, though; in fact, he might just eventually owe her a huge debt of gratitude someday. _Perhaps_…The word reverberated in his mind as he nodded back at his daughter in understanding.

Brian lightly caressed Kaylee's cheek to reassure her that he wasn't mad before he finally released her and turned around to place his hands on the weathered, wooden split-rail fence; Cerus peered down at him curiously and whinnied softly, no doubt wondering why he and 'Katie' weren't going for their customary ride. He sighed as he gazed out onto the several acres of pasture framed by softly rolling hills, wondering what to do now. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Kaylee inching over to stand next to him, still keeping a respectful distance from the strong, massive horse looming over them. Placing a hand on her shoulder, he murmured, "You know we're going to have to tell your father what's going on, Honey." That thought filled him with both trepidation as well as anticipation.

Kaylee turned her head to peer up at him and nodded. "I know," she told him softly. She was surprised to find that she wasn't overcome with joy, though, now that her father had figured out what was going on; didn't that mean that at last both of her fathers could be together again? Wasn't that what she and Katie had been wanting all along? Would this turn out to be a good thing or a bad thing for her family, though? She knew deep in her heart that both of her fathers still loved each other; she could feel it. Katie had told her she believed the same thing, and her father back in Chicago had already admitted he still loved her Dad. But how exactly would her other father react to what her and her sister had done? Would he be glad or would he be angry at them? As she peered into her father's eyes, however, she knew that at least he wasn't angry with her, although she couldn't quite tell _what_ he was feeling at the moment. He seemed to be lost in a world of his own. "Dad?"

"Yes, Kaylee?" Brian responded softly as he looked down at her, thinking how wonderful it felt to hear his 'other' daughter calling him that; he thought it would be a long, long time before he ever heard that word come from her lips again. Actually, when she was very young – before the break up – she used to call him 'Da,' not Dad; for some reason, the second 'd' was always impossible for her to pronounce.

"What are you going to do now that you know? Are you going to call Daddy to tell him?" Silently she prayed that he wouldn't do that; if he merely talked to him on the phone, that wouldn't accomplish anything. No, they needed to SEE each other, especially if her and her sister's plans were going to work. Something told her that once they were physically in the same room again, the pull between them would be impossible to resist or ignore.

Brian pondered that question; what WAS he going to do? Take her back to Jennifer and tell that she needed to fix things since she had created this mess in the first place? Put Kaylee on the next Greyhound to Chicago with a note attached to her jacket addressed to Justin that he needed to send the other daughter back in exchange? He could see it now: _Sunshine – Don't look now, but you have the wrong daughter there. Send her back and we'll call it even. _Yeah…Right…

_Hardly_, he thought firmly. Even though Jennifer had been downright devious in her actions, it had accomplished something he had wanted to do ever since Justin had left with Kaylee; he had an excellent reason for seeing him again now. Justin would surely understand that he had to take care of this personally, and if he didn't, too damn bad; this was too good an opportunity to pass up. It was time to start rectifying some mistakes.

"Well," he finally said to his daughter with a soft smile, "As much as I'm enjoying getting to know you again, Kaylee, I think your father has a right to know what's going on right under his nose." He smiled in recollection. "Actually, I'm surprised he hasn't already figured it out yet; he's a very smart man. But then again, he always did think with his heart a lot more than I did." Maybe that was where he had made his biggest mistake, though; if HE had thought more 'with his heart,' maybe the two of them wouldn't be in this big mess right now and they wouldn't have been apart all these years.

Making up his mind, he stood up just a little straighter. Placing a hand on Kaylee's shoulder, he told her, "Let's take a walk; you and I have a lot to talk about."

Kaylee beamed at him in a warm, delighted smile that made his heart lurch in reaction; it was so much like _another_ smile he hadn't seen in years now. As they turned and slowly walked back toward the house, he couldn't help thinking that soon, though, he might be able to see it again.

* * *

><p><em>Ten Minutes Later<em>

"This is so different than back home," Kaylee murmured as the two of them sat side-by-side at the edge of the built-in, kidney-shaped swimming pool. She and her father had both taken off their shoes and socks; in a perfect imitation of each other, they had rolled up their pant legs and were dangling their feet in the warm water.

Brian peered over at her. "What's it like living in Chicago?" he asked her curiously, wanting to know everything about his daughter's life. "You live in an apartment?"

Kaylee nodded. "It's an old brownstone; a duplex. There's an older lady that lives next to us – Mrs. Bailey." She smiled. "She's very nice; likes to bake me cookies all the time, but I always give them to Daddy instead because they're his favorite and they have too many calories and fat for my taste."

Brian grinned knowingly; apparently some things never changed. "Peanut butter?" he ventured.

Kaylee stared at him in amazement. "Yeah…how did you know?"

Brian stared out into the water, lost in another time. He had a faraway sort of look on his face as he smiled in recollection. "That always _was_ his favorite cookie – as far back as I can remember; actually double peanut butter chip to be exact." He turned to grin at Kaylee as he explained, "Your father loved to cook, and once the two of you were old enough to eat solid food, he would bake some of them for you and your sister as a treat. Personally _I _think it was just so he could have an excuse to eat some of them himself. We never _did _need three dozen of them baked at one time, but for some reason there never seemed to be a problem getting rid of them."

Kaylee stared at the wistful look on her father's face as she told him, "He _still_ loves to cook. He's got more cookbooks at home than Rachel Ray, and he's always trying out new recipes on me."

Brian smiled at her. "How are they?"

She grinned. "Not bad – usually. Sometimes he messes up, though. He found out he's not very good at making soufflés, for example – unless you like ones that are flatter than a pancake."

Brian chuckled softly, not surprised that Justin still liked to cook. He remembered how he used to kid him sometimes about how he felt like some food experiment whenever he tried out an exotic recipe on him, but more times than not the food that Justin prepared that he couldn't even pronounce usually turned out to be pretty damn tasty.

"You have a lot of friends there?"

Kaylee shrugged. "Yeah, some," she told him. "My best friend who lived down the street from me moved away a few months ago to California," she said a little glumly. "Her father got transferred there. But I have some friends that I hang out with at school when it's in session."

Brian slowly swished his legs in the swirling water and stared down at the sparkling reflection. "That's good," he told her. He paused for a moment, unable to look at his daughter directly as he asked about the subject he really wanted to know more about. "What about your father? Does HE have a lot of friends, too?"

Kaylee peered over at him, unable to keep herself from asking him, "Just friends…Or _boyfriends_?" By the way her father averted his gaze she knew she really didn't need an answer. The thought that her father could be jealous of potential competition made her feel warm and happy inside; it was a good sign to her – a _very _good sign.

Brian sighed almost imperceptibly; was he that transparent, even to a daughter who barely remembered him? Should he deny that that was exactly what he had meant? He decided there had been enough deception in their family. "Yeah," he admitted quietly as he turned to lock gazes with her. "I guess that's what I meant."

Eyeing him curiously and deciding to test Katie's fervent belief that their father was still in love, she responded casually, "There _has_ been this one guy for the last few years." She didn't tell him that Alex the Asshole was apparently out of the picture, though – at least not yet. "Katie told me he took Daddy on a trip to Canada and asked him to marry him while we were at camp."

She mentally chided herself over her father's reaction to her statement, but her heart pounded with hope as she noticed the look of distress flitter across her father's face before he quickly hid it from her. "Oh?" he said as he picked at an imaginary piece of lint on his shirt. Brian plastered on his best neutral expression – having honed it perfectly over the years – but inside his heart felt like it had just been crushed with a sledgehammer. Justin was serious enough with someone to marry him? What did he expect, though? Justin always _had _wanted that – along with the commitment and monogamy that he had promised him and promptly thrown out the window in one fell swoop.

"Yeah," Kaylee told him. She continued to stare over at him to gauge his reaction before she added the most important part. "But he didn't give him an answer. Actually, I guess he did in a way, because Katie told me they broke up last night."

Brian let out a pregnant breath as his heart began to beat regularly again; he hadn't even realized he had been holding in a breath until then. He turned his head to gaze into his daughter's eyes, unable now to hide his relief as she smiled back at him. "They did?" She nodded her head as he couldn't help asking, "What happened?"

Kaylee reached down and slowly swirled her hand in the water as she told him, "I'm not sure yet; Katie texted me last night long enough to tell me that they had broken up, but I haven't heard all the details yet. I'm dying to know, though." Her eyes flashed as she added, "But in a way I don't care WHAT the reason way; I'm just glad he's finally gone."

"Why?" Brian asked her curiously, concerned over the tone of voice Kaylee had responded with; even though he had no real claim on Justin, he couldn't deny that he was happy about it, too. "You didn't like him?"

Kaylee snorted as she straightened up. "No, I didn't," she told flatly. "He was two-faced. Whenever Daddy was around, he was sweet as pie to me. But as soon as Daddy was out of the room, he either ignored me or was a real asshole and practically bit my head off. His true colors came out." She pursed her lips together firmly as she thought about the man who had almost fooled her father into making a big mistake before she told him, "I'd LOVE to know what happened last night; something tells me that Katie had a lot to do with it."

Brian grinned over at her. "Knowing your sister the way I do, I have a feeling you're right." His expression sobered as he added, "If he WAS acting that way toward you, then I'm glad he's gone. Your father would not have put up with him treating you that way if he had known. Why did you never tell him?"

Kaylee bit her lip pensively before explaining, "I thought he made Daddy happy; he seemed okay at first."

"But if he started treating you like shit, Kaylee, why didn't you tell your father? He would never want to be with someone like that, and he would have never put up with it."

Kaylee swallowed hard before she said simply, "He seemed lonely. And I didn't want him to be."

Brian let out a tense breath. Just the thought that Justin was lonely for company – this amazing man who was beautiful both on the inside as well as the outside – made him feel both guilty as hell as well as shocked that someone hadn't grabbed him up long before now. Was it wrong to hope that perhaps he had never committed himself to another man because he still felt something for _him_? He knew that HE had never stopped loving him.

"Dad?"

He turned to look over at his daughter's face, seeing Justin there once more in the way she eyed him so intently as he said, "Yeah?"

"Do you think it's too late?"

He squinted at her as the sun emerged from behind a large cloud and blinded him with its brightness.

"Too late?"

She nodded.

"For what, Honey?" he asked, even though he knew precisely what she was talking about.

Kaylee's heart warmed at the nickname; she liked being called that. She decided to bare her soul as she revealed her most desired wish and responded softly, "For you - and Daddy – to get back together. For us to be a family again."

Brian scooted closer to his daughter as he reached over to place his hand lightly around his daughter's neck. "That's what this is all about, isn't it?" he asked her quietly. "You and Katie didn't just switch places to get know us better again. You hoping for more than that, aren't you?"

"What about _you_?" she countered evenly, surprising herself with her boldness. She couldn't keep the hopeful tone out of her voice as she said, "You told me you still love Daddy, and now that he's broken up with that stupid Alex…"

Brian sighed; he figured as much. When you were Kaylee's age, the answers seemed so simple; if that could only be the way it _really_ worked…

"I'm going to take you back and explain what happened," he told her, hastily adding before she got too hopeful, "but that's all I'm promising, Kaylee. That's all I CAN promise. Some things aren't easily fixed. Can you understand?" How he wish he could start all over again and wipe out what had happened.

He smiled at her gently as he saw the telltale signs of protest welling up in her eyes. "It's been a long time," he tried to explain. "You can't go back and undo things, you can only move forward." He dropped his hold on Kaylee's neck to stand up and extend his hand down for her to grasp as he slowly pulled her up to a standing position. He couldn't help sweeping her into an embrace as he wrapped his arms around her slender body and held onto her tightly. "No matter _what_ happens, Kaylee, I WILL promise you this; I won't ever let you out of my life again. I will always be there for you. Do you believe me?"

Kaylee sniffled against his chest as she nodded silently, her tears dampening her father's shirt as she held onto him like she'd never let him go. It wasn't everything she wanted and she still didn't really understand, but it was a start. She knew her and her sister had their work cut out for them, but despite what her father was saying, she wasn't giving up.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Justin's Brownstone <em>

Justin glanced up in surprise as he watched his daughter come waltzing into the kitchen as if she hadn't a care in the world; it was quite a departure from the pasty-looking, ill child he had seen yesterday.

Katie smiled; it was a good day. "Hi, Daddy!" she greeted her father as she plopped down beside him at the kitchen table. "I'm starving! What's for breakfast?"

Justin studied her carefully; it was almost as if this were a totally different child from the one he had nursed last night. "You're feeling a lot better," he observed as he cupped his hand around his coffee mug, the heat almost burning his fingers.

Katie nodded. "Much," she confirmed. Alex was gone for good and she was feeling great now. Yes, things were definitely looking up! She couldn't wait to tell Kaylee all the juicy details. She had actually tried to call her earlier up in her room, but the phone was going straight to voicemail. After a couple more tries, she finally had to settle for sending her a quick text to tell her she would try to call her tonight at their normal time of 11:00 after her father had sent her off to bed.

Justin stood up and walked over to the stove. "I have some bacon and scrambled eggs cooked up," he told her. "But it's regular pork bacon, not turkey bacon. And it's real eggs, not the egg-white kind." He had fixed too much for himself a little while ago, holding off on preparing anything for his daughter since he wasn't sure how she would be feeling this morning. He thought she would likely sleep in later than normal, in fact.

"That's okay," Katie told him to his surprise, secretly relieved that it wasn't some weird sort of veggie bacon and egg substitute; she hated the taste of both of those things, even though she knew her sister was supposed to be a healthy eater. After the bout with the cheesecake, she knew she would have to be more careful, but there were still limits to what she – and her stomach – would do. "Since I puked up everything last night, my stomach is totally empty, so I'll take whatever I can get." _There…That sounded plausible_, she thought.

Justin nodded as he opened the oven door and took out a ceramic dinner plate with the warming food on top. He brought it over and set it down in front of his daughter as he walked back over to the built-in bread drawer and pulled it open. Taking out the wheat bread, he popped two pieces in the toaster nearby. "Marmalade or the no-sugar apple butter?" he asked as he turned around to study his now robust-looking daughter, the whisper of suspicion beginning to emerge. Had Alex been right after all? Had Kaylee been faking her illness somehow in an attempt to try and get him to stay home with her and cause difficulty between them?

He knew she had indicated before that Alex wasn't always that kind to her out of his presence; before, he had chalked it up to typical pre-teen melodrama. Now after listening to Alex's rant last night, though, he wasn't so sure.

"Uh…Daddy?"

"Yeah, Sweetheart?" he asked as he held the refrigerator door open, waiting for an answer.

"Do we have any strawberry jam instead?"

Justin frowned as he experienced yet another surreal moment with his daughter; lately it was almost like they were living in another dimension or something. "Kaylee, we don't have any strawberry jam – or any kind of preserves for that matter," he reminded her. "You always told me you hated jam because the seeds got in between your teeth. That's why you hate microwave popcorn, too."

Katie looked away in mortification; once more she had slipped up. This was much harder than she would have ever realized; how was she supposed to know all this? "Uh…I forgot," she responded lamely as she turned her gaze back to her father who had a decidedly confused look on his face. "I had some seedless jam at camp and it was really good. I'll just take the apple butter, then."

Justin stared intently at her, feeling once again that something was off but not quite sure what it was before he nodded in acceptance and reached for the jar of apple butter. Walking back over to the kitchen table, he placed it down next to her plate and picked up his coffee cup to take a sip, eyeing her over the rim of it and wondering just what in the hell was going on.

Finally, as his daughter enthusiastically turned her attention to her meal, her head down and focused on her plate, he shook his head, deciding it was just a pre-adolescent phase she must be going through. "Well, I'll be in my studio if you need me, Kaylee; any plans for the day?"

Katie finally looked up at her father and smiled; apparently she had yet again escaped detection. "Not really," she said. Secretly she wished there was a swimming pool somewhere; back home she enjoyed taking a swim most days, especially after she and her father had ridden the horses and she was really missing her typical morning ritual. She didn't dare ask about something like that now, though, especially after her latest slip up. "Maybe just listen to music for a while up in my room and play on the computer?"

Justin nodded as he turned to leave. "Just don't forget to feed the cats first, though, okay?"

Katie winced; she and her sister's cats weren't exactly buddy-buddy, but she supposed she could handle putting their food down – that is, if they didn't try to claw her eyes out in the process. "Okay, Daddy," she replied as Justin walked out of the room.

Katie breathed out a huge sigh of relief as she took her empty dishes over to the sink and rinsed them off before placing them in the dishwasher. She quickly grabbed a can of cat food for each cat from the pantry, noticing them suddenly appearing at the doorway out of nowhere as she pulled the flip tops back to open them.

"Don't worry, cats," she said defensively as she glared over at them. She was a huge animal lover, and her two horses back home adored her, so she couldn't understand why these particular felines still hadn't warmed up to her yet. She huffed indignantly as the cats continued to stare at her warily with their luminous, oval-shaped green eyes. "Well, don't count on me sneaking YOU any tuna behind Daddy's back," she told them, clearly miffed as she picked up both silver food dishes and plopped a can into each. Dali and Picasso held back just long enough until she had placed the food down and stepped away a few feet before they both meowed softly and tread on silent paws over to their respective food dishes and began to enthusiastically gobble their food up.

Shaking her head in exasperation, she rinsed the cans out and threw them into the recycle bin before walking back out of the kitchen and toward the stairs, hoping that perhaps she might still have a chance to speak to her sister about Alex; she couldn't wait to give her all the juicy details.

She had barely reached her sister's bedroom and closed the door behind her when she jumped at the sound of her sister's phone ringing. Rushing over to the dresser and flipping it open, she beamed. "I was _hoping _you would call me!" she told the caller. "Wait until you hear what I _did_!" she told her sister smugly.

Her heart threatened to burst out of her chest, however, when she heard a voice she didn't expect. "Nice of you to answer your sister's phone, Katherine Elizabeth," said the familiar, velvety voice dryly. She licked her lips nervously, her breathing shallow and rapid as she debated what to say if anything. "I can't wait to hear about your latest exploit."

"I know you're there, Katie," Brian said to her in amusement a few seconds later as he glanced over at Kaylee who was sitting in the leather chair next to him in the living room; so far all he could hear was breathing on the other line. "The jig is up, Princess. I'm on to you; I'm on to _both_ of you. Are you alone right now?"

Katie finally found her voice to whisper back, "Yes. Daddy's painting."

"Good," was the unexpected reply as Brian smiled over at his daughter. "Because the three of us have a lot to talk about."

"You…You _know_?"

Brian snorted. "I know that you and your sister managed to switch places with help from your Grandma Jen and you're pulling the wool over your father's eyes as we speak. You _always _were such a wonderful little actress, though. He still has no idea?"

"Well, I think he knows something's not right, but he hasn't figured out what it is just yet." She walked over and plopped down cross-legged on the bed before asking, "Dad?"

"Yeah, Katie?" It still felt weird speaking to his daughter over the phone when he thought he had been living with for the past several days, only to find out it wasn't her after all.

"You think he'll be mad at us when he DOES find out?" she asked worriedly. She hadn't really thought about that possibility; her and her sister had been too busy thinking about how wonderful it would be to see their other father again.

"No," was the reassuring reply. He knew it had been a long time since he had seen Justin, but his compassion and his love for his daughters could not have changed regardless. "I think he'll be surprised as hell, but once it sinks in I think he'll react just the way that I did." He looked over at Kaylee as he told his other daughter, "He'll be secretly thrilled about it, no matter what the court said we could or couldn't do." He wasn't quite so sure how he would react to HIM, though, but they were all about to find out. It wasn't as if he had instigated this anyway, but that didn't mean that he couldn't try to secretly take advantage of it. Forcing himself not to get too carried away about the possibility, though, he informed Katie, "I'm taking Kaylee back home."

Katie couldn't hide the beaming smile that lit up her face. "You're coming _here_? With Kaylee? When?" The words tumbled out in an excited torrent.

"Now don't read too much into that, Katie," Brian warned her, hearing the eagerness in her voice. "I'm just returning your sister back where she belongs, that's all." _Yeah…Right_. _You keep telling yourself that, Kinney. _

_Yeah…Right_, Katie said to herself with a smirk. _We'll just see about that_. A worrisome thought crossed her mind, though, as she stubbornly told her father, "Well, I'm not just going to come back with you and forget about Daddy. Now that I have him back I'm not saying goodbye to him again. You won't make me do that, will you?"

Brian paused over that question; just how WERE they going to handle this situation? This wasn't just a personal issue between him and Justin; there was the court to consider as well. They could be in some legal trouble for allowing this to happen, even if it WASN'T their doing. He DID know one thing, though; now that the girls DID know about each other, there was no way he could keep the two of them apart. Apparently in the relatively short time they had been reunited, they had ALREADY managed to form a close bond between them. Not to mention that Katie had already become attached to her father again. No, no matter what happened between him and Justin going forward and no matter what legal repercussions may ensue, they would have to find some way to allow the two girls to continue their newly-forged relationship.

"No, Katie," he assured her. "I'm sure your father and I can find a way so that won't happen." Thinking that may be easier said than done, though, he shook that thought from his mind as he added, "Just be prepared for when we get there."

Katie frowned. "Prepared? You want me to tell Daddy you're coming?"

"Hell, no," Brian told her firmly. "I don't want him getting all queened out on me before the time comes. Besides…he _likes_ surprises." He snorted inwardly, knowing that was pretty much a bald-faced lie. He wouldn't exactly call either the hustler he had presented him with, nor even Britin a much-anticipated and welcome surprise.

"Are you sure?" Kaylee whispered by his side, knowing that normally her father didn't like to be kept in the dark about things; despite what he had said about her Daddy not being bothered over them keeping this secret from him, she wasn't so sure he wouldn't resent the fact that he wasn't told as soon as their subterfuge was out in the open.

Brian covered the mouthpiece part of his cell phone with his hand as he looked over at her and whispered, "It'll be okay, Honey." _At least he hoped so – he figured with their lack of communication, their situation couldn't be much worse than it was at the moment anyway…_

"Fine by me," Katie told him with relief. It seemed safer to let her father talk to him rather than admit to her part in their little scheme. And besides, she decided that anything that helped to bring the two closer together and force them to communicate was a good thing. "Will you be taking the private jet up here, then?"

"Yes," Brian told her. "As soon as I can get it gassed up and get the pilot out to the airport, we'll be leaving."

Kaylee's eyes widened; it was possible that before the day was out, then, she and her father might be back in Chicago, which meant that at last her two fathers would see each other again after so long. What exactly would be her other father's reaction, though, when they DID arrive? She could hear the barely-disguised emotion right now in his voice while he was speaking to her sister; he was trying hard to keep his emotions on a level keel and appear unaffected, but she could hear a hint of excitement in his voice as he talked. She knew she was just now getting to know him again, but it didn't take an expert to know that he was anxious to see her other father again. She could only hope that her Daddy would feel the same, too, when they arrived back in Chicago.

Katie couldn't help the wide smile that appeared on her face. _Yes! This couldn't be working out any better_. "Will you call me when you're almost here?"

Brian frowned, worried that he maybe hadn't planned for every parameter. "Why? Is your father planning on going out somewhere tonight?" He realized that just because that asshole boyfriend was apparently out of the picture – thankfully – that didn't necessarily mean that he wouldn't be sought after by someone else. Just the idea made his stomach uneasy.

To his relief, however, Katie told him, "No – not that I know of. He didn't mention any plans for later today, other than painting. I got a look at what he was working on earlier, and it didn't look like he's gotten too far with it yet. I think he'll be in there for quite a while. You know how he can be when he gets caught up in a project." In the short time she had been with her talented father, she had quickly realized that he could be quite focused on his work. She had gotten glimpses of how single-minded he would become on his painting. There had been some times when she hadn't seen him for hours at a stretch, in fact, even though she knew precisely where he was.

"Yeah," Brian told her softly. "I know _exactly_ how he can be." Memories of the past – when Justin would escape to his painting to either mask his true feelings, or more commonly, to express his anger or frustration over something that had occurred in his life came flooding back to him. He recalled how violent and angry his ex-partner's Rage sketches had become during that God-awful Pink Posse time, and how he had become so upset after the bashing when he couldn't draw the traditional way; how he had immediately gravitated to his art after that horrible, horrible bombing, wanting to paint something, _anything_, to help forget about it. He closed his eyes briefly as the pain washed over him again from just thinking about how close he had come to losing him for good during that time, as well as right after the prom. In a way, he thought their current situation of being separated from each other wasn't too far removed from death. The biggest difference, though, was that this could be changed. It didn't have to be final and irrevocable, at least he hoped so.

"We'll be there as soon as we can, Katie. Just don't give anything away in the meantime." He smiled as he added teasingly, "Don't act like your real self and shoot your mouth off too much or he WILL figure it out ahead of time."

"Ha, ha," Katie retorted. "Very funny, Dad. I know how to keep quiet when I need to."

He huffed lightly. "I highly doubt that," he remarked. "I know you too well. And speaking of which – that reminds me." He licked his lips a little nervously as he tried to ask as casually as possible, "I understand the little boyfriend is out of the picture now?"

Katie snorted. "You mean Alex the Asshole?"

Brian smiled. "Yeah, I heard that's his full name."

Katie grinned. "It fits – believe me. But yeah, I'm happy to say that he's no longer an issue. You are free to come here and win Daddy back."

"Katie…"

"Come on, Dad!" Katie pressed. She lowered her voice as she glanced over at the door. Even though she knew her father was several doors away in his studio and her sister's bedroom door was firmly closed, she still didn't want to take the chance that he could somehow overhear any of their conversation; there was too much riding on this. "You know that's what you want," she insisted, not willing to accept any other alternative.

Brian sighed softly. "Maybe…," he conceded. He took a deep breath and let it out. "Okay, yeah, I would like to somehow find a way to get to make things right again. To get him to trust me again. And before you ask, Katherine Elizabeth, no, I'm not going into any more detail than that. Maybe one day I will. But not now; right now it's not important. What _is_ important is that I get up there with Kaylee before this all blows up in both of your faces." He smiled. "Something tells me your father won't be too happy with what your grandmother pulled off. But I think he will understand the reason why."

Kaylee nodded her agreement as Brian glanced over at her; he reached over to squeeze her hand lightly before releasing it. "Just keep your father busy until we can get there. Either Kaylee or I will send you a text just before we get to your apartment, okay?"

"Okay, Dad," Katie told him, her pulse racing at the thought. "Oh, and Dad?"

"Yeah, Chiquitita?"

"I've enjoyed being with Daddy again…But I've still _missed _you – and the horses."

Brian smiled. "Well, I'm glad I came in ahead of Cerus and Eton," he teased her. "It's okay," he told his daughter as he heard her typical huff of protest on the other end. "I knew what you meant." He paused for just a second before he added softly, "I've missed you too, Princess. I'll see you real soon, okay?"

"Okay, Dad," Katie said softly as suddenly a lump formed in her throat. She had been so busy getting to know her other father that the realization that she had been apart from the _other_ father that she loved so deeply had temporarily evaded her. Now that she was hearing his voice again, though, she was finding herself unexpectedly feeling homesick. Why did everything have to be so hard, though? Why couldn't they all be together again as a family instead of apart? "I can't wait to see you and Kaylee again."

"We'll be there soon," he promised her tenderly, pausing for a moment before he added more softly, "I love you." He still found that hard to say, even now. "Bye."

"I love you, too, Dad. Bye," Katie said as she softly closed Kaylee's cell phone. Placing it down next to her on the bed, she scooted over to the side of the mattress and, picking up Gus who had become her newest best friend and comfort, walked over with him to the window seat – her favorite place in the whole room. Sitting down, she bent her legs as she pressed Gus against her chest and rested her chin on top of his frayed head. Sighing anxiously, she gazed out the window at the street below, so different than her real home.

It had been so wonderful getting to know her other father again, and she loved him for all the wonderful qualities he had – his gentleness, his caring nature, his wonderful gift of creativity that she, too, had inherited from him; he had been everything that she had hoped he would turn out to be. She loved getting to know where he lived and _how _he lived. But she also longed for her familiar bedroom back at Britin and the wide open space that surrounded it. She missed the freedom she always felt whenever she rode one of the horses over the nearby countryside and trotted up into the rolling, forested hills nearby, always marveling at how much cooler it was under the canopy of trees. As she watched several cars passing by the window now, though, she silently prayed that the next time she rode one of her horses her other father and her sister would be by her and her father's side, too. "It has to work out," she murmured softly. "It just has to." She simply wouldn't believe any other outcome was possible.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Justin's Studio<em>

Justin slathered a thick stripe of dark red onto the unpainted canvas almost violently, his thoughts in a confused and roiling muddle as he relived what had happened last night with Alex. He was still quite angry with him over his belief that he could simply overlook the fact that his daughter was so sick, but after seeing Kaylee earlier at breakfast, appearing so chipper and 'normal,' he was beginning to wonder if Alex may have been correct. WAS it possible that his daughter had been _pretending_ to be ill, just so he wouldn't go to the awards dinner with him? He had heard enough from her to know that she apparently didn't care all that much for him; and she HAD informed him that Alex could be less than cordial around her when he wasn't around. HAD she made it all up? But how could he explain the vomit in the toilet or the hot feel of her forehead, then? He wasn't so naïve as to not realize she could have somehow rigged the thermometer to indicate a nonexistent fever, he supposed, but if she HAD been faking, she had done a damned good job of it. She had certainly APPEARED ill to him.

He sighed as he placed his brush down into a smudged, plastic cup nearby and picked up a smaller, narrower brush to place some navy paint onto the fabric in a cross-pattern counter to the dark red one. He shook his head silently. In a way, it really didn't matter, because whether the illness had been real or imaginary, Alex's reaction had spoken volumes about how he felt regarding Kaylee. His true colors had definitely been revealed as she had said, and they showed a man who apparently had no love for children – at least not HIS child. So in the long run did it really matter if Kaylee had been faking her illness or not? At least not from THAT standpoint, but it DID bother him if she was being dishonest with him. If there was one thing he hated, it was duplicity. He had seen more than his share of that quality, and each time it had caused him nothing but heartache. Noticing he had zoned out over thoughts of Brian again and realizing he was just standing there holding his quickly-drying paintbrush in his hand, he shook his head in disgust as he plopped it down in the water cup. Wiping his hands off on his paint-spattered work smock, he turned and headed toward the door.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Kaylee's Bedroom<em>

Katie was sitting once more on the window seat after walking back over to the bed to retrieve her sketchbook hidden under the mattress; concentrating on her sketch she was currently working on of her, her sister, and her two fathers now gathered around Britin's living room near a huge Christmas tree, she started almost violently as she heard a knock on the door. She scrambled furiously to find a place to hide her sketchbook, finally electing to stash it behind the pillow currently supporting her back as she called out, "Come on in."

Her father poked his head through the door as Katie smiled back at him in reaction. He returned her smile as he opened the door wider and walked over to her side. "Decided not to play on the computer after all?" he asked, noticing she didn't have her I-pod with her, either. His daughter had apparently been merely sitting at her window seat people watching instead.

Katie nodded. "Yeah," she confirmed softly, her heart still thumping rather wildly in her chest from her close escape from detection; she would have been hard pressed to explain to her father how she had suddenly acquired such artistic talent. "I wasn't in the mood."

Justin eyed her intently. "You're not starting to feel bad again, are you?" Perhaps he had been wrong about his suspicion.

"No," Katie hastily assured him, not sure if that was a good answer or not. "I'm fine now."

Justin nodded as he walked over and sat down next to her feet. He lightly placed one of his hands on her ankle as he quietly began, "There's something I want to talk to you about, Kaylee."

_Uh, oh_, Katie thought with slight apprehension. "What?" she asked softly as she slowly lifted her gaze to stare into eyes that mirrored her own. "Is something wrong? I really am okay," she added, hoping he was merely exhibiting parental concern for her supposed illness last night.

Justin gazed into her sapphire-blue eyes, noting a look of concern there – or was it guilt? "No, not really something wrong per se," he told her as he stared into her eyes and lightly caressed her ankle in a soothing-type motion. "But it _does_ have to do with last night."

Katie licked her lips nervously as she replied barely above a whisper, "What _about _last night, Daddy?"

"Kaylee, I want the truth," Justin told her, deliberately keeping his voice level and un-accusing. "_Were _you really sick last night? Or was it all a ruse done in hopes of putting a wedge between Alex and me?"

Katie looked down at her lap momentarily, providing Justin with sufficient cause to believe he had hit the nail on the head. He didn't have to wait very long for confirmation as his daughter unexpectedly raised her gaze unflinchingly to look into his as she simply stated, "Maybe I did."

Justin stared at her agape. The look on her face was almost…_Defiant. Even smug_. This was his daughter? The one who tried to avoid confrontation and controversy? The same one, he thought silently, who had managed to entangle herself in yet another confrontation with her roommate at camp? What exactly was happening here? Was it a pre-teen, hormone-type thing or something else? He mouth hung open as he finally managed to reply, "I suspected as much. But I'm still surprised you would do that."

"Daddy," Katie told him, sounding almost like a parent speaking to a child. "The man was a total asshole."

"Kaylee, watch your language," Justin told her sternly, flabbergasted. His daughter might use the word 'jerk' or even 'moron' at times, but _asshole_? He had never heard that caustic word come out of her lips before.

"Well, he was," she insisted, just getting warmed up. "He treated me like shit as soon as you were out of the room, like I was lint on his coat or used bubblegum on the bottom of his shoe; I bet he couldn't wait for me to go to camp, could he? I'm sure he thought that was his big chance to make his move. What a shame it didn't work out that way," she told him sarcastically, unable to help herself even though her father was staring at her in obvious shock. She quickly closed her mouth then, hoping she hadn't been too over-the-top. As she looked over at her father, though, she wondered if she had finally revealed her true self.

"I…I'm not sure what to say," Justin stammered after a few seconds, working feverishly to concentrate on what she was telling him rather than the words she was using to say it _with_. "I know you said you didn't like him…But he really treated you that badly?" As Katie nodded, partly in her own defense as well as her sister's, Justin's eyes filled with tears of regret and remorse. He was no longer worried that his daughter had taken matters into her own hands to the extreme or that she was using such uncustomary language to express them; he was angry that his so-called boyfriend would do that to his child. "You're right," he finally choked out, not necessarily approving of how his daughter had forced Alex's true colors to rise to the surface, but thankful that she had succeeded. Instinctively he knew she was telling him the truth and it made him furious. His eyes flashed with righteous fury. "He really WAS an asshole then."

Katie laughed softly at his response; partly out of relief but also in amusement over her father's statement. "Yes, he was," she said again.

One side of Justin's mouth curled up as his daughter twisted her body to sit up beside him and he pulled her into his arms for a tight hug. "I'm so sorry, Sweetheart," he murmured against her hair. "I'm so sorry he put you through that. And I'm sorry that you didn't feel comfortable telling me about it. I wish you had; then maybe some of what he had done to you could have been avoided."

"So you don't care that I just pretended that I was sick?" she asked as she wound her hands around her father's back and held on tight. He felt and smelled so wonderful, she couldn't help thinking. Like the outdoors after a spring rain and an orchard of oranges combined into one; like the softest, most comfortable blanket of warmth. She sighed in pleasure as she snuggled deeper into his arms.

Justin closed his eyes and just relished in holding his daughter. All these years, she had been his constant supporter and companion, through good times as well as bad, through his doubts and fears for the future. She had been staunchly behind him, enthusiastically applauding his artistic efforts and his every decision, whether it was to remodel his brownstone so he could accommodate his studio, transfer her to a private school that was more in tune with his erratic schedule, or maintain a presence at the small art galleries in town rather than at the large, more impersonal ones. No matter what he decided to do, she had been beside him, rooting him on. And this time, she had done it again; she had managed to succeed in preventing what could have been a major mistake – marrying a man who was a hypocrite and, yes…a child-despising _asshole_.

"Well, I don't like it when you lie to me, Kaylee," he whispered against her head. "But I hate it even more when someone does something to hurt you. And I love the idea that you wanted to protect me." He reluctantly pulled back enough to be able to look Katie in the eyes as he added, "But the next time, Kaylee Marie, you come to ME when someone treats you badly and you let ME take care of it. You got that, young lady?" The words were meant to be stern, but they certainly didn't come out that way.

Katie nodded as she reached up to kiss her father on the cheek. "There will be someone come along who will treat you – and me – the way we deserve to be treated," she whispered. _Yes…Hopefully VERY soon_, she couldn't help wishing.

Justin smiled down at her. "My little sentimental matchmaker," he teased softly. "Let's not rush it, okay? I want you to have plenty of time to interrogate them for me first. Deal?"

Katie grinned up at him; _God, she loved him so_! "Deal," she said as Justin hugged her briefly once more before letting her go to stand up.

"Good," he told her. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have some more painting to do. I've woefully behind on my current commission. No painting…No groceries," he told her with a grin.

Katie nodded as she watched him turn and walk out of the room. She sighed in relief as soon as he was out of earshot, knowing that had been another close one. She was grateful she wouldn't have to put up with the deception much longer. Briefly considering sliding her sketchpad back out from its hiding place, she finally opted to leave it where it was and not risk detection before she flipped open her sister's cell phone and sent a quick text: _Hurry up – can't wait! Daddy's getting harder to fool. Let me know when you get here – K. _

Several seconds later she looked down as she heard the familiar chime; her heart hammered in her chest as she read: _Will be there in about an hour – getting ready 2 leave airport now. Don't worry. K_

Katie's eyes lit up with eager anticipation and a smile broke out on her face at the wondrous news. Jumping off the window seat, she hurried over to the door and rushed down the hallway toward the downstairs, Dali and Picasso quickly leaping out the way as she hurried past them. _Soon…Very soon._

* * *

><p><em>On board Kinnetik's private jet – thirty minutes away from Chicago<em>

Brian ran the palms of his hands up and down his thighs in a slow rubbing motion as he sat in the plane's leather chair, getting more and more nervous the closer they came to Chicago – to _Justin_. He had hoped for an opportunity to do this for so long – had _dreamed_ about it from the moment Justin and Kaylee had left Pittsburgh. It was on his mind constantly, in his dreams almost nightly, in everything he did, whether he was at work or at home with Katie. He saw his ex-partner in every personal touch Justin had made at Britin – from the pots and pans hanging overhead from the copper carrousel, to every single one of Justin's paintings that still hung on the walls of the home they had shared and in his own personal office at Kinnetik. He felt his presence every time he went to the diner, on the occasions he had a need to stop at Woody's to meet a client or to go to Babylon to check on business there. He saw him and his daughter every Christmas in the twinkling, sparkling, wonder-struck eyes of every young blond girl, eyes aglow at the decorations that hung in the department stores, eyes the exact color of the daughter he hadn't had the chance to see grow up, and in the slender arms of the girl's father who held her so tenderly, just like Justin used to do with Kaylee.

He had loved that first Christmas together with Justin and the girls. He had never been one to celebrate _any_ holiday, seeing them as mere commercialized contrivances – but Christmas was the worst, because all the time he was growing up his family had treated it as more of a chore than a pleasure where he was concerned. They would lavish his older sister Claire with gifts galore and shower her with attention Christmas morning while handing him a few perfunctory presents with the enthusiasm of a zookeeper picking up elephant dung at the zoo. Invariably the gifts would wind up being something he totally detested anyway, such as a gaudy plaid sweater two sizes two big or binoculars, although that particular gift _had_ come in handy later to spy on the hotter-looking neighborhood boys when he had gotten older and had come to grips with his sexuality. He had a suspicion, though, that Jack Kinney had never intended for him to use them in quite that manner.

With Justin and their daughters, however, they had given a whole new meaning and purpose to celebrating the holidays. Justin seemed to glow with happiness that first Christmas; his joy had rubbed off on even him as they had taken Kaylee and Katie to see Santa for the first time. Katie had promptly crawled up into the surprisingly authentic, rounded belly of the mall Santa and proudly posed for a photo for Justin, while Kaylee has taken one look at his flowing beard and his big, chubby cheeks and had burst out crying in hysterics. Later Brian couldn't decide whether he liked the beaming photo of a laughing, giggly, fearless Katie more or the anguished, beet-red look of dismay on Kaylee's face. But the memory still remained a wonderful one, even to this day.

"What are you thinking about?" was the unexpected question as he realized he had a wistful smile on his face. He turned to gaze across the plane's interior at Kaylee, who had a curious look on her own face.

He looked over at her tenderly, the memories of that day fading slowly away as he replied honestly, "I was thinking about the past. About our first Christmas together with you and your sister." _Our ONLY Christmas with you together_, he thought sadly, the smile also disappearing at the sobering thought.

Kaylee was disappointed that she couldn't remember any of it. "How was it?" she asked softly.

Brian's face broke out into another smile then. "It was great," he told her simply as she smiled back at him. "One of the best days of my life." And he meant that, too; it HAD been. Of course, _every _day with Justin and the girls back then had been wonderful; how could he have thrown that all away?

"It can be like that again," she said hopefully as if reading his mind.

Brian held his hand out to her. "Come here," he entreated gently as she rose from her place and walked over to him. She gripped his outstretched hand as she sat down next to him on the leather bench seat, curling her fingers around his much-larger hand as they twined them together. She stared up at him with those big, expressive blue eyes as Brian's heart went out to her.

"Kaylee…I would like for that to happen as much as you do," he admitted to her honestly, realizing it was the truth. "But please don't get your hopes up too much; it's been a long time, Honey. There's no guarantee your father won't take one look at me and promptly tell me not to let the door hit my bony ass on the way back out."

Kaylee bit her lip pensively, unable to produce so much as a smile over his inaccurate comment – smaller than her other father's butt? Yeah – but definitely not _bony_. "Was it that bad, Dad? Was what you did that terrible?" She couldn't imagine anything her father could have done that would have been so bad that both of her fathers would wind up not speaking to each other for years and years – this man was too kind, too loving with her for her to ever think that. But the cold, hard truth was that it _had_ happened – he had broken some sort of promise to her other father that had been so bad that years of separation had resulted from it. That was the reality. Now the question was…How do they fix it? Or CAN they fix it? To her there could be no other answer. It was written in her normally confident father's anxious eyes and in the emotional timbre of his voice. He still loved her other father, and her Daddy still loved him, even after all these years; that was proof enough that it would work out, no matter WHAT had happened.

"To your father it was," he answered her as he looked away, unable to keep from focusing on the memory of that fateful day when he had thrown everything they had worked so hard for away in exchange for one fleeting moment of sexual satisfaction. And the ironic part of it all? It hadn't been that good. It NEVER could have been as good as he had had it with Justin. _Stupid…Stupid_. The words echoed in his ears back then and they continued to this day. He felt a slight squeeze of his hand as he turned to look over at his daughter's sympathetic face. Would he ever see that same look on Justin's face as well? Would he ever see anything but the pain, sorrow, and disappointment he had seen there that day?

"Well, I'm not letting you or Katie leave that brownstone before you and Daddy settle whatever happened between you," she told him firmly. "You both still love each other; that can overcome anything, no matter WHAT it was."

Brian smiled at her tenderly. "I hope so, Kaylee. I hope so." As he pulled her against his side and laid his head against hers, he closed his eyes and hoped it would, indeed, be true.

* * *

><p><em>Thirty Minutes Later – Outside Justin's Brownstone<em>

Brian glanced up curiously at the rather narrow, brown brick building that Kaylee had instructed the cab driver to slow down in front of. It was three stories tall with identical doors on both sides and a green-and-white awning hanging over each entrance. Two rectangular plates in black with gold letters spelled out the building's address: 1402 and 1404 respectively. He eyed the façade intently, trying somehow to ascertain which side held his ex-partner's whereabouts. Eventually his scrutiny gazed upward to the left side and he had to smile in realization; perched in front of the widest and tallest window located on the top floor and bare of any curtains was the unmistakable profile of a large artist's easel. That told him all he needed to know.

Reaching inside his wallet and retrieving enough bills for cab fare and a tip, he slid over to join Kaylee by the side of the taxi as the cabdriver emerged to retrieve their luggage. A few minutes later, both of them were standing at the sidewalk, bags in hand as they quietly walked up the short cement path that led to the entrance on the left - # 1404. Brian silently wondered where Justin was inside; the closer they came to the front door, the more his heart began to pound in proportion. What would be Justin's reaction? What would he look like? Would he still be as slender as he remembered? Would his hair be short and cropped or long and silky? Would he look at him in disdain and anger even now? Kaylee had assured him that Justin was still in love with him. He held onto that hope as they approached the solid, wooden door. The enormity of this moment came to him as he whispered, "You did text her to come to the door?"

Kaylee nodded. "She said this was a good time; Daddy's in the kitchen fixing some lunch – that's at the back of the house. She promised to keep him there until we could arrive."

Brian nodded in understanding; Kaylee had texted Katie about ten minutes ago as they neared the off-ramp for their neighborhood, alerting her they were getting closer and to be ready for them when they got there. What the plan would be from there, however, was very much up in the air. It all depended upon on one thing – or should he say one man – _Justin_.

He held his breath as the door slowly opened and he saw his other daughter peering out between the partially-opened crack. Katie's face broke out into an excited, delighted smile at the sight of them as she quickly opened the door wider and came outside, shutting the door back softly behind her. She immediately swept her sister up into a firm hug as they celebrated being reunited once more.

"I'm so glad to see you, Kaylee!" Katie gushed out; she had to say it quietly, though, not wanting to spoil the big surprise. They hugged for several seconds until finally they heard their father clear his throat from behind.

"What about _me_? You go off to Chicago for a few days and forget what I look like already?" he teased.

Katie rushed into his open arms as he kissed the top of her head and stroked her back lovingly. "Dad," he heard his daughter whisper against him, and his heart swelled at the thought of finally having both daughters with him again. He refused to consider just how long it would last, though, not wanting to dwell on that. There was something much more urgent that had to be done first. "Where's the little housewife?" he asked Katie as they finally pulled back from their embrace. "Still puttering around in the kitchen?"

She nodded as she giggled at her father's statement; somehow she didn't think her father would appreciate being called that, but she also had a feeling that at least in the past this man would have been the only one who could have gotten away with using it. "Yeah," she confirmed with a grin. "Kaylee suggested that I ask him to make his chicken enchiladas; she told me it takes him a while to make it and it would give us the time we needed."

Brian quirked one side of his mouth up, impressed, as he gazed over at Kaylee. "Good thinking," he told her as she grinned back at him. "He always _did _get caught up in his cooking – in more ways than one," he added, remembering how his kitchen at the loft tended to resemble a disaster area by the time Justin had finished with his latest 'cooking masterpiece.' He had transferred that unfortunate talent over to Britin, too, once they had moved there; it was nothing to see an entire armada of pots and pans, bowls, measuring spoons and various other, unidentifiable utensils strewn all over the massive, professional-sized gourmet kitchen. At least Justin no longer threw salad all over the floor like he had that one time, though. His cooking was still much too 'enthusiastic' for HIS taste, but at least it had improved in quality over the years.

"Well, let's get this show on the road," Brian told them, returning to the present as Kaylee and Katie nodded. "Katie – you go in first and check things out for us." Now that he was so close to seeing Justin again, he was beginning to feel like a fucking schoolgirl or something; his hands were sweaty and his stomach was tied up in knots. He wasn't going to let Justin see that, though, as he watched his daughter quietly open the door back up and slip inside to do a little scouting for them. A few seconds later, she opened the door back up and gestured urgently with her hand for them to follow her.

Walking inside with Kaylee, Brian at last had a chance to see the place his ex-partner called home; it was decorated profusely with several samples of Justin's artwork, which he recognized immediately – everything from small, 12" pieces scattered on the living room walls to a large, imposing, purple and dark red painting hanging over the mantel of the wood-burning fireplace in the center of the room. What occurred to him quickly, however, was the somberness of the pieces – none of them had the characteristic tones of happiness or lightness that Brian had seen in some of Justin's earlier works, or the tender, candid sketches he had loved to draw. These works all seemed angry and frenetic, almost disillusioned – much like he supposed Justin must have felt after they had broken up. Broken up because of what HE had done…

He swallowed a hard lump of regret in his throat as he studied the rest of the layout. A hallway led down the center of the room, presumably toward the rear kitchen where Kaylee had indicated Justin was located. To either side of the living room, which was open to the second floor and provided a sense of spaciousness despite its relative narrowness, were two short hallways that apparently led to other rooms or perhaps a rear garage, since out front there had only been on-street parking available. Various knick-knacks, along with sleek, curved sculptures and clear, crystal bud vases holding glass flowers, were resting on shelves and side tables next to a butterscotch-colored leather couch. Books of all sizes, some hardback and some paperwork, rested vicariously on several bookshelves located along two of the far walls, some standing up while others were lying flat.

The most dramatic object in the room, however, was a large baby grand piano resting in a small alcove in a corner of the room. He noticed several framed photos propped up on top of it and couldn't resist sauntering over to take a peek.

From their place nearby, the two girls watched their father's movements intently, Katie keeping an astute ear out for any sign that their other father might walk in unannounced. Brian walked over and stopped in front of a series of photos depicting Kaylee as a child. In the photos, taken at various stages in her preschool years, his daughter seemed happy and well-adjusted enough. He couldn't help picking up one 5X7 photo, apparently taken on Kaylee's second birthday – the first birthday after he and Justin had broken up. She was seated in front of a pink and white cake shaped like a Cinderella's castle complete with turrets and sparkling jewels framing the windows. It was surrounded by a blue icing moat with a round-shaped, filigree-gold carriage resting in front of the massive, imposing, stone double doors. Two candles were perched on top, one attached to each turret. Whoever the photographer was had captured Kaylee wonderfully as she had attempted to blow out the candles; her cherubic, rosy cheeks were rounded into an "O" shape as she blew out a huff of breath. Several other children who appeared to be around her age were grouped around her, watching the activity avidly. Justin was standing right beside her, bent over with his hands on her shoulders lovingly as he tried to help her blow out the candles. She was dressed in a pink, sleeveless, corduroy jumper and a white, short-sleeved, puffy-collared shirt with pink, sparkly barrettes in her hair, and looked positively adorable.

He carefully placed the photo down as he studied the others, depicting Kaylee through the past decade: Visiting Santa, posing for apparent school photos with the typical fake tree or water in the background, eating a meal with Jennifer at some restaurant, hugging one of her cats, sitting proudly on what looked to be her first bike with training wheels. There were other photos of her cheerleading dressed in her school's colors, as well as several with Justin that seemed to indicate they were hiking – both were wearing khaki shorts and polo shirts and had a backpack strewn around their back, water bottles in their hands while they were standing shoulder to shoulder in front of some mountainous backdrop.

As he slowly inched his way down the line of photos, he came at last to one at the far end of the piano and his heart stopped. It was immediately identifiable to him as a photo taken at Debbie and Carl's wedding approximately six months before the girls had been born. In the picture, he and Justin, both dressed in navy-blue Armani suits, were dancing at their friends' reception, their bodies melded together intimately as they gazed lovingly into each other's eyes and slowly swayed to the music. The looks on their faces mirrored each other's – they looked totally in love, deeply in love. And they had been. It had been less than two years later that he had committed the ultimate betrayal and Justin had broken things off with him. He sucked in a sorrowful breath at the thought even now. To him, things hadn't changed. He still felt the same way about Justin, perhaps even more so despite their separation. The only question was whether or not he could do anything to rectify his mistake now.

Katie shot her sister a knowing look as they noticed their father's fingers slowly sweeping over Justin's part of the photo in the frame. They didn't have to voice what they were both thinking; this situation had to be fixed before any more time slipped away. Lost in thought, she started as she heard her father's voice filtering through from the kitchen.

"Kaylee? Lunch is almost ready," Justin called out. "Go wash up, okay?"

At the sound of Justin's voice after so many years, Brian's heart raced. _God, it sounds so wonderful to hear him speak again_. He would recognize Justin's voice anywhere. But until now, until he had heard it again, he hadn't realized just how much he had missed hearing it.

He hastily placed the photo back down on top of the piano as he glanced over at his daughters and placed a finger against his lips in a silent gesture for them to be quiet. They both nodded their understanding, unable to keep the grins off their faces as Brian walked back over to join them near the front door. Placing a hand on Katie's shoulder, he leaned down and whispered something in her ear as she nodded and walked over to stand behind the piano, just out of sight from anyone coming from the rear of the brownstone. As Brian hoped, a few seconds later he heard Justin's voice once more calling out from the kitchen.

"Kaylee? Did you hear me?" Justin sighed in exasperation when he received no response again. Where _was _she? A few minutes ago, she had been downstairs in the living room, curled up in one of their leather overstuffed chairs, playing a video game displayed on the television. She could run off faster than anyone he had ever met, though, he decided, as he wiped his hands on a nearby kitchen towel and, placing it on the counter, decided he'd have to go find her apparently before their lunch got cold. "Kaylee?" he called out again a little more loudly this time as he began to walk out of the kitchen and down the short hallway connecting the back of the apartment from the front. "Are you still down..?"

He never got to finish his sentence as he emerged out into the living room; the question promptly died on his lips as he spotted the hauntingly familiar man standing by the front door next to his daughter, his arm placed companionably on her shoulder. His heart pounded against his chest in surprise, the adrenalin racing through his veins as he locked gazes with Brian. Was his ex-partner, the man he had never stopped loving and had preoccupied his dreams nightly, really standing here in front of him? If it _was_ a vision, however, it was the most amazing one he had ever seen. He was unable to look away from the magnificent man standing before him, because time had definitely been good to his ex-partner. Brian's tall frame, still trim and toned, was clad in a black leather jacket, form-fitting back cotton shirt, and a pair of dark-blue jeans that hugged his long, lean legs. He was wearing a pair of black leather boots and an enigmatic expression on his face as he stared intently over at him, making his body flush in reaction just like it always had.

Brian's pulse raced as his heart fluttered in his chest at the first sign of his ex-lover. His immediate thought was how beautiful he still was. He was still slender with the wonderfully pale skin that he had caressed and worshipped more times than he could ever count, but underneath the long-sleeved, sage green tee shirt and the snug blue jeans he was wearing he could see just the hint of more muscle definition there now. He was thrilled to see that Justin's silky, golden hair was still on the long side, the bangs falling gently into the azure-blue eyes that were staring back at him, wide-eyed and shocked, into his own. At that moment, Brian found himself falling deeply into love all over again as he drunk in the sight of his ex-partner and re-memorized every inch of him.

Justin's mouth fell open in astonishment. He tried furiously to get his voice to work but he was failing miserably; no sound came forward. This was the last thing he expected to see, the last _person_ he ever expected to see. As he stood there agape, his body trembled in response and all the years seemed to melt away to a time so long ago. The fingernails of his clenched hands deliberately dug into the flesh of his palms as he tried to create physical pain to convince himself that this was real, this wasn't a dream, as he stood there frozen to his spot unable to move.

He soon discovered that his attempt to try and speak was unnecessary as the voice he had longed to hear again spoke to him at last, washing away any residual doubts from his mind that he was merely imagining everything.

Brian's lips slowly drew up into their old, familiar smirk as he greeted his ex-partner with the name Justin hadn't heard in years. "Hello, Sunshine," he drawled softly. "I believe I have something that belongs to you."


	14. Tightening the Emotional Screws

_A/N: Justin and Brian meet face-to-face for the first time since the separation. But will Brian be able to convince his ex-lover that they still belong together?  
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_L__ast Chapter..._

Brian's lips slowly drew up into their old, familiar smirk as he greeted his ex-partner with the name Justin hadn't heard in years. "Hello, Sunshine," he drawled softly. "I believe I have something that belongs to you."

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><p>From her place next to her father, Kaylee's eyes widened in surprise at the pet name for her biological father that had slipped so readily from her Dad's lips. She stole a glance over at Katie, noticing the same sort of reaction on her face. <em>Sunshine?<em> She mouthed over to her covertly as Katie shrugged in response. Kaylee had never heard her father called that before, but she found it quite interesting. _VERY interesting, in fact_, she noted as her father's face reddened in reaction. She resolved to discover later how her father had come by that unexpected nickname; for now, though, she was too swept up in the drama unfolding in front of her and her sister's eyes to delve into it any further as their two fathers locked gazes on each other for the first time in years.

Justin's heart fluttered at the sound of the velvety, sexy voice he thought he might never hear again. Even with their separation, Brian had managed to occupy his every dream for the past several years without fail, had constantly lingered like some echo quietly in his mind, and, yes, had still held a piece of his heart - even now, despite what had happened. Up until now, he had managed to file that truth away safely somewhere in a place that was muffled and hidden; a place tucked away that was immune from the fresh, raw pain now beginning to pour through him.

Amazingly, as he gaped at Brian his daughter just stood there next to his ex-partner as if it were the most natural thing in the world despite not seeing him in years. His mind whirled at the absurdity of it all. Just what in the hell was going on? How long had Brian been here? Had Kaylee just opened the door and let him slip in, just like that? And what exactly did Brian mean - he '_had something that belonged to him_?' It had been YEARS since Brian had seen Kaylee; why would he think she belonged to HIM, then? His breath came out in ragged, shallow pants as he tried to digest what exactly was going on, his face undoubtedly reflecting his confusion as he tried to make some sense out of this mindboggling situation.

"Kaylee..." he stammered, finally finding his voice; it was difficult to speak clearly, however, with the way that Brian's eyes were boring into his at the moment. How did he still make him feel like some fucking seventeen-year-old virgin again, even now? For just a moment, he felt almost younger than Kaylee was.

Just then, he noticed a movement out of the corner of his eye, and when he looked toward the piano his heart almost stopped as the whole scene became even MORE bizarre - there wasn't one daughter in the room; there were _two_. _Two _daughters that except for the different clothing they were wearing looked exactly alike...

As his eyes darted back to the daughter standing next to Brian, she beamed at him with a smile to rival one of his own as she chirped out brightly, "Hi, Daddy!" in a perfect imitation of the same greeting he had received before at breakfast and then he became even _more_ confused; this girl sounded and acted just like Kaylee, but she wasn't wearing the same clothing as before - the one next to the piano was.

Shaking his head as if that might help to clear things up, he realized to his consternation that Brian remained stonily silent; apparently he wasn't going to help him with this conundrum at all. Sighing, he turned back to look at his daughter standing next to his ex-partner, her arm draped congenially around Brian's waist. "Kaylee?" he repeated tentatively as he looked at her, this time the name coming out as more of a question than a statement. His eyes bounced back and forth between both daughters again until finally one of them - the one standing next to Brian - nodded in affirmation, even though his sense of rationality had already given him what he knew the answer would be.

Justin gulped in shock; _THIS_ was Kaylee? Not Katie? THIS was the daughter he normally lived with? Her voice was the same, her face was the same, even both girls' haircuts were the same. Her clothing appeared to be a little more conservative than she would normally wear, though - too plain-looking. The other daughter standing next to the piano, however, was wearing the exact same outfit that Kaylee had been wearing earlier at breakfast - a pink, short-sleeved polo shirt and a pair of pink and lime-green striped khakis; but by now it was obvious that this girl he had been living with for the past several days wasn't Kaylee at all; it was _Katie_. He mouth hung open in disbelief; despite the incontrovertible truth staring him in the face, his mind still refused to register what he was seeing.

His head felt like it would implode with all sorts of questions as suddenly Picasso and Dali came rushing into the room and made a beeline straight toward Brian and his daughter, both cats meowing loudly for attention; he recognized it as their normal excited reaction to something they eagerly anticipated, whether it was feeding time, receiving a new toy...OR greeting Kaylee when she came home from being gone. His daughter's face broke out into a delighted smile and he noticed tears in her eyes as she knelt down without hesitation to scoop both cats up into her arms, just like she always did whenever she found them waiting at the door for her.

"_There're _my silly kitties!" she squealed at them in excitement, a delighted smile on her face; it was her favorite endearment for her cats. "I've missed you SO much!" she told them as she nuzzled each cat against one cheek at the same time; both cats immediately began to purr in pleasure as she cooed to them softly.

Justin heard his other daughter - the one next to the piano - snort as he turned to look at her, even though his eyes kept straying over at Brian; he still was having a hard time accepting that he was in the room with all of them and it was making him quite nervous. _Is this really happening?_

"No taste," he heard the daughter mutter in disgust. "They didn't like me at ALL," she informed her sister in indignation. "We look exactly alike," she countered. "Why in the world wouldn't they _like_ me, then?" she asked. Katie was still insulted by that fact, even now; the whole thing was totally illogical to her.

Kaylee shrugged. "You must smell or sound differently," she maintained. "Cats are very sensitive."

"Cats are very weird," Katie responded dryly. "I sound just LIKE you. I LOOK just like you; what's the difference? Thanks, but no thanks; I'll take my horses any day."

"Well, your horses are scary," Kaylee informed her sister promptly, her eyes flashing. "Their eyes are as big as my head; how in the world do you ever get up on their backs to ride them? They're _huge_."

It was as if the two men weren't in the room as their daughters continued to carry on a lengthy discussion between themselves about the merits of one animal over the other until Justin finally held up his hands to get their attention. He had no doubt now which daughter was which; he had quickly figured that out the moment that Kaylee had scooped both cats up and they had reacted to her so positively. His mind flashed back to the past several days and everything suddenly made perfect sense: his daughter's change in clothing and food tastes, his daughter's radically-new hairdo, the cats' odd, reticent behavior toward her - their hesitation over being anywhere near her - and his daughter's sudden wish to go running early in the morning instead of sleeping in. The switch must have happened somehow at the camp, because everything seemed to subtly change when he had gone to retrieve her there. Even her reaction at seeing him had been overly emotional, even for his tenderhearted daughter; only now did he realize the reason why.

"I don't understand any of this," he interrupted them as he peered over at Brian and addressed him directly for the first time. "How did they wind up even knowing about each other..?"

"I think you can thank Mother Taylor for this awkward little reunion," Brian replied dryly, unable to take his eyes off Justin; he couldn't help fixating on his silky voice, the flow of his hair as he moved his head, his eyes that seemed to pierce straight through to his soul, and the movement of those wonderfully full lips that he remembered as being so soft and warm when they kissed. _Say my name, Justin...Please say my name_, he silently pleaded as Justin spoke, wanting desperately to hear it again. It had been so long...so fucking long...He just stood there and drunk in the sight of this man that he had loved - and _still_ loved - like no other.

"My _mother_?" Justin replied, his brow furrowing in puzzlement. His mind drifted back to how his mother had prodded and encouraged him so strongly to enroll Kaylee at Camp Pineland. _It'll be a new experience for her; it will open up her horizons and give her more self-confidence. You'll be doing her a big favor_. Only now did he realize just what she had meant by that, because apparently he wasn't the only one who had received the same suggestion. "Shit," he murmured as all the pieces fell into place.

Brian smirked as he realized Justin had finally put two and two together; raising his fingers to pretend he was shooting off an imaginary gun at Justin, he replied, "Bingo. Your well-intentioned mother came to me a few weeks before camp started with a brochure, telling me that it would be a wonderful experience for Katie to go to the same camp where she had sent you when you were young. Only at the time she neglected to mention that she was recommending that _Kaylee_ go there, too. Jennifer can be quite persuasive, you know."

Justin sighed. "I'm going to kill my mother," he muttered softly as everything made perfect sense now. "She encouraged me to send Kaylee there on purpose," he said, rolling his eyes upward in irritation. "Damn it." He sighed in aggravation; he and his mother were going to have a talk soon about parental interference, but for now he had more urgent matters to worry about. He turned his gaze to the daughter that he now knew was Katie who was awkwardly standing near the piano and all of a sudden it hit him. This was _Katie_; this was the daughter he had dreamed about seeing again for such a long time, the daughter whose childhood he had experienced only through anecdotes and photos from his mother, the daughter he had never stopped loving and had regretted letting go so long ago.

He slowly approached her, noticing Katie eyeing him nervously now; their previous easy camaraderie of earlier seemed to have disappeared. "Katie," he murmured as he walked up to her and placed his hands on her cheeks to look into her eyes. He smiled tenderly at her as he whispered, "All this time, Sweetheart? All this time it was _you_?"

Katie nodded through sudden tears as her father leaned in to nuzzle her cheek gently and his arms wound around her slim little body. He swallowed hard as his own eyes filled with tears - tears of remorse and guilt. None of this had been either girl's doing; they had been made to suffer and stay apart through no fault of their own. As he relished in holding his daughter, he realized at that moment how utterly inane his and Brian's agreement with the judge had been. Despite the great pain that Brian had caused him back then - the pain and betrayal he STILL felt even to this day - he never would have been able to deny him from seeing either of their daughters, because he knew that Brian loved them just as deeply as he did. Why, then, had both of them decided it was best to separate their girls and have then grow up apart just because an uncompassionate judge had decreed that it was for the best? He huffed out a soft breath of disgust. _How mature_. He knew now what a huge mistake that had been as his heart ached with regret for both of his daughters. Why was it that children were always the ones that caused the adults to see things in their true light and that they always seemed to be the ones to suffer the most?

"Honey," he said softly as he pulled back to look into her eyes that were so much like his own. "I'm so sorry that you had to grow up not knowing about your sister. I realized now that that was a big mistake. I want you to know that I am SO happy to see you again at last; SO very happy. I don't regret that at all." He knew it was important to make both girls aware that no matter what happened, they were not at fault and he was not sorry that they had met. In fact, he was secretly ecstatic about it.

Katie blinked as she stared at her father and the tears began to trickle down her pale cheeks; Justin reached out and gently brushed the tears away as she let out a hiccup. "So am I, Daddy," she told him, her eyelashes wet as her eyes shone. "It's been so wonderful to be with you again." She sniffled a little as she told him, "I like to draw, you know...Just like you."

Justin smiled warmly at her as he placed his hands on her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Yes, I know. Your Grandma Jen showed me some of your work. I think it's great."

Katie sniffled as she smiled up at him in surprised delight. "You do?"

Justin nodded as his hands lovingly stroked her slender shoulders. "Yes, I do. It's nice to have another artist in the family; Kaylee can't draw worth a hoot."

"Daddy!" Kaylee protested from across the room in exasperation as Justin laughed at the predictable response; Brian thought Justin's laughter was one of the most wonderful sounds he had heard in a long time. "Well, it's true," he told her as he looked over at her and grinned. He turned back to look at Katie as a sudden idea occurred to him. "We'll just have to paint something together, then, won't we? Would you like that?"

Katie's tear-stained face broke out into a wide, beaming smile of delight as she nodded excitedly and Brian's heart skipped a beat at the tender father-daughter exchange. He hadn't really understood just how important it was for Katie to get to know Justin again until just this moment; seeing the two of them back together felt right - it felt_ complete_, like the missing two pieces of a jigsaw puzzle had been located and put back into their rightful place. The two of them were so alike in so many ways, he knew now how terribly wrong it had been to keep them apart from each other. Both girls needed their fathers - _both_ of them. And no matter what occurred between him and Justin, he was going to do everything in his power to make sure that happened - the judge be damned. It wasn't as if they could take this discovery away from them now anyway, not since they knew about each other; nor would he want to. The judge would just have to accept it, that's all. As he watched Katie smile back at Justin in adoration and get swept up into a fierce hug, his heart melted as his eyes met Justin's from across the room and he knew at that moment that both of them were thinking the same exact thing.

Justin's heart clenched as he looked over at Brian; his ex-lover's face was a mixture of emotions as their eyes locked, but what exactly did he see there? Sadness, regret, relief...Perhaps love still? A long time ago he could have read Brian's emotions quite easily; to him the man had never really been that much of an enigma anyway when it came to what he was feeling, and it had become even less so by the time they had parted ways. Brian had become even _more _comfortable at verbalizing his feelings to Justin once Kaylee and Katie had entered the picture; it was as if the birth of their daughters had caused him to relax his borders, to let down his guard even more. Even now he could remember the amazing, open look of joy on Brian's face as he had looked at their two daughters for the first time in the hospital, and the gentle, almost reverent way he had picked each daughter up to cuddle them to his chest and softly coo to them, his face a picture of contentment and wonder. What had happened to make it all go so horribly wrong, then? With his own thoughts in a jumble and his emotions in turmoil at the moment, though, he couldn't even be sure of his OWN feelings, let alone Brian's.

No longer able to bear looking into Brian's eyes any longer, he tried hard to concentrate on his daughter instead as he closed his eyes and held Katie tightly to his chest; he memorized the way her arms felt around his back as she snuggled against him, the way her hair smelled as he nestled her head under his chin, and the soft sighs of longing and contentment that escaped from her lips. Or were they from his, instead? He only knew as he held her how much he had missed this; how much he had missed _her_.

Finally, they broke slightly apart as Katie smiled up at her beautiful, kindhearted father. He was very different from her other father in physical appearance and his talents lay in different areas than his, but she decided they weren't so different after all. They both loved her and Kaylee equally, and she felt the same way about them. "I have my sketchbook upstairs," she offered shyly, finding the idea of fulfilling one of her most heartfelt wishes actually within reach now.

Justin smiled, his hands lightly linked around her back. "You do, do you?" Katie nodded as he advised her, "Sounds just like ME; I can't go anywhere without a sketchbook, either, just in case I see something I want to draw." He couldn't help looking over at Brian as he murmured, "You never know _where_ you'll get your inspiration." He had long ago lost track of just how many times he had sketched and painted his ex-partner; by now it must be at least in the hundreds, if not thousands. Noticing Brian observing him, he quickly averted his eyes, feeling he was giving too much away.

He sighed as he reluctantly released her, turning now to address his other somewhat recalcitrant daughter who was still standing by Brian's side near the door. "As for _you_," he chided her softly. "Now I understand why you agreed to have your hair cut - only now I realize it wasn't really YOU I was talking to about it." He shook his head in disbelief as Kaylee placed Picasso and Dali down on the floor. "I still can't believe you agreed to do that; you _loved _wearing your hair long."

He heard Brian snort softly from next to her as he added, "That's for sure; when you were a baby, you wailed the first time we tried to trim it; the way you carried on, you would have thought we were going to give you a buzz cut. You never _would_ let us do anything but cut an inch or two off the ends, but you sure loved having pretty barettes in your hair, though. We always had to have those handy for bribes." He looked over at Justin, who nodded with a wistful sort of smile; his eyes seemed unfocused as if he were reliving some of the same memories that he was. They were simple times back then about insignificant, everyday events, but they were very happy times, too.

Kaylee looked from one father to the other, noticing the intense stares both were giving each other before she explained, "I had a really good reason this time - and it looks like it might have worked."

The hopeful way that his daughter was looking at him made Justin's heart ache; he had a good idea what she was hoping - what _both_ their daughters were hoping - would be accomplished by this stunt, and he knew he had to nip that in the bud right now. He wanted badly to walk over to Kaylee, take her in his arms and gently tell her that nothing had really changed between him and Brian, but he found that he couldn't bear the thought of being too physically close to his ex-partner; one look at him for the first time in so long and he knew he didn't dare come any closer to him. Brian was almost like some irresistible magnet and he just couldn't risk getting swept back up into his pull again. So he chose instead to remain safely rooted near Katie as he softly told his other daughter, "Kaylee...I'd be lying if I said I wasn't happy that you and Katie finally know about each other, even though your Grandma Jen went about it the wrong way. But that doesn't change anything else, Sweetheart." He kept his gaze on his daughter, forcing himself not to move his focus anywhere else. It was too dangerous, too risky...

"But..."

"No, Kaylee," he told her more firmly, his voice rising slightly. "Nothing else is different; you live here and your sister and father live in West Virginia. That is not going to change." Justin let out a tense breath at the sorrowful, disappointed look on his daughter's face. He knew that look by now, and he knew she was devastated inside; he always hated to see his little girl hurting and he knew this must be a major disappointment to her.

"But, Daddy..."

Justin sighed as Katie chimed in now. It was bad enough having one daughter pleading her case; now he had to contend with _two?_

"That's not fair, Daddy!" she cried out. "I...I know how you feel about Dad," she told him bravely, her voice breaking slightly with emotion. She looked over at Brian to add, "How you _both_ feel! Why can't you work things out, then?"

"Katie..."

Despite his own silent wish to do just that, Brian still felt a need to defend his ex-partner. He knew that Justin would never do anything intentionally to hurt either of his daughters. "Katie, Kaylee, we talked about this," he pointed out. "And I told you things aren't that simple in life." He gazed over at Justin as he couldn't help thinking, _If only they were..._

He let out a breath and paused before he added truthfully, "I _did_ tell Kaylee that I wanted to keep in contact with her now, Justin. I don't want to go back to the way things were before...With her, I mean." He squared his shoulders, prepared to do battle if necessary as he told his ex-lover, "I've missed enough of my daughter growing up; I want to be a part of her life again...and I'm sure that Katie wants the same with you."

Justin nodded; that was what he wanted, too, although it wasn't quite that simple. There were legal ramifications to what had happened, although both he and Brian couldn't be blamed for this mix-up. He had to admit - he was still angry with his mother for her interference, but at the same time he was secretly thrilled, too, that at last he had a chance to be back in Katie's life again. Ever since the separation, he had felt this hole in his heart for the daughter he couldn't see or interact with; now that he had both girls back in his life one part of his heart felt complete again; the other part - the one that had been broken when Brian hurt him - was still in disrepair and was likely to remain that way.

"Daddy?" Katie called out to him in concern, breaking his reverie.

Justin turned to place his hands on her face as he told her softly, "You know that's what I want to, Honey. But I can't lie to you; that doesn't mean we can all live together like some big, happy family. Too much has happened for that. But you and I can still see each other all the time." He leaned down to place a kiss on her forehead before he let her go, noting with dismay the look of sadness on her face.

"But it won't be the same, Daddy," she persisted as she sniffled. "How can we see each other all the time if you live in one state and we live in another? And how can Kaylee and I grow up together that way?"

"She's right, Daddy," Kaylee chimed in to back up her sister. "We've missed out on being sisters for so long; how can you keep us apart now?"

"Girls, that's not fair," Brian scolded them gently from his place across the room. "Lots of families have to deal with separations like this and they find a way to work things out. Katie, you know we can fly up here anytime you want with the jet. And you'll be able to talk and text on the phone and Skype. And I'm sure your Grandma Jen will be thrilled to have both of you stay with her as much as possible."

Kaylee's lip curled under into a distinctive pout as she applied the emotional screws. "It's still not the same; we haven't seen each other in _years! _Why can't you both be adults and just figure out a way to make things right?"

Justin's eyes flashed; how many times did they have to go through this? "Kaylee, that's enough," he scolded her, his voice hard. "I told you - I have no objection to you and your sister seeing each other on a frequent basis now; your father and I will find a way to work it out with the courts. But that has nothing to do with your father's and my relationship. That is two different issues; end of discussion."

Brian's arm quietly tightened around Kaylee's shoulder as he gave it a comforting squeeze. "Don't worry, Princess," he murmured to her, "I'll make sure we talk and see each other a lot, you'll see."

Justin swallowed hard as he watched both daughters' faces cloud over in sadness; this was so damned difficult to endure. He never could stand for his daughters to be hurting and this was about the worst form of pain he could think of - for _both_ him AND his daughters. This was the only solution, though; as bad as he felt at the moment, he couldn't dare let Brian creep back into his heart again. "Your father's right, Kaylee. We'll both make sure that happens."

"But you and Dad..."

"No," he told Kaylee quietly as he shook his head firmly. "That won't change." He took a deep breath, knowing he and Brian had to talk about their daughters, but finding the prospect of being alone with his ex-partner almost too overwhelming; all Brian had to do was look at him like he was doing right now and it was all he could do to merely breathe. It had to be done, though. "Kaylee, why you don't you take Katie up to your room for a while?" He dared now to look at his ex-partner in the eyes as he added softly, "Your father and I need to discuss some things."

Katie finally moved from her spot near the piano to walk over to Brian and Kaylee, giving her father a look that clearly told him she was still hopeful that something promising would come out of their 'talk.' Brian took a moment to give her a quick but tender hug and kiss her on the cheek before he drew back and whispered, "Go on, Princess. It'll be okay." She nodded, unconvinced, her eyes wide and wet with tears and her shoulders drooping as she took her sister's hand and together they slowly walked out of the room toward the hallway leading to the stairs.

Justin watched them go, making sure that they were, indeed, doing as he requested before he let out a ragged breath and brushed his hair back with his right hand to face his ex-lover. Now that he and Brian were finally alone, he found he wasn't sure how to start. What should he say? How do you begin a conversation with a man who had been out of your life physically for years, but had never disappeared from your life emotionally?

He was spared having to speak first as Brian began instead. "This is awkward," he told Justin in a major understatement. "I had nothing to do with this, you know."

"I know," Justin reassured him softly. "I'm...I'm sorry you were put in this situation."

"I'm not," Brian said flatly to Justin's surprise as he slowly began to walk toward him, making Justin's heart begin to pound in reaction as he stepped back a couple of inches, almost for his own protection. "I never should have allowed that damn agreement to take effect in the first place; neither one of us should have."

"Brian..."

_At last_, Brian couldn't help thinking as his name finally escaped from Justin's lips; he couldn't help lingering on that full, talented mouth as he thought, _At last you said my name. _It was like a sort of healing balm being applied to his soul. "Justin, surely you realize now how ridiculous it was? How hurtful it was to both of our daughters?"

Justin held his hands up in a silent plea for Brian not to come any closer; to his vast relief, Brian seemed to understand as he stopped a few feet away from him. "It wasn't just about our daughters, Brian, and you know it; to insinuate that is unfair. It was never just about Katie and Kaylee."

Brian sighed; were they going to pick up precisely where they had left off all those years ago? "I know that," he said just a little more brusquely than he meant to. "But this is NOW, Justin; we have a chance to right some wrongs and do right by our daughters. They deserve to grow up _together_."

"Now wait a minute; if you're suggesting that we could all live together happily ever after..."

Brian huffed out an exasperated breath. "No, of course not; I know this isn't some fairy tale!" He smirked briefly at the double entendre before he added more seriously, "But we need to make sure that they have every opportunity to see each other as much as possible now that they know about each other's existence. Surely the court can understand there needs to be a change to the agreement in light of what's happened now."

"I agree," Justin conceded. "My mother never should have taken it upon herself to reveal their identities to each other, but what's done is done." He sighed as he admitted, "I don't agree with how she went about it, but I'm actually glad they know about each other; I fucking _hated_ having to keep that a secret from them in the first place."

Brian nodded as he gazed into Justin's eyes before his own swept downward to take in the whole picture; _God, he is so beautiful - even more than the last time he had seen him_. Justin had grown into a classic beauty of a man - his skin still had that sort of alabaster glow that complimented his blue eyes perfectly, he still was slender and lean but with a little more muscle definition in his upper chest, still had the trim waist and flat stomach. He deliberately didn't go any lower for fear his strong desire to crush him to his body and kiss the living daylights out of him before he fucked him senseless would be too overwhelming. He lifted his gaze to notice a slight pinkish tint on Justin's cheeks as he couldn't help saying softly, "You look wonderful, Justin. Chicago's been good to you."

* * *

><p>From their place on the stairs nearby, Katie and Kaylee listened raptly to their fathers talking. They looked at each other hopefully as they overheard their father's compliment; that was a good sign, a very good sign. Despite what both fathers had said, they still weren't giving up hope; at least the two were talking civilly to each other, and they both knew how much these two stubborn men still loved each other. "What's Daddy saying?" Kaylee asked her sister anxiously in a whisper as they heard Justin responding. Katie put her finger up to her lips as she shook her head firmly. "Shh..." she cautioned her, not wanting to miss one word of their revealing conversation.<p>

* * *

><p>"Brian, please..." Justin was saying, silently cursing himself for his juvenile reaction to Brian's compliment; he was not going to allow this man to worm his way back into his life again. "Let's stick to talking about our daughters, okay?" he asked him curtly. "This has nothing to do with us."<p>

Brian pursed his lips together in frustration. Justin may not think so, but he wasn't giving up quite that easily. "I disagree," he told him to Justin's consternation. "This whole situation has festered enough, Justin. Haven't you meted out enough punishment by now for what I did? Are you never going to forgive me for it?"

Justin's eyes darkened with anger. "Punishment? Is that what you call it? What about the punishment_ I_ went through when you broke your promise to me! Brian, you had _never_ done that before!"

Brian smirked. "What...Fucked another guy? You're not _that_ senile, Sunshine!"

"Damn you, Brian, you know exactly what I mean!" Justin fumed; as hard as he might, he couldn't help the tears that glistened unshed in his eyes as he said in a choked voice, "You never broke a promise to me before, not in all the years we had been together; but you sure picked a hell of a time to do it when you did." He huffed out ironically, "I really shouldn't have been surprised, though; you never _did_ do subtle or understated very well."

"Justin, it was _one_ mistake! One! I never counted all the mistakes that YOU made!" Brian knew it was wrong to throw the whole 'Ian' fiasco back into Justin's face, but he was hurt and he was pissed. It seemed there was a double standard here; it hurt like hell that Justin wasn't willing to bend at all over his one indiscretion, despite how arguably major it might have been in his eyes. He knew by the look on Justin's face that he had made a big error in throwing that back at him, though, because his ex-lover's face seemed to instantly redden in anger.

"You talk about forgiveness, Brian? Well, that works both ways! I told you when that happened that I would never do that to you again, and for as long as we were together I _kept_ that promise! I never so much as looked _twice _at another guy; not one time once we committed to each other." He placed his hands on his hips as he added sadly, "I wish I could say the same for _you_."

Brian sighed heavily. It was the same old merry-go-round and there didn't seem to be a way to get off. "Justin...I never said you did. I know you were faithful to me - to us."

Justin angrily brushed away some tears from his cheeks as Brian yearned to reach out and do it for him; he almost ached with the need to touch him, to hold him, to comfort him. But his stubborn pride wouldn't let him, no matter how much he still loved him.

"Then why couldn't you do the same for _me_?" Justin whispered, not realizing how deep the pain still cut into his heart even now. "Why did you have to do it, Brian?"

"Justin, that was so long ago..." Brian struggled to explain; truthfully, he wasn't even sure he could properly explain it to himself. He couldn't back then and he _still_ couldn't. "It was a spur of the moment thing...I don't fucking _know_ why I did it!" he admitted. "It's always been the way I've always handled those sorts of things," he finally said lamely. That reasoning sounded totally absurd to him, though.

Justin nodded tersely, his lips pressed tightly together. "Well, that's the first halfway truthful statement you've said so far," he told him. "Why did I really think you could change?" He sighed in resignation, all the fight and anger slowly dissipating to be replaced with weariness. "Just forget it," he told him curtly as he scratched his head nervously. "Just go back to Britin and leave me alone."

* * *

><p>Kaylee and Katie stared at each other, both girls' faces wide eyed and anxious. They were young, but not so young that they didn't understand now what had happened. Apparently their father had been unfaithful to their Daddy. They had to agree with their biological father; that would have been a terrible thing for their father to have done, and neither girl could possibly comprehend how he could have cheated on their father, <em>why<em> he would want to cheat. It was obvious they still loved each other and that they had been extremely happy once. Why would he have risked losing all that for a one-time fling?

Kaylee whispered, "Katie...Why? Why would Dad do that to him? What are we going to do now?"

Katie shook his head, her eyes filled with tears of sadness for their biological father. No wonder he had been so upset; no wonder they had broken up. She was sad to hear what her father had done, but she also knew how much he was still hurting over his actions. Wasn't there something that could still be done, then? Or was it really too late to fix everything? Was all that they had done to finally see this day happen going to go up in ruins now?

"I don't know," she murmured painfully to her sister, a lump in her throat over this unexpected revelation. "I don't know."

* * *

><p>Brian stood there, feeling uncharacteristically helpless. It was an odd feeling, but then again Justin always made him feel emotions he had never felt with anyone before. "Kaylee..."<p>

Justin stared over at him, meeting his gaze unflinchingly. "I told the girls I wouldn't object to them getting to know each other and spending more time with other, and I meant that," he told him. "That doesn't have to apply to us, though. Kaylee can fly down to stay with you and Katie; or she and I can come down and stay with my mother periodically. Katie is always welcome to come here and stay anytime she likes, too."

Brian noticed his own presence being left out of the equation; so was that how it was going to be? He and Justin were going to shuttle their daughters back and forth from place to place while they remained apart and distant? Is that what he really wanted? He knew it wasn't what HE wanted. "Justin, they're still little girls; they shouldn't be flying alone."

"Fine," Justin snapped in irritation, realizing Brian was right; he wouldn't want either girl flying by themselves. "You can afford it; fly your fancy private jet back and forth, then, and pick them up. But just leave me the hell out of it, though."

Brian had had enough; they had been apart for far too long - it was time to start repairing what had been done. "I can't do that," he told him firmly as he walked closer to his ex-lover; he was near enough now to smell Justin and it filled him with intense nostalgia and longing as he inhaled the familiar, unique scent. "I _won't_ do that," he growled as Justin began to back up slightly in an attempt to create more space between them.

Unfortunately for Justin, however, he soon found himself with nowhere to go as his back came up against the hard, unbending edge of the grand piano; he was effectively boxed in as Brian took advantage of the situation to place both hands on either side of Justin's body and brace them against the top of the instrument as he loomed over him.

"Don't," Justin warned him, his voice breaking as he struggled to ignore the feelings coursing through his body; Brian was inches from him now and he could feel Brian's warm breath on his face. How many times had he and Brian been just like this at Britin, playfully teasing each other mad with desire by the fireplace, the couch, the kitchen counter, the stables, _everywhere_, before they ultimately wound up making nonstop, passionate love? It would be so easy to do that again right now as his body craved Brian's touch, if only he could forget the past and what had happened, but sadly he couldn't. This time he was determined the outcome would not be the same as it had been countless times before.

Brian leaned over him as Justin bent his upper body backward as far as he could in an unsuccessful attempt to remove himself from Brian's grasp, but he knew it was no use; he had nowhere to run.

"Don't what, Justin?" Brian murmured, his voice like velvet as he stared intently into the blue eyes. He reached to grasp his ex-partner's upper arms as Justin gasped involuntarily at the initial contact, wanting to resist but still savoring the familiar warmth under his touch. Brian noticed his ex-lover trembling slightly as he asked, "Don't _touch you_? Don't _hold you_? Don't tell you I made the biggest fucking mistake of my life that day?"

"Brian, please..." Justin pleaded almost desperately, knowing he was fighting a losing battle; he struggled feebly in Brian's firm embrace, feeling his skin practically on fire from Brian's touch. It instantly became clear to Justin how worlds apart his feelings were for Brian as opposed to those he had felt for Alex. Alex's touch, while pleasant enough, had NEVER made him feel like this. As he looked into Brian's expressive hazel eyes, somehow he knew what was coming next and it scared the shit out of him.

"Don't _kiss you_?" Brian whispered as his eyes lowered to take in the full lips almost begging to be ravaged.

"Yes! I mean, no..." Justin whispered back, his thoughts in turmoil; Brian's lips were like a heat-seeking missile honing in on its target as his face came closer and closer to his. He knew one kiss from this man and as usual he would be lost in a sea of desire for him, unable to resist. But he was not the young, inexperienced twink he had been that first night; he was not some toy to be manipulated, used and discarded. He was not another one of Brian's conquests like that nameless fuck had been so long ago...

* * *

><p>"What do you think's going on?" Kaylee whispered anxiously from her place on the steps; one minute their two fathers were shouting at each other and the next things had gone oddly quiet. "I don't hear anything anymore." An encouraging thought suddenly occurred to her, though, and her face broke out into an optimistic smile. <em>Maybe, just maybe...Could it be...?<em>

Her sister had the same thought as she turned to look at Kaylee and grinned. "Do you think they're _kissing_?"

Kaylee's initial look of delight at that thought promptly melted away, however, as they heard Justin's indignant voice coming clearly from the living room and their hopes came crashing back down again.

* * *

><p>Thoughts of just what had caused them to be in this mess in the first place provided Justin with just enough strength to turn his head away as Brian's lips brushed against his cheek instead; it also allowed him sufficient fortitude to forcefully push Brian away from him with the palms of his hands, despite his body warring against his determination. "Don't <em>touch<em> me!" he hissed at Brian, his eyes a darkened shade of steel blue. "You can't resolve everything with sex!"

Brian placed his hands on his hips, his face a mixture of both surprise and hurt as he felt the profound loss of no longer holding Justin in his arms. "Is that what you think this _is_?" he asked.

Vivid thoughts of that awful day so long ago still uppermost in his mind, Justin replied, "Why not? It would be the typical way that you handle things," he told his ex-partner, knowing that wasn't really fair to Brian but at the moment not caring. "It always got you what you wanted before."

"_Before_, Justin! That was fucking _years ago_! I've changed since then!" Brian growled. He sighed audibly. "What is it going to take to get you to give me a break? How long do I have to be punished for one stupid mistake?" He rubbed his face with his hand in frustration.

Echoes of another man saying something similar to him caused Justin to turn his back to Brian and look out onto the street below as he tried furiously to still his pounding heart, his _aching_ heart. He _hated _being at odds with Brian, had _always_ hated being angry with him; it made him sick inside. He took a deep breath to try and calm himself before he said in a deadly quiet voice, "It wasn't just a fuck, Brian, and you know it; it meant more than that."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Brian snapped at Justin in spite of his effort not to escalate things. "I broke a promise! Yeah, we've been through all that before, Justin! Why can't we move on from it? Why do you have to be so damned obstinate?"

Justin whirled around to face his ex-partner. "This isn't about you and me, Brian; this is about our daughters! What happened between you and me isn't relevant here."

"That's _your_ opinion," Brian told him tersely as he peered into Justin's eyes. "I'm as concerned about our daughters as YOU are. Do you think they would want us to be at odds like this? Have you thought about that? Why do you think they were so determined to switch places? Obviously it was because they wanted to get to know us again! How is it going to work if we keep fighting every time they spend time together? Is that what you want, Justin?"

"No, of course not!" he retorted, bristling at the insinuation. Trying fervently to calm down, he let out a deep breath between his lips before he said, "Look, we've both decided we want the girls in each other's lives from now on. We're both adults - we can still be civil to each other for their sakes, even if we're not together. Can't we? If not, this isn't going to work." He was surprised at how painful it felt to say the words _not together_, even now; he had always thought that he and Brian would be soul mates forever. The truth was he had never stopped loving Brian and probably never would; he just didn't think he could risk having his heart broken all over again, though.

Brian stared over at Justin, once more noticing how beautiful he still was even in righteous anger, before he finally nodded in agreement. He could go along with that; at least it was a start. That didn't mean, though, that he was going to give up on winning Justin back. He wanted it and both girls wanted it; hell, apparently even _Jennifer_ was in favor of it. Now all he had to do was convince Justin of that. "Okay," he told his ex-lover. He wanted so badly to tell Justin that he wasn't planning on just settling for civility, but he felt it was best he kept that to himself for now. "So where do we go from here?" he asked softly.

Justin shrugged. "We can work out some sort of regular visitation schedule between the girls, I guess," he offered tentatively.

Brian restlessly brushed his hand through his hair; that wasn't quite the arrangement he was hoping for. "That seems so _formal_."

Justin pursued his lips tightly together, Brian's eyes lingering on his. Gathering all the strength he could, he told him, "I think it's for the best; that way there's no question about our agreement and responsibilities."

"No entanglements, Sunshine?" he asked softly, knowing that Justin would know exactly what he meant by that.

Justin swallowed hard before he replied, "Brian, please...Don't make this harder than it is. And quit calling me _Sunshine_." Every time Brian called him that it simply made things that much harder. He paused to collect his thoughts. "It's been wonderful being with Katie again these past few days and I have every intention of continuing to see her, but until we get the new visitation arrangements worked out and get the official okay from the courts...I think it'd be best if you and Katie return home for the time being." _Not only best for them, but for me as well..._

From his place near the couch, Brian idly brushed the leather fabric with his hand, his eyes averted downward as he countered, "Is that what you want, Justin?"

Justin didn't trust his voice to speak the truth so he merely nodded as Brian lifted his gaze to peer over at him.

"Okay," he told him, "I'll play this your way." _But if you think you're getting off that easily, Sunshine, you're sadly mistaken_. Now that he knew where Justin and Kaylee lived, there was no fucking way he was just going to drop everything and go back to the way things were - not without one hell of a fight first. "I'll go get Katie, then, so she can say goodbye to you - and I can do the same with Kaylee."

Feeling unexpectedly vulnerable, Justin folded his arms across his chest and nodded as Brian turned to go find Katie. Just before he left the room, however, he turned to Justin to say, "For what's it worth, Justin, I _have_ changed. And I've really cherished the past few days with Kaylee; she's just as great as Katie is." His voice softened as he added, "You've done a hell of a job raising her alone; she reminds me so much of you."

Justin nodded again, not trusting his voice before he turned around to stare back out at the street; his thoughts were awash with memories of a time long ago as he heard Brian leave the room.

* * *

><p>"Shit!" Katie hissed out as they heard their fathers speaking about her leaving. "We can't let this happen!" she cried out defiantly to her sister in a whisper. "We have to <em>do<em> something!"

Kaylee nodded vigorously. "Come on!" she told her sister as she rose quickly to her feet and began to pull her sister frantically up the steps. "I've got an idea!"

* * *

><p>Brian slowly trudged down the hallway toward the steps to go upstairs, torn between abiding between Justin's wishes for now and stomping back into the living room to tell him there was no fucking way he was letting him go this time. That tactic might have worked in the past when Justin was inexperienced and totally besotted with him as a teenager; but something told him it would take more than that this time, however, to accomplish what he so fervently wanted to do.<p>

At least his ex-partner had agreed to allow the girls to see each other, which meant that THEY would have to see each other, too; that was a beginning. As soon as he returned to Pittsburgh, the first thing he was going to do was look up the judge who had issued their tentative custody agreement and work toward getting it changed. As soon as he could do that, he could work on the rest of what he wanted to accomplish.

"Katie?" he called up the steps as he stood at the bottom landing. He frowned when he called his daughter's name again and there was no response; Justin's half of the duplex couldn't be _that_ big. Why wasn't his daughter answering him? Of course he wouldn't put it past her not to answer just on the hope that it would buy her and her sister more time to do some more scheming, but he knew that wouldn't sit too well with Justin at the moment; it would merely place suspicion upon him being the instigator and he had done nothing - at least not yet - to interfere.

"Katherine Elizabeth!" Brian called out a little more forcefully. "I need to talk to you; come down here now!" he told her in his most commanding voice. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Justin appearing in the hall as he looked back at him to explain, "I guess I'll have to go get her; she's not answering me."

Justin frowned from his position several feet away as he told Brian, "Kaylee's bedroom is the first room on the right; she shouldn't have any problem hearing you calling for her, even with the door closed."

Brian smirked. "Come on...we're talking about pre-teen girls; they all have selective hearing." He actually saw Justin smile a little in agreement at that statement before he turned back to prepare to ascend the steps to go find Katie. Just as he placed his foot on the first step, however, he heard a noise from above and lifted his gaze to observe both daughters slowly walking down the steps. To his surprise, both of them had on different clothes than the ones they had been wearing previously. From the sherbet-colored tones they had selected, though, it was obvious the clothes all belonged to Kaylee.

He glanced over at Justin, both of them wondering what was going on as he turned to address his daughter - or should he say _daughters_; at the moment he had no idea which was which.

"Katie?" he asked, his attention swinging from one girl to the other.

"Yes, Dad?" _both_ girls answered simultaneously like they had one voice; it was like looking at a fucking mirror - they even had the same exact facial expressions, both with one eyebrow cocked upward at him in question, just like he tended to do at times.

Brian wasn't sure where to look as he chose to take turns peering over at both girls to say, "I need to talk to you, Katie; it's time for us to go."

"Why?" they both answered together perfectly.

Brian sighed in exasperation. "Because I said so, that's why," Brian replied; he scrutinized both girls' faces, hoping one of them would give themselves away, but to his consternation and their credit, neither girl flinched. "Look, I don't know what game you two think you're playing, but this isn't funny; now which one of you is Katie?"

"I am," they both said with a bright smile as they looked at each other and grinned.

Justin and Brian shared a weary look between them as Justin replied sternly, "This is serious, girls; Brian has responsibilities back home and we need to straighten out some of the legal issues involved with the custody agreement before the rules can be revised." His voice softened as he told them, "I promise, though, that we won't keep you two apart again for long; and you can both talk on the phone and on the computer as much as possible. Now quit this childish game and tell us which one of you is Katie."

This time, though, both girls just stood there in identical poses, both with their lips pursed together and their hands clasped in front of them. Justin thought he heard an amused snicker come from Brian next to him and he turned to glare over at his ex-partner for his lack of support.

"Oh, come on, Justin!" Brian replied. "You have to admit this is pretty funny."

"No, I'm sorry; I fail to see the humorous side to this," Justin told him curtly.

"Since when did you become such a fuddy-duddy, Sunshine?" Brian countered as the girls looked at each other with a smile; they _liked_ their father's nickname for their Daddy, although _sunshiny _wasn't quite the word that would come to mind at the moment to accurately describe the pained, aggravated look on their biological father's face.

Justin harrumphed at the insult. "I am not a _fuddy-duddy, _as you so eloquently put it," he responded. "I'm just tired of all these games, that's all. And I told you NOT to call me that!" He sighed as he turned to look at his daughters who were remaining strangely silent; it was a far cry from the normal chatter he was used to hearing in his apartment. "Okay, girls, the jig is up; I mean it. Now, Katie - whichever one you are," he said, studying both girls intently but failing miserably to tell them apart - "I want you to go upstairs this instant and get your things."

To his irritation, _both_ girls stepped down obediently from the stairs and stood next to each other as they eyed him smugly.

Brian chuckled now outwardly at their antics as Justin rolled his eyes. "This is ridiculous!" he growled. "There must be _something_ different about them!" He thought for a moment before he said, "I know! I'll go get my sketchbook and have each of them draw something; Kaylee couldn't sketch her way out a paper bag."

Kaylee's eyes narrowed imperceptibly at the baited statement - no matter how true it was - before she quickly plastered a neutral expression back on her face before Justin could see it. Did her father really think that would work, anyway?

"Justin, what makes you think either girl would actually draw you something?" Brian pointed out. "It's not that easy to draw as well as you and Katie do, but it's not hard at all for anyone to draw a stick figure."

_Shit_. Brian had a point, Justin had to concede. You couldn't force someone to draw the way they normally did if they didn't want to. He sighed as he looked over at his ex-partner. "Well, there must be _some_ way to tell them apart!" he growled in frustration.

"What? DNA test? I think that's a bit much, don't you?"

"That's NOT what I meant, Brian!" The word _asshole_ was *this* close to escaping his lips instead but he bit his tongue for the girls' sake. "Think of something else! Do they both have pierced ears?" He craned his neck to look at both girls, finding to his exasperation that they even had the same type of stud earrings on.

Brian glanced over at the girls as the three of them exchanged a conspiratorial look; neither girl was saying anything, but their plea was written on their faces nonetheless. _Please don't give us away, Dad_. Both of them had to know that all he had to do was have the girls open their mouths and their game would quickly be shot to pieces. Of course, only HE knew that subtle difference, and he sure as hell wasn't going to tell Justin.

He shrugged. "Sorry, Sunshine," he replied, just a little too brightly for Justin's benefit; he covered his mouth as if he were saying 'oops' for addressing him by his nickname again. "I'm at a loss here. You wanted to have a nice little chat with Mother Taylor; here's your chance now to do it in person." What had seemed like an unfortunate turn of events a few minutes ago had promptly started to look a lot more promising. _He - and Justin...Having to both be in the same city?_ _Yeah...things were definitely looking up. _

Justin looked helplessly from Brian and then back to the two girls, who merely smiled innocently at him in reaction. Feeling distinctly like he was being ganged up against, he tried one last, feeble counterattack. "You think I can simply up and run back to Pittsburgh just like that? You don't think what I do is important?"

Brian huffed out an exasperated breath. "I didn't _say_ that, did I?" _God, the man was so annoying sometimes; he still was a total twat_. "Admit it; it's a hell of a lot easier for YOU to pack up your shit and bring it with you than it is for me to uproot Kinnetik and everyone who works there; besides, your studio is still set up at Britin, so you wouldn't have to bring much extra with you at all during the time you would be there." Of course, he was secretly hoping that his ex-partner's time there would be quite lengthy, but for now he would be happy with whatever he could get. "And it _would _give the girls here a chance to get to know each other better while they were staying together at the house."

"Who said I would be staying - or painting - at Britin?" Justin countered as Brian's words sunk in and he found his defiant attitude faltering just a bit. "You said you still have my studio set up there?" he asked softly.

Brian's face dissolved into something a little more awkward as he admitted, "Yeah...I do."

Justin nodded as the two girls watched with rapt fascination at how their fathers' voices and faces changed as they spoke to each other; they could see a lot of hurt and pain there, but love and caring, too.

"You left it up so Katie could use it," he told Brian, trying to rationally explain why his ex-partner would do that.

Katie opened her mouth to answer him, forgetting their trickery as Kaylee quickly reached over to squeeze her hand in warning and she quickly pursed her lips back together, grateful that her sister had caught her just in time.

"No, Justin," Brian told him sincerely, his eyes boring into his ex-lover's. "I don't allow Katie to use your studio."

Justin frowned. "Why? She's an artist and the studio was incredible for painting. It always _did_ have perfect lighting in the morning and it had so much room..." For a moment, he was transported back in time to a much happier era when he and his ex-lover had set up a comfortable daily routine of Brian going off to work in the morning and him taking both girls upstairs, one cradled in each arm, to have them happily play while he painted. He and Brian had set up one end of the loft space on the top floor studio as a portable play area for the girls while Justin worked on his latest piece. It had a playpen, a couple of swings, and two baby walkers the girls could ride on along with a box full of toys. The two of them used to kid around that their little girls would wind up being Indy 500 racecar drivers when they got older, because once they had gotten the hang of their wheeled toys, they could run around their part of the studio faster than Mario Andretti. Partly for that reason, they had even placed a glider rocker in the corner alcove to help soothe the two girls to sleep when they got tired from all their rambunctiousness. Justin could still remember how happy and fulfilled he had felt whenever he took both girls in his arms and slowly rocked them to sleep as he gazed into their peaceful, cherubic faces. There was still no greater feeling in the world than relishing in the sight of them as they slept.

"Justin? Did you hear me?"

He started as he blinked his eyes and looked over at Brian, realizing he had been preoccupied with the past. "No," he admitted a little sheepishly. "What did you say?"

Brian wondered briefly if Justin had been thinking of the same moment in time that he had been thinking of as he repeated, "The studio is off-limits; I didn't see the point of heating and cooling an unused space, and Katie prefers to paint in her bedroom near the light from her window. That's more than sufficient for what she needs." He didn't want to tell Justin the real truth - that the room simply brought back much too painful memories for him to allow even their daughter to use the studio; every time he tried to go in there after Justin left it had felt like a knife slicing through his heart. He hated the idea of making it into some sort of abandoned shrine to his ex-partner - it seemed sort of morbid in a way - but perhaps that was what it had become; the room looked precisely like it did on the day Justin and Kaylee had left for Chicago. That day he vowed to leave it that way until they returned. Perhaps now there was a chance, however slim, that he might just get his wish. He realized they were a long way away from the reality of that happening, however; first he had to convince Justin to return to where it all began.

Justin looked over at their two daughters and then back at Brian; it was obvious that neither girl was going to budge and what Brian had said _did_ make sense. It was easier for him to work there than for Brian to work here in Chicago. And he had to admit that the thought of the two girls getting to know each other better appealed to him, even though they would have to do some fancy footwork with the court system to change the visitation/custody arrangements. And finally, he definitely had some choice words he needed to say to his mother about well-meaning - but unrequested - parental 'assistance.'

He sighed in resignation. "All right," he finally agreed. He saw both girls' eyes light up as he held up his hands. "But that doesn't mean I'll be staying at Britin; I can stay with my mother. If Kaylee really wants to stay at Britin with you, though, for the time being, I guess I have no objection."

Brian nodded; it wasn't exactly what he wanted, but he would take it. At least Justin would be in Pittsburgh; that would give him a much better opportunity to work on rectifying his mistake. And he knew a couple of little girls who would be more than happy to help him with that.

Both girls rushed over to Justin, squealing in triumph as they practically tackled their father in delight. Brian watched, a lump forming in his throat as he watched Justin wrap one hand around each girl's back and hug them tightly to his body as he closed his eyes to cherish the feeling of being with both girls again. He never thought he would see this moment happen, at least not until their daughters were a lot older. It was obvious how much Justin loved - and needed - both daughters. They needed both of them, too - and he needed Justin. Would he be able to convince Justin to give their relationship another chance, though?

"I can have my jet ready immediately," Brian told him, keeping his voice neutral but feeling his heart hammering rapidly in his chest at the thought of being together again in such close quarters. The last thing he wanted was to scare him away somehow, though, so he would have to tread gingerly. "Just tell me when you want to leave."

Justin loosened his hold on both daughters, looking down into their identical, happy faces; he knew he should be angry with them for being so deceptive, but there was no way he could possibly stay upset with them. He knew they meant well; only time would tell what sort of ramifications this would have on all their lives. He didn't know which daughter to look at, so he randomly chose the one on the right as he said, "Well, _Kaylee_ needs to go pack some clothes first and so do I. Plus I need to ask our neighbor to watch Dali and Picasso. Give me a couple of hours, then."

Brian nodded. "Okay, I'll contact my pilot to give him a heads up. And I'll arrange for a shuttle to pick us up in two hours."

Justin nodded back at him in agreement, wondering if he was out of his mind to agree to this; his feelings were so close to the surface and raw, even after all this time. Frankly he was nervous as hell. "I'll go pack some things, then," he told him as he turned to head upstairs. He paused for a moment on the steps, feeling strangely like he was the butt of some unspoken joke, before he turned his attention to their daughters.

"You'd better go pack, too," he told them, unable to direct his statement to anyone specifically. He shook his head as both girls acknowledged his statement and nodded their heads like two bobbing-head dogs before he finally turned and slowly ascended the steps.

As soon as he was sure Justin was out of sight and earshot, the girls turned to Brian who told them quietly, "I hope you know what you're doing."

"You didn't tell him about the cavity," Katie whispered to her father. "You could have given us way, Dad, but you didn't. You _do_ still love him."

Brian couldn't deny that statement; God, yes, he did. Would their scheming backfire on them, though? Deception had gotten him into this trouble in the first place. Would this whole thing blow up in their faces, too? He only knew he had to try; somehow he knew this would be his last chance to make things right with Justin again. He sighed as he nodded at them. "Yeah, I do," he told them quietly as both girls eyed him excitedly, their blue eyes twinkling in glee. "But just don't get your hopes up, young ladies. Tricking your father into coming home with me isn't going to guarantee you'll get what you want; what I want, too," he conceded to them. "Just keep that in mind."

He brushed his hand through his hair before he playfully swatted the nearest daughter on the ass. She squeaked in surprise, just like Justin used to do as he told them, "Now get your butts upstairs and get packing before your father changes his mind on us."

Both girls impetuously reached over to kiss their father on his cheek as Brian's lips turned upward in amusement; a few seconds later, they were both gone like a whirlwind as they excitedly rushed up the steps to get ready for their return to Britin. Impressed with the ingenuity, he laughed softly before walking back into the living room to make some calls, somehow knowing that the next few weeks would be the most important ones of his and his daughters' lives.

* * *

><p><em>Thank you to my beta, Boriqua522, for looking this over for me.:)<em>


	15. Returning to Where It All Started

_Justin contemplates his decision to return to the Pitts as the memories begin to emerge; will it turn out to be a big mistake?_

* * *

><p><em>One Hour Later…Justin's Living Room<em>

Katie huffed at her father. "What is taking him so long? Is Daddy bringing the entire house with him?" She and Kaylee had finished packing her sister's things over thirty minutes ago, even though if it had been HER packing she would have had it done within ten minutes. Her sister was bringing way too many frilly clothes and makeup to suit HER taste. As much as she loved her sister, she was silently glad that Britin had more than enough room for Kaylee to have her own bedroom, because she knew she would go nuts having to look at all of her sister's cutesy things in her own room.

Kaylee shrugged from her place next to her sister on the couch. "Just look at it as a good sign," she told her, trying to stay optimistic. "He must be planning on us being gone for a good while instead of a few days."

Brian snorted from his chair nearby. "Not necessarily," he told them. "Your father always _could _turn even a weekend getaway into a reason for hiring a U-Haul. You should have seen how much stuff he insisted on taking with us when we went to Vermont for skiing one year." Brian had finally followed through on their plans for a snowy getaway one winter before the girls were born, even caving in to Justin's wish for a room at a B and B with a fireplace and a Jacuzzi, just like he had always wanted. The suite, encompassing the entire upper floor of the three-story Elizabethan home, even had French doors leading out to the balcony where the Jacuzzi was located, affording a wondrous view of the Green Mountains surrounding them on three sides below. He had to admit afterward – skiing all day and then making love in the Jacuzzi in the evening (after Justin had been suitably fed, of course) had wound up being a lot more enjoyable than he would have ever thought. In fact, he had wondered afterward why he hadn't taken him there long ago; snow, Andes chocolate mints, fireplaces, and Jacuzzis apparently made Justin a very horny boy…

Brian heard giggling nearby and blinked, noticing he had been so lost in thought he hadn't noticed. "What?" he asked his daughters who grinned back at him.

"You must have had a good time skiing," Katie told him as she smiled at her sister knowingly, who nodded in agreement.

Brian's brows lifted in curiosity. "What makes you say that?"

Kaylee grinned. "Because you had this goofy sort of look on your face just now."

Brian harrumphed. "I _never_ look goofy," he told them. He had to smile, though, as he admitted, "But it _was _great." He had long ago abandoned the "not bad" euphemism for something good; not telling the whole truth had already gotten him into _enough_ trouble; he figured it was time he start being upfront for a change.

"Yeah, it was," Justin said softly from his place in the doorway as three heads turned to look at him; he had a portfolio bag slung across his shoulder and was clutching the same old ratty black duffel bag he had had since the beginning of time. He straightened up a little as he added, "But that was a long time ago," not wanting to get Brian's - or the girls' - hopes up.

Neverthless, Brian filed the first comment away for later use as he snorted. "You still have that thing? I would have thought an artist of your stature could have at least afforded Gucci by now."

Justin dropped the duffel bag by his side as Brian observed a large, navy-blue canvas suitcase sitting behind him. "It still has a lot of use left in it," he insisted a little defensively. Truthfully he had no idea why he still carted it around; he actually had a carryon bag upstairs that matched the bigger suitcase that would have been more useful for their trip. He suspected it was more for sentimentality's sake than for practicality, though, but he refused to consider that at the moment, especially when Brian was staring at him with that piercing sort of smirk on his face. He wasn't about to give him the satisfaction of verifying he was correct in his assumption, however. "No sense in wasting money if I don't have to."

Brian's lips curled under dryly. "Of course not," he murmured as Justin glared at him. "Makes perfect sense why you would hold onto a piece of ratty old burlap that's ready to fall apart."

Justin shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Can we just move on, Brian?" he asked. "I'm sorry if it offends your fashion sense, but we have more important matters to worry about at the moment, don't you think?"

Brian grinned. "Whatever you say, Sunshine," he told him politely, deliberately throwing out his pet name almost as if to bait him as the two girls watched the exchange in rapt fascination. Brian rubbed his hands on his jeans briskly a few times before he patted his thighs and stood up, noticing with curiosity that Justin didn't utter a snappy retort for a change; perhaps they were making progress. Glancing over at the street, he could see a medium-sized limousine idling underneath the streetlamp nearby. "Looks like our ride is here, so let's get going, then." He reached over to pick up Kaylee's makeup case, wrinkling his nose in distaste at the pink vinyl container plastered with yellow and white daisies in a 60's sort of hippie motif that resembled an old-fashioned Barbie doll case. "Uh…I think I'll let one of you take care of this one," he told his daughters as they giggled at his reaction.

Even Justin had to smile a little at Brian's response as Kaylee retrieved the makeup case while Katie grasped the handle of her sister's carryon suitcase and began to wheel it toward the door. Brian walked over to join them as he reached over to pick up Justin's duffel bag.

"I can take care of that," Justin protested stiffly as he reached to take it from Brian's hand; he wasn't some weakling that needed another man to take care of him. As their hands brushed against each other, though, the adrenalin in his entire body came alive, rushing to his face as he gasped softly at the simple, accidental touch. His and Brian's eyes met and lingered on each other for a few interminable seconds before he immediately averted his gaze awkwardly and let go of the bag. "Have it your way, then," he mumbled as he hefted his portfolio up onto his shoulder higher and reached for the handle of his large suitcase. He looked over at their two daughters staring at him as he cleared his throat and told them, "Let's go, girls. I have to give Mrs. Bailey the spare key. I'll join you and your father in just a minute." He walked over and opened the door, leaving them behind with Brian as he walked over to the other side of the duplex.

The two girls looked over at Brian who nodded at them to proceed as they carted Kaylee's luggage out the door and down the steps toward the limo; he smiled briefly as he heard the two girls squealing over getting to ride in such an opulent vehicle as the chauffeur held the door open for them to enter. After closing the door firmly behind him, Brian remained for a few moments on the stoop as he watched Justin walking the few steps over to his neighbor's door, feeling the stiff canvas handle of the duffel bag under his fingers as memories flooded back to him in an instant: Justin's mother plopping the hideous object down on his desk at Ryder as she announced her son was now his responsibility; throwing it at Justin in a huff later as he sarcastically explained that his mother sent him 'his love;' pushing the bag into Justin's hands as he ordered him to take his stuff and get out after the loft had been robbed; coming home months later to find Justin's things gone after he had moved out of the loft and into that hideous weasel's shithole of an apartment.

He closed his eyes for a couple of seconds at how the pain from that dreadful time still lingered even now; it wasn't until he had come home later that the enormity of what he had done had been realized. It was almost as painful as the time later when Justin had moved in with Michael, or even worse, when he had used the same hideous bag as a makeshift baby bag for Kaylee's bottles, clothes, rattles, and diapers when he and their daughter had left for good. He sighed; he was really starting to detest this damn bag. Why Justin still held onto it to this day was a mystery, but he had his strong suspicions that it wasn't due to a sense of thriftiness.

He watched as Justin knocked and an older woman opened both the screen and storm doors to greet Justin with a smile. He heard them talking quietly for a little while, noticing with interest that Justin didn't mention specifically when he would be returning as he gave the woman the key and thanked her for taking care of the cats and watching over his part of the house. That at least gave him some hope that perhaps Justin wasn't planning on returning too soon; he had an inkling it would take some time to straighten out not only the custody arrangement but more importantly make Justin realize that their relationship – and he – deserved a second chance.

Realizing Justin was wrapping up his conversation with Mrs. Bailey and not wanting to appear too pushy, Brian quietly turned and headed toward the limo, entering to find the girls sitting on one side of the vehicle while leaving the other side completely empty. He placed his hands on his hips as he eyed them from across the door and had to chuckle. "You're not very subtle, are you?" he asked them.

Neither girl appeared embarrassed at all as they merely answered him with identical shrugs of their shoulders. Brian shook his head, glancing behind him to make sure Justin wasn't nearby before he walked over and sat down on the edge of the leather bench seat opposite his daughters. "Just remember," he told them softly. "You're both going to have to be on your 'A-Game'; your father's a very smart man, and I have a feeling he's going to do everything in his power to figure out which of you is which. Don't let your guard down for even a second, or the jig will be up before it starts…Got it?"

The girls grinned at Brian conspiratorily as they nodded their understanding, their faces promptly plastering on a more neutral expression as they noticed Justin appearing alongside the vehicle's door; the chauffeur took the larger suitcase from him briefly to enable him to enter the limo before Justin dropped the omnipresent duffel bag down on the floor and reached for the suitcase.

As the door closed behind him, he had a chance to survey the setup and huffed out an exasperated breath. "Well, isn't this cozy?" he commented dryly as the two girls eyed him innocently. "One of you couldn't sit with your father?"

"Sit down, Mr. Taylor, or you'll wind up in my lap instead of the seat when the limo leaves," Brian warned him as he reached for Justin's suitcase and rolled it over toward the rear of the vehicle, placing it flat on the other part of the seat where Justin might have sat if he hadn't blocked his way with it. He figured his daughters weren't the only ones who could be 'creative.'

He winked covertly at the two girls when Justin wasn't looking as his ex-partner sighed and, resigned to his predicament, took a moment to pull the art portfolio's strap over his neck and prop it up against the partition separating the driver from the passenger area before he walked the couple of steps over and sat down next to Brian, taking particular heed not to get too close to his denim-clad thigh. Just the thought of sitting in his ex-lover's lap next to that impressive cock of his was enough to make his pants feel a little tight. Brian smirked knowingly as Justin rolled his eyes and deliberately looked anywhere else but directly into his smug face as the vehicle slowly pulled out into traffic, taking him away from his comfortable but predictable life and back toward what would no doubt be a much more complicated and harrowing one.

"Drink?" he heard Brian ask after several seconds of silence. Justin turned his head, noticing the girls eyeing them intently as he shook his head. "No, thanks…I had my hemlock earlier."

The girls frowned and looked at each other, wondering exactly what sort of drink 'hemlock' was as Brian snorted. "Just as well; I think they're fresh out of that libation in here." He looked over at their two girls to ask, "Want something to drink? Kaylee? Katie?" He made sure to say both girls' names, careful not to make any differentiation between them.

Justin's ears perked up; perhaps this was the way to tell them apart, because Kaylee had a peculiar habit of always wiping the lip of a can or bottle off with her sleeve or a napkin before she took a drink. He watched as one of the girls leaned over to cup her hand over the other girl's ear as she whispered to her urgently for several seconds before they finally both shook their heads firmly. "No, thanks, Dad," they said in unison as they both folded their hands across their chests and leaned back in their seat; even the stance of their feet was the same as they crossed them at the ankles. Justin sighed in frustration, realizing his hopes had been effectively dashed once more. It was going to be a long flight back to the Pitts. He stole a sideways glance over at Brian, who chose the same time to turn his head and look at him as he grinned back, thoroughly enjoying himself. That, of course, merely made Justin even more disgusted. Giving up for now, though, he closed his eyes wearily as the vehicle slowly drove toward the airport, deciding his battle would have to be fought another day.

Brian took advantage of the time to peer over at his ex-lover unabashedly, scrutinizing every facet of Justin's peaceful-looking face – the long, silky, wheat-colored lashes, hair the color of spun gold that softly fell into his eyes, the curve of his jaw, the flawlessness of his skin, the delicate, perfectly shaped ears. He had kissed, licked, and bit every delectable inch of Justin's body at one time or another, but as he currently admired his ex-partner's beauty, his heart was overwhelmed by the memories and feelings that Justin had invoked in him, _still_ invoked in him. He longed to pull him into his arms at that moment and refuse to let him go until he understood just how much he meant to him, how much he had _always_ meant to him and how much he deeply regretted what he had done that day. He thought if he was unsuccessful in convincing Justin of that, it might be even worse than when they had broken up in the first place. Without a doubt, this would be the biggest advertising campaign of his whole fucking life – for his sake as well as his daughters.

Afraid that Justin would open his eyes and discover what he was doing, Brian looked over at his daughters who had also closed their eyes, their heads braced against each other as they sat with their shoulders touching. It was all Brian could do not to reach over and clasp Justin's hand like he always used to before he, too, succumbed to the mental exhaustion that had suddenly overwhelmed him and he closed his eyes as well.

* * *

><p><em>One Hour Later – On Board Brian's Private Jet<em>

"Ha! Gotcha!" Justin cried out in glee as his piece jumped over several kings and captured them; he raised his hands into the air triumphantly as his daughters glared at him from across the table. He was having a ball playing checkers with his daughters – even if he _still _didn't know which one was which. To his consternation, every time he suggested something or made a comment about a subject that only Kaylee would know, both girls began to whisper to each other before one of them would answer. It was irritating as hell, but after several tries at tripping them up he knew it was useless, at least for now, so he decided to just enjoy spending time with both his daughters while keeping a safe distance from Brian who continued to steal pointed glances his way at every opportunity. The intense looks he received made him extremely self-conscious but also made him realize that Brian wasn't the only one affected by their unexpected reunion.

In fact, their time apart from each other had apparently managed to make Brian even _more_ attractive to him; he seemed particularly dangerous today in his form-fitting, slim-cut black jeans, the open-necked black cotton shirt, and his distressed, black leather jacket. Time had definitely been very kind to Brian, despite his ever-present worries that he would not age gracefully. Why he had felt that way had always been hard for Justin to fathom, though, because as he stole a glance over at his ex-lover he couldn't help thinking how gorgeous he still was. Of course, physical attraction had never been the problem with them, though; trust and honesty had.

He turned his attention back to his daughters as he heard one of them snort. "Are you sure you didn't cheat somehow?" she accused Justin pointedly, one eyebrow cocked in suspicion at him.

Justin huffed good-naturedly. "I'll have you know, young lady, that I used to beat the pants off your father when you two were younger, except it was chess instead," he told her. Why he and Brian had taken up that stuffy sort of game at Britin was beyond him, but the previous owners had left a crystal game set at the house when Brian had purchased it. At first he had thought it would be boring as hell, but once Brian had introduced his own special version of strip chess to him (the type of clothing taken off depended upon the importance of the pieces they managed to win from their opponent) it had taken on a whole new captivation for them.

"That's right," Brian chimed in from his place nearby. "I used to wind up without any pants all the time…"

The girls tittered as Justin's face turned a bright shade of red. "That's not what I meant," he grumbled as he averted his eyes away from what he knew would be a smug-looking expression on Brian's face. He stood up and stretched his legs. "Why don't YOU give it a go, Mr. Hot Shot?" he challenged Brian as he turned to look at him at last. "I need to use the bathroom."

"Need some help?" Brian asked innocently.

His attempt at levity failed to get the proper 'rise' out of his ex-partner, however (in more ways than one) as Justin stared at him as if he had lost his mind. "No, thanks, I think I can manage," he said icily as he turned and practically stomped his way toward the rear of the plane; a few seconds later, the slamming of the lavatory's panel door could be heard as Brian turned and sat down across from his daughters in the leather swivel chair that had been previously occupied by Justin.

"Dad," Katie said reproachfully, staring at Brian with those damn, piercing blue eyes that looked so much like her father's. "Do you have to goad him like that?"

Brian shrugged. "He _used_ to have a sense of humor."

Kaylee glanced toward the back of the plane to make sure her father hadn't emerged yet before she replied, "He still does, Dad; but I don't think he's quite in the mood for you to be so witty."

Brian looked from one child to another as he sighed. He knew they were right, but he just couldn't help it; Justin was being so damn stubborn and it naturally brought out the snarkiness in him. They had barely been reunited and already he could tell that his ex-partner wasn't going to cut him any slack whatsoever. If he was going to convince Justin that he was sincere in wanting to get back together and that he wasn't interested in being with anyone else – permanent OR temporary – he was going to have to work for it; hard. He groaned silently, realizing that was a poor choice of words; ever since he had first laid eyes on his ex-lover back in Chicago, it was all he could do to keep his hands off him, and the one attempt he had made to touch him had been met with outright scorn and rejection. _Let's see how well you resist back home, Sunshine,_ he couldn't help thinking, though, hopeful that a change in environment might at least level the playing field somewhat.

"Okay," he told his daughters who were staring at him from across the table with identical, old-maid-schoolteacher looks on their faces. "I'll try to behave. But just remember to be careful yourself; don't let HIM goad YOU; he's very clever, trust me, and it wouldn't take much for him to get one of you to slip up."

"We can handle it," Katie told her father confidently as Kaylee nodded. "This is too important, Dad."

Brian gazed at his daughters tenderly; he felt the same way. He knew somewhere locked deep inside Justin was the same man he had fallen in love with, the one that could give as good as he got, the one that had loved him unconditionally, but he knew for now he needed to back off with the sarcasm and banter if he was going to win him back. That didn't quell his determination, though, to not give up until he and Justin – and their daughters – were together again as a family.

"Yeah, it is," he agreed softly as he reached over to clasp each of their hands in his. "We're in this together, okay?"

The two girls nodded as he squeezed their hands, not realizing Justin had emerged from the lavatory and was watching the loving exchange thoughtfully. He swallowed the painful knot in his throat, flashes of other moments rising to the surface of a time long ago: Brian pushing the two girls on their swings as they shrieked in delight, Brian holding firmly onto both their hands as they struggled to take their first tentative steps, Brian turning his nose up in distaste as he forged ahead and changed their dirty diapers anyway, Brian softly singing to them as he rocked them, one in each arm, in their nursery glider at Britin. He exhaled a breath full of nostalgic melancholy; back then everything seemed so simple, so clear. How had everything changed so dramatically?

Brian glanced up and released his daughters' hands as he observed Justin returning; at least his ex-lover seemed to have calmed down somewhat from his slight queen out of before as he watched him take a seat on the opposite side of the plane.

"Ha!" Katie cried out smugly as she jumped three of her father's men. "You're in trouble," she sing-songed as Kaylee giggled. "You're not as good as Daddy is."

"So I've heard," Brian muttered as he peered over at Justin; at least he was rewarded this time with just the hint of a smile before Justin picked up his portfolio and unzipped it to retrieve his sketchbook.

Brian flashed Katie a warning look at the excited expression on her face; he could tell she was dying to ask if she could either watch her father at work or even better draw something alongside him. He shook his head slightly as she bit her lip in disappointment and nodded before Justin had the chance to notice.

The next thirty minutes were spent congenially enough as the girls allowed their father a rematch to try and regain his dignity as Justin quietly sketched with a charcoal pencil on his pad; Brian occasionally stole a look over at his ex-lover, their eyes locking together periodically as Justin's eyes darted from the page and then over to Brian and the girls as Brian admired the way Justin always focused on his task when he was concentrating on his art; his eyes darkened in appreciation as the tip of Justin's tongue came out subconsciously to wet his lips as his hand quickly flew over the paper. He quickly averted his eyes as he noticed Justin's eyes straying over to his again before he, too, cast his eyes quickly downward.

Their eye fucking went on for several minutes until Brian heard the all-too-familiar cry of pain escape raggedly from Justin's lips and he was out of his chair before he knew what he was even doing. As the girls watched in fascination, he walked over and sat down next to his ex-lover and took his hand in both of his and began to massage each aching bone in the palm, his heart leaping at the wonderful feel of Justin's long-fingered hand cradled in his. _God, it feels so good, so comfortable…So right_.

Justin was too surprised at first to utter a protest; he was too caught up in the swell of emotions that simple but hauntingly familiar action caused inside of him to speak. After a few seconds, though, he found that his mouth worked once more as he asked, "What in the hell do you think you're doing?" He tried to pull his hand away, but he found as usual that Brian's grip was too strong for him to resist.

"Your hand was bothering you," Brian explained simply as he stared into the defiant blue eyes and continued to knead Justin's hand expertly. Even though it had been a long time, it was easy to tell that his action was having a positive effect on Justin's hand by the way it wasn't throbbing in his hands as much as it did before.

Face flushed in indignation as well as emotional overload, Justin finally managed to snatch his hand away roughly as he stood up and loomed over Brian. "I can take care of myself!" he growled as he turned and walked over to the other side of the plane and dropped himself onto the seat, turning his body away from both Brian as well as the girls as he crossed his arms over his chest and fumed. He knew at the moment he was acting more childish than even Kaylee's most memorable queen outs when she didn't get her way at home, but he didn't care; Brian was taking a lot for granted. Did he really think he could just come waltzing back into his life after all this time like nothing had happened? What did he – and their daughters – expect from him?

The interior of the plane became eerily quiet and thick with tension as Brian walked back over to sit next to his daughters, who gave him a sympathetic look. He shook his head as if to tell them not to worry about it before he finally asked them quietly, "Want to play again?" Kaylee and Katie looked at each other for a few seconds in hesitation before Kaylee silently began to place their red chips back on the board as Brian did the same with the black ones.

Justin sat several feet away from them and let out an angry, frustrated breath, wondering why he had agreed to this in the first place. He should have known that he and Brian couldn't be in the same room together – there was too much history, too much raw emotion and pain still festering between them. If it hadn't been for his daughters' earnest wish to spend more time with each other – and his mother's decision to push them together – he never would have agreed to this arrangement. But he knew he was stuck now; better or worse, he had to deal with it. _Are you a man or a petulant child?_ he chided himself as he leaned his elbows on his knees and brushed some hair back from his face as he wearily closed his eyes. Sighing in disgust over his inability to control his emotions, he opened his eyes several seconds later and lifted his gaze to observe one of his daughters standing next to him; he hadn't even heard her approach. He peered up at her sheepishly as she placed her hands on her hips and quietly asked him, "Are you done with your tantrum now, Daddy?"

Justin fully expected a snicker from Brian again, but to his surprise there was none forthcoming. One corner of his mouth curled up as he replied, "I think so." He glanced over at Brian and their other daughter still sitting at the small, round table as he asked, "Finished with the game?"

Katie grinned. "Yeah…Dad lost – _again_. He's not very good."

"Hey," Brian protested. "I LET you win the last game."

Justin rolled his eyes as he glanced up at his daughter, who merely shook her head no. He laughed softly as he patted the leather seat next to him and she sat down at his side. Wrapping his arm around her shoulder, she placed her head against his chest as Justin hugged her tightly. He thought it would still be nice to know which daughter he was embracing, but at the moment he didn't care; it felt so comforting as well as fulfilling to hold her. It made him feel _complete_. Katie wrapped her arm around her father's waist and snuggled into his side, still cherishing getting to know him again at last. "Daddy?" she asked softly against his soft blue sweater.

"Yeah, Sweetheart?"

"You sure you won't come and stay with us at Britin?"

Justin placed his chin on top of the blond head as he locked gazes with Brian and his other daughter who were watching their interaction closely. He closed his eyes, concentrating on the sweet smell and feel of the child he was holding in his arms as he struggled to whisper regretfully, "I can't, Honey."

Katie pushed back just enough to look her father in the eyes. "Why, Daddy? It's a _huge_ house. There's plenty of room."

Justin smiled gently at his daughter's simple explanation as visions of his and Brian's home swirled around in his head, along with all the wonderful memories that had been created between him, Brian and their daughters. "I know," he whispered softly as he lightly caressed her shoulder. "It always _was_ much too big for just the four of us." He leaned down to nudge his forehead against his daughter's as he told her honestly, "It's just not a good idea, Sweetheart."

"Daddy…"

How he hated to look at those earnest, pleading blue eyes and refuse this child everything she wanted! And even without looking, he knew if he glanced over at his other daughter he would see the exact same sort of beseeching look in her eyes as well. It seems that both daughters had become extremely talented at persuasion; but not this time. "No, Honey," he told her gently but firmly. "I have some issues to discuss with your Grandma Jen, and it's for the best." He peered down into his daughter's disappointed face, marveling once more at how alike both daughters were; he had no idea if he was talking to Kaylee or Katie at the moment, so he was finding it damn hard to even reply appropriately. He finally settled on saying, "You and your sister are more than welcome to stay with your father, but I will be at your Grandma's condo for the time being once we get to Pittsburgh. Understood?"

Katie pursed her lips together tightly; that arrangement was certainly going to make things a lot harder, but just because her father _said_ he wasn't going to stay at Britin didn't mean it would stay that way – not if she and her sister had anything to say about it. And she had a strong suspicion that it wasn't only her sister that would be an ally. There was their dad, of course, and their Grandma Jen, but a lot of others as well; Grandma Deb, Emmett, even their father's best friend and their biological mother. She instinctively knew there would be a lot of others rooting for her and Kaylee to succeed. Hopeful, then, that they could manage to change that situation, she nodded solemnly as if she agreed. "Yeah, I understand," she told him as her father nodded with a tender smile and released her.

"Good," Justin told her in relief. An announcement from the jet's pilot came over the PA just then, informing them that he was approaching their landing for Alleghany Airport. "We'd better get strapped in," he told her as she nodded and followed him over to the bench seat to sit beside him; he wrapped his arm around her comfortingly as he couldn't once more help looking over to steal a glance at Brian, who had taken his own place with their other daughter on the other bench seat opposite them.

They both stared into each other's eyes for several seconds until at last Justin broke the gaze to lean his head on Katie's and closed his eyes, a host of emotions threatening to overtake him now that he knew he was about to step onto soil he hadn't trod upon for years. Now that the time was at hand, what exactly was he feeling at the moment? Anxiety, nervousness? Obviously. Anger or at least irritation with his mother for putting him in this situation in the first place? Yes. Excited? Yes, he supposed so; he _was_ looking forward to seeing Debbie, for instance, who he understood had been wonderful to Katie as a second grandmother, and Emmett, whose company he had always enjoyed.

And he _was_ curious about how Pittsburgh and the Liberty Avenue area had changed in the years since he had been there. In addition, he certainly couldn't deny how wonderful it was to finally have both his daughters with him again, although the future was definitely cloudy and unknown at the moment. One of the reasons for that was the court's determination as to how they would handle the future custody agreement, but the major reason for it was sitting a few feet away from him at the moment: _Brian_. He stole a look across from him to observe Brian's arm curled around their other daughter as he held her tight; thankfully his sexy partner's gaze was directed at her at the moment, because his mind began to recall how it had felt for Brian to hold HIM all those years ago. It was obviously a different sort of 'embrace,' but until that horrible, fateful day he had always felt so secure, loved and protected with Brian's arms around him, no matter what the situation. Even now the feelings stirred within him, the longing arose, to feel those arms around him again.

It was all he could do earlier to rebuff his ex-partner's attempt to hold him and to kiss him; fuck, if that had happened he couldn't have guaranteed that they wouldn't have wound up in bed shortly afterward as a result. He knew it wouldn't take much at all for him to succumb once more to his feelings for him, but he knew if he did it would quite possibly open him up for more heartbreak. He would be lying to himself if he pretended that he didn't wish deep down that they could reconcile again, but until he could be sure, _absolutely sure_, he would have to tread very carefully around him. The first line of defense he had already undertaken, though. He would make sure not to stay at Britin with him; the pull of the memories they had created there was much too strong. He sighed softly in both frustration as well as trepidation as he finally closed his eyes and felt the plane starting to descend, not opening his eyes until the plane's wheels had touched the ground.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time...<em>

For what felt like the hundredth time by now, Brian lifted his gaze to peer over at the amazingly beautiful image of his ex-lover sitting a few feet across from him, his heart fluttering softly at the pale face. Justin had his eyes closed, one arm around his daughter as he rested his cheek against the top of her head. He noticed with just a small amount of concern that even at rest his face still seemed somewhat troubled and worried; there was just the slightest crease of worry on his brow as he held his daughter close to him. Was he thinking about him at that moment? Was he worried, too, about what would happen once they arrived in Pittsburgh and he had to confront his past again? Was he anxious about what the judge would say about their request to change the custody agreement?

He assumed all those reasons were the cause for the agitated expression on Justin's face. He inhaled a ragged, guilt-laden breath and let it out to try and release the stress, realizing that a lot of his ex-partner's thoughts were no doubt concentrated on that one, fateful day; a day that he would forever wish he could take back and do all over again.

There must have been a soft sigh escape his lips, because he heard Kaylee whisper by his side, "It'll be okay, Dad."

Brian pulled back slightly to look down into his daughter's eyes to whisper back, "You think so, Princess?"

She nodded her head and smiled up at him confidently as Brian marveled at his daughter's optimism. "You wait," she promised him as she closed her eyes and laid her head against his chest. Brian's heart swelled with emotion as he hugged her closer to him as he, too, took a moment to rest and joined her.

* * *

><p>The gentle bump of the plane's wheels touching down on the runway roused all four passengers from their respite as they sat up straighter in their seats. Brian quietly turned his cell phone back on to check for any urgent e-mails from Kinnetik, relieved to find none that he would consider worthy of immediate attention as the plane reached the gate a few minutes later.<p>

He and Justin exchanged one more glance from across the plane's interior as everyone unlatched their seatbelts and rose to their feet. "Ready to go?" he asked the girls who nodded as they picked up their luggage and began to walk toward the door to exit. Brian stayed behind slightly to wait until Justin had retrieved his art portfolio and luggage before he held his hand out in silent invitation for Justin to lead and followed his ex-partner off the plane with his own carry-on bag, knowing better than to ask him if he needed any assistance.

A few minutes later they were on their way toward the short-term parking lot; Brian couldn't help smiling a little as he noticed Justin frowning as they reached the sea of cars, no doubt looking for a flashy, impractical sports car instead of the SUV he had procured a few years ago. He pointed toward a green Land Rover located a few spaces down on the right. "The green SUV," he told him quietly as Justin spied the vehicle in question and nodded.

As expected, Brian heard his ex-partner say, "I'm surprised you didn't go back to another sports car, since there's only the two of you."

Katie deliberately held back from approaching her father's vehicle, not wanting to give away that she recognized it as she watched her father shrug before he replied, "Things change, Justin. _People_ change."

Justin peered at him quietly, the full meaning not lost on what Brian was trying to tell him but choosing not to rise to the bait as he walked up and waited for Brian to unlock it with the remote; once he heard the familiar chirp of the keyless entry he opened the back of the vehicle and hoisted his luggage and portfolio inside, taking both girls' luggage from them to do the same. He waited until Brian had placed his own piece inside and had closed the door before he stood next to the side of the Land Rover somewhat awkwardly, not sure where to sit.

Brian looked at him in aggravation. "The girls need to sit in the back because they're under 12," he told him. "So you need to sit up front."

Justin looked at him in surprise, amazed that Brian would even think about that issue but still impressed; of course, he also knew that Brian realized he wouldn't object to sitting next to him under those circumstances, either; quite convenient either way. He nodded in acceptance as the two girls opened the back passenger door and slid in beside each other; a few seconds later, Justin opened the front passenger door and sat down next to Brian, unable to keep from inhaling his ex-partner's familiar scent; he had always loved the expensive cologne that Brian had worn and he found it was the same as before. It also invoked the same stirrings within him as it always did, he found to his consternation, as he felt his pulse quicken in reaction. _Damn it_, he scolded himself. _Get a grip._

"Seatbelts," Brian commanded softly of the two girls in the back as the click of seatbelts latching could be heard. "You, too, Sunshine," Brian told his ex-lover softly, the endearment falling once more from his lips. To his relief, however, Justin didn't call him out on it this time but did as he asked.

* * *

><p>A few minutes later they were finally on the way out of the airport and headed toward Pittsburgh proper. Brian longed to try and convince Justin to come home with him and the girls, but while he wasn't giving up on that idea he also knew that now would not be an appropriate time to try and convince Justin of that. Instead, he opted to turn to look at his ex-partner and say, "I'm assuming you want me to drop you off at your mom's first?"<p>

Justin glanced in the backseat at the two pairs of hopeful eyes intently observing him as he turned his gaze to Brian and to their utter disappointment nodded. "Yeah," he told him. "I have a lot to talk about with her."

Brian couldn't help chuckling slightly at the implications. "God help her," he said under his breath as he bestowed a twisted grin on his passenger. Justin shot him a questioning look as he explained, "I've been on the receiving end of your righteous wrath a few times, remember?" Brian threw a glance back at his daughters as he added, "Your grandma doesn't stand a chance, girls."

Both daughters giggled as Justin huffed out an exasperated breath. "Well, surely you admit she was out of line with what she did."

Brian shrugged as he placed his eyes back on the road ahead. "Yeah," he conceded. "She was. But I'm not sorry if it brought the girls back together and gave me a chance to get to know Kaylee again; are you?" he asked inquisitively as he glanced over at Justin.

Justin stared over at him briefly before he confessed softly, "No, of course not." He, too, looked behind him at the pair of identical bookends peering back at him. He couldn't help the tender smile that appeared on his face as he shook his head firmly this time. "No, I'm not sorry about that part, either." Both girls smiled back lovingly at him as he turned his head around to face Brian. "But she went about it all wrong, and I'm going to make that very clear to her. It should have been _our_ decision to make – not hers."

"Sometimes you can be too close to a situation to really know the best approach to take," Brian offered diplomatically, not really wanting to get into an in-depth discussion over this somewhat touchy topic in the presence of their two daughters. "And you have to admit – we weren't really on speaking terms at the time, either." He stared over at Justin intensely for a few seconds before he softly added, "I'm not sorry about that being changed, either."

Despite Justin's reservations, he couldn't help the flush that spread across his face at Brian's seemingly heartfelt words. Just when he thought his conviction was firm in that he would not allow Brian to sway his determination and not be swept under again by his charm and his magnetic pull, the man would say or do something to make him hesitate, just like he was doing now. For what felt like the thousandth time since they had laid eyes once more on each other, Justin's mind was once more warring with his heart. The only question was – which one would ultimately win?

He sighed in indecision as he turned his face toward the side window, unable to meet Brian's gaze any longer; as distasteful as it seemed, at that moment he decided he preferred talking to his mother over the angst and tension that permeated the space between him and Brian. He bit his lip and closed his eyes briefly, trying to will his breathing to slow down to a more normal cadence as the car approached the eastern suburb of the Pitts where his mother lived. _Just a few more minutes,_ he told himself silently as he curled his fingers under, his nails biting into the tender flesh of his palms. _Just a few more minutes…_

Finally, after approximately five minutes of weighted silence, Brian spoke up again, this time addressing his words to their daughters but mainly Kaylee who had never seen Jennifer's condo. "Here we are," he said with a soft smile as he twisted his head back to look at Kaylee and began to slow the vehicle down. "Your Grandma Jen's condo."

Kaylee craned her neck around her sister curiously to study the brown brick, two-story structure; the condo was located on a shady, tree-lined residential street with vehicles parked on both sides of the road. Row upon row of similar brick buildings were nestled among the trees sprinkled between the sidewalks and street; well-manicured lawns and neatly-kept flower beds added to the peaceful, well-established neighborhood. She couldn't help thinking how beautiful it was, loving the wide variety of flower colors in bloom and the shady street that reminded her of her own home's neighborhood.

Brian stopped the car and turned off the motor before he turned around and deadpanned, "Yep; this is the home of Jennifer Taylor, Grandmother Extraordinaire."

Justin snorted softly as he finally turned to look over at Brian. "That's not quite the title I would bestow upon her at the moment; more like Grandma Jen the Interloper."

Brian smirked. "Well, at least that's a little classier-sounding than busybody or meddler."

"Means the same thing," Justin said flatly, deciding as he glanced back at his daughters that he didn't want to malign his mother _too_ much; he still loved her despite her interference, and he knew both daughters idolized her. And he had to admit – she _was_ the best grandmother to his daughters that he could have ever hoped for. He was sure that Debbie was a lot of fun to be around and quite unique in her approach to his daughters, but his mother was the one who provided some much-needed stability for both of them, especially in light of them not being raised with a traditional mother – or both fathers, for that matter. For that reason alone he had to acknowledge her influence and care with gratitude. He would take care of acknowledging that _after_ he finished discussing what she had done secretly behind his back, however.

He noticed Brian starting to open the SUV's door and shook his head. "It's okay," he insisted, not wanting to risk his already wavering reserve being affected any more. "I can handle my bags. You and the girls go on ahead to Britin and get settled in. I need to talk to my mother alone."

"You sure, Daddy?" Kaylee asked her father. She looked over at Katie before she added, "We'd kind of like to say hi to Grandma, too."

Justin huffed out a slight sound of suspicion. "Nice try, Sweetheart – whichever one you are," he added dryly. He shook his head. "You two could have at least have had different birthmarks," he told them as they smiled back at him in satisfaction. "No," he told them softly but firmly. "You can see your grandmother some other day; I need to speak to her in private first."

"He's right," Brian told them to Justin's surprise as he glanced over at Justin, even now after all this time able to read his ex-partner's face easily. As much as he might like to get Jennifer's help in persuading Justin to talk things over some more, he also knew it was risky to push the issue. Besides, with both daughters staying with him, he knew Justin couldn't go anywhere for the time being. "You'll have plenty of time to catch up with her later." A thought occurred to him as he asked Justin, "Why don't you invite Jennifer to come out to Britin for dinner tomorrow? That way the girls can get comfortable at the house and she can spend some time with both of them. You'll need a way to get out there anyway, so she could take you," he pointed out. _Please don't fight me on this, Justin, _he urged him silently_… _

Justin opened the door, prepared to get out as he contemplated Brian's suggestion. Part of him wanted to run as far away as possible from Brian and his previous life they shared, but he also knew that with their two daughters involved that wasn't possible. He had them to think about now and what was best for them, and he had promised them that they would no longer be kept apart all the time. He thought briefly of just having Brian pick his mother and him up after he left Kinnetik tomorrow, but if he went with her and Brian he wouldn't have any way to come back afterward, and something told him that it would not be prudent to find himself at Britin with no way to leave. Just the thought of spending the night under the same roof as his gorgeous, sexy ex-lover made him nervous as hell.

Brian had almost given up hope that Justin would accept his suggestion as he watched him silently unbuckle his seatbelt and slide out of the seat; his heart fluttered hopefully, though, as he watched Justin place his left hand on the roof and lean his head back inside the interior of the car a few seconds later to nod. "Okay, I'll ask her. What time?"

Brian licked his suddenly-dry lips, feeling like a young kid asking someone out on their first date. "Six o'clock? I'll probably bring both girls with me tomorrow when I come to work and they can get corrupted by Deb part of the time until I'm done, but I should be able to get back home by then."

Justin smirked as he glanced in the backseat at his two daughters who were eyeing him excitedly; he wasn't sure if it was due to them getting the chance to spend the day with Debbie or his agreeing to come out to Britin for dinner tomorrow. "That's the right word for it," he commented as he returned his gaze to Brian. "Okay, that sounds fine; we'll see you then." He rose up and closed the door as he walked to the back of the vehicle to open the rear door; by the time he had retrieved his luggage and portfolio, both girls had managed to get out of the vehicle and walk back to join him.

Justin frowned. "Why did you get out of the SUV?"

Katie and Kaylee eyed him almost shyly as Katie admitted, "We wanted to say goodbye to you."

Justin's heart melted at the soft but fervently-spoken words. He smiled at his daughter tenderly as he told her, "I'm glad." He dropped his luggage and portfolio down on the ground and reached over to sweep Katie up into a bear hug, grunting as he squeezed her firmly before loosening his hold to stare down into her eyes. "I'll see you tomorrow, don't worry."

She nodded as he repeated the same gesture with Kaylee, even though he still didn't know which one was which. As he held onto his daughter's slender frame with his arms around her waist, he watched as she burrowed her head into his chest and sighed; it was a mournful, sorrowful sound and it pierced straight through to his soul. His eyes filled with unexpected tears as he heard his daughter whisper, "I love you, Daddy."

The earnest-looking face stared up into Justin's tear-filled one as he whispered, "I love you too, Honey." He leaned down to kiss his daughter's cheek before he reluctantly let her go, only to have his other daughter melt into his arms just like Kaylee did. "I love you, too, Daddy…So much," Katie whispered, her voice catching with emotion. She had only been with Justin for a relatively short time now, but it hadn't taken long at all for her to fall madly in love with him. She only wished that he would wind up doing the same all over again with her Dad.

Only time would tell, but she knew both her and Kaylee were going to do everything in their power to see that it happened. Already she was concocting possible ideas in her head, one in particular that required their father to be at Britin, so she was enormously grateful that her Dad had persuaded him and Grandma Jen to come out to house for dinner. She smiled up at him as he told her that he loved her, too, before she let go of him, her heart full of hope that promising things were on the horizon. All it took was for both fathers to admit they still loved each other and to learn to forgive each other. She knew it might be a tall order, but there was no doubt of their feelings – it was written all over their faces. Now all she and Kaylee had to do was get these two stubborn men to admit it to each other instead of only to them.

"Your grandma and I will see you tomorrow," Justin promised as the two girls nodded and returned to their seats in the car. As Justin hefted his portfolio onto his shoulder and grabbed his luggage, he took a moment to gaze at Brian as he passed the driver's side. He nodded at Brian slightly in acknowledgment and turned to go as he heard Brian say behind him, "Tell Jen I said hello, Justin."

_And that I owe her a big thank you_, Brian couldn't help thinking as Justin nodded and walked up the sidewalk toward the front door. He waited a few seconds to admire Justin's slim, beautiful form like he always did before he started up the car and slowly drove away, silently hoping that Jennifer's intervention would ultimately provide what he desired the most – another chance with the man he still loved just as he much as he always did and always would.

* * *

><p><em>Thanks to Boriqua522 for looking this over for me.:)<br>_


	16. Planning for Dinner

_Justin confronts his mother over her duplicity; the girls begin to hatch a plot to force their fathers to deal with their past and to admit their feelings for each other.  
><em>

* * *

><p>Justin took a moment to watch Brian and the girls slowly drive away before he took a deep breath and hefted his art portfolio more firmly onto his shoulder. Grasping the handle of his rolling suitcase, he gazed up pensively at his mother's condo. Even though he had seen his mother frequently in Chicago since his and Brian's separation, he hadn't been back here to her actual condo since then. He found it hard to believe that less than twenty four hours ago he was going about his normal business, totally unaware of the subterfuge that was occurring behind his back, and now here he was back in the city where it had all started so long ago. The primary instigator of that subterfuge, also, was presently inside the brick walls of the building in front of him.<p>

Taking one more deep breath, he slowly trudged up the sidewalk to his mother's residence and pressed the doorbell to the right of the screen door. He could hear footsteps approaching a few seconds later before the interior door was opened a crack and then swung wide open as his mother's face appeared in front of him. Her expression immediately changed from surprise to delight as she exclaimed, "Justin! Honey! I don't believe it!" Jennifer opened the screen door to sweep her son up into a firm hug; Justin hesitated for a few seconds before he, too, reciprocated by wrapping his arms around his mother's slim waist and held onto her to return the embrace. As they broke apart, he could see his mother peering around him as if she were trying to figure out how he had gotten there before she asked, "What are you doing here, Sweetheart?"

Justin eyed her intently. "I would think that would be obvious, Mom," he told her quietly. "Can I come in?"

His mother appeared flustered momentarily before she smiled a little nervously and said, "Of course." She held the screen door open as her son wheeled his suitcase into the foyer and waited for him to be completely inside before she closed both doors behind him. "This is a pleasant surprise..." she began behind him.

Justin turned to face her, barely able to contain his irritation. "Is it, Mom? Is it really a surprise? What did you expect would happen when you took it upon yourself to bring Kaylee and Katie back together without consulting with me and Brian first?" Justin dropped his art portfolio down with a thud to rest it against his suitcase as he asked her, "Do you realize what a mess this has caused?"

Jennifer swallowed the lump in her throat; she knew by the flash in his eyes and the expression on her son's face that he was pissed - royally. When she had conspired to get the girls back together - or at least provide them with the means to do it themselves - perhaps she hadn't thought everything through very well. Her main concern at the time had been trying to right what she had seen as a vast injustice in keeping the girls apart. If it also resulted in her stubborn son and his ex-partner also realizing they still belonged together, that would definitely be an added bonus. She should have known, though, that her fiercely independent, obstinate son might not look too kindly upon her 'assistance.'

"Justin...Can we go sit down and discuss this in the living room?" Her son stood there stone-faced for a moment before she added softly, "Please?"

Justin huffed out an angry breath to try and calm his nerves before he curtly nodded and followed his mother into the living room located to the right of the foyer. As soon as they were inside, he spun around to face his mother, brushing his right hand through his hair in agitation as he asked without preamble, "Mom, what were you thinking? How dare you interfere with mine and Brian's parental responsibilities!"

"Justin..."

"Mom, the courts forbade us to even acknowledge there WERE two children! They were not to be told until they turned eighteen! Do you realize how serious this could be now that they know? Not to mention that I have to deal with Brian again! Mom, I was just starting to finally come to grips with permanently forging a life independent of him and you go and do this! Now I have to deal with not only possible ramifications to the custody agreement, but I have to have everything dredged up from the past again with him as well! What gave you the right to disrupt my life like this?"

Jennifer sighed; she supposed she should have known this would happen. She could only hope that her son would come to eventually realize that this might be the best thing that ever happened to him. Whether that came to be, though, would depend upon her son and his ex-partner. Her son's extreme reaction, though, merely told her that he was not as unaffected by his ex-partner as he wanted her to think; she happened to believe that he still loved Brian deeply, and she suspected Brian felt the same way. There was only so much that she herself could do, however.

"Justin, please sit down and let me try to explain why I did what I did," she told her son with a beseeching look. Her son merely remained standing stoically a few feet away, his feet placed several inches apart and his arms stiffly crossed over his chest. "Justin, come on...You're already here; please sit down."

Justin stared at her for a few moments, all sorts of emotions churning inside him. Everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours was almost too much to contemplate. Sighing heavily, he finally walked over and fell into one of his mother's butter-colored leather recliners, the soft material practically swallowing his slim figure as he glared over at his mother from across the room.

Jennifer wrung her hands as she walked over to sit perpendicular to her son at the edge of the matching couch; only the ticking of a mantle clock nearby over the gas fireplace and the soft, rapid, angry breathing of her son could be heard in the silence as she began to try and explain her actions.

"Justin...I know you and Brian were bound by the agreement set forth by the court. I know you were prevented from telling the girls exactly what was going on. And I know what I did was deceitful."

"That's an understatement," Justin muttered under his breath, his face still furrowed with irritation.

Jennifer leaned over toward her aggravated son, his hands still folded over his chest as he breathed hard. She took a chance and reached over to place one slender hand on her son's knee to get his attention, a little relieved that he didn't do anything to remove it. "Justin, surely you don't believe that it was a good idea to keep each of their identities a secret from each other all this time."

Justin blew out a hard breath between his lips as he peered over at his mother with darkened eyes. "That's beside the point, Mom; the point is that it was not YOUR decision to make, and it wasn't just a matter of disagreeing with the court's ruling. You knew it would cause problems between Brian and me."

"Are you saying there weren't problems between the two of you _before_ the girls found out about each other?" she pressed him. She squeezed her son's denim-clad knee as he met her intense gaze. "Justin, you still love him and he still loves you. Not talking about it all this time didn't make those feelings go away, did it?"

"Mom..."

"No, let me finish, young man," she told her son, reverting to her sternest of maternal voices and effectively squelching her son's attempt at a protest. "Someone has to knock some sense into you and Brian before you two continue to make the biggest mistake of your lives. You've already seen the damage that it's done to my granddaughters."

Justin's eyes flashed, the raw hurt still evident in his voice even now. "Mom, this isn't just about the girls and you know it! You know what Brian did! He _lied_ to me! He had NEVER lied to me before! This wasn't a matter of him forgetting to bring home milk from the grocery or...Or telling some little white lie that I really hadn't gained a few pounds staying home to take care of the girls after they were born. This was about _trust!_ It was about being faithful when he had promised me that he would be and it was about having no more barriers between us." He brushed a hand through his hair as he confessed painfully, "It was all I could think about, Mom; it meant so much to me. It wasn't because of the practical side of it; it was what it represented. And Brian destroyed all that for one fleeting moment of gratification. So don't go telling me everything can just be fixed with a stroke of your well-meaning intervention because it can't!" He could feel the burn of unshed tears behind his eyes as he sighed heavily. "What a fucking mess this is." He stared into his mother's eyes, noting the decidedly uncomfortable as well as guilty look on her face. _Well, you should be, Mom..._

Jennifer sighed. "Justin...all right; I admit perhaps I shouldn't have intruded." At the look of _you think?_ on her son's face, she continued resolutely nonetheless. "But Honey, you've bottled your feelings up inside you for so long now. You refused to go to counseling after you and Brian broke up..."

Justin rubbed his hand across his face before he growled, "I fucking HATE therapy, Mom, you know that!"

Jennifer nodded, remembering how impossible it had been to get Justin to see any type of psychological counselor after his bashing; how ironic it was now that the man who had been indispensable in bringing her son back from the brink of trouble and loss back then was the same man now who was the cause of her son's sorrow.

"Yes, I know," she said quietly. "But I also know how much it's always bothered you that you couldn't see Katie growing up and be a part of her life. The problem is, though, Justin, you can't have your other daughter back in your life on an ongoing basis without dealing with what happened between you and Brian, because he's as much a part of her life as you want to be. Be furious with me if you must, but I think you have to admit that it's time you dealt with what happened once and for all between the two of you, no matter what the eventual outcome is if only for the sake of your daughters; I know you want what's best for them. Don't you agree?"

Justin stood up, feeling restless all of a sudden as he walked over to stand near the fireplace mantel. He picked up a silver, 5X7 picture frame displayed to the left side of the wooden mantle depicting Brian and Katie on horseback, undoubtedly taken at Britin. From the age his daughter appeared in the photo, it must have been a fairly recent picture. They were both astride separate horses, their smiles radiant and happy as they looked directly at the camera. His heart ached over all the times he had missed out on seeing his daughter grow up into the young lady she had become; in fact, being with her these past several days had merely made him even more acutely aware of that fact. "When was _this_ taken?" he asked his mother softly as he held it in his hands and stared at the picture of father and daughter looking so happy together.

"About a month ago," Jennifer told him as she rose from her place on the couch and walked over to her son. She smiled wistfully. "It was taken at Britin," she told Justin as he nodded. "Katie had just won a blue ribbon at the local county horse show. She's become quite the equestrian, Justin; she's very confident and graceful when she's riding Eton."

Justin placed the photo back on top of the mantel gingerly as he whispered, "I always thought that was an odd name for a horse. But Brian insisted on it anyway; he said it meant _rich_. Initially I thought he was making some statement about his financial worth, but I can remember him saying to me, _No, Sunshine...It means we're rich in OTHER ways._" He ran one long, tapered finger over the profile of Katie astride Eton in the photo before he turned to face his mother from a few feet away. He took a deep breath to try and swallow the emotional lump in his throat. "Mom...I'm afraid to have all those feelings dredged up again," he admitted. "Just being with him again...for only a short time..."

Jennifer digested that piece of information. "You've seen him already?"

"How do you think I got here? Brian found out first what you had done and brought Kaylee back up to Chicago with him to return her. I had had my suspicions ever since we returned from the camp that there was something different about Kaylee, but I hadn't put two and two together yet when he showed up with her out of the blue."

Jennifer frowned. "But I don't understand. If he figured out what was going on, and returned Kaylee back home, why are you here in Pittsburgh then?" She was hoping that meant that Justin had already figured out that she was right; that he DID need to work things out with Brian after all. His demeanor when he had first arrived, though, didn't seem to bear that out.

Justin snorted. "I'm here because of two conniving, scheming little girls, that's why. It seems they take after their paternal grandmother in that regard."

"What do you mean?"

Justin blew out a breath between his lips as he explained, "Brian and I sent the girls up to Kaylee's room so we could talk and have Katie pack for the return trip home. When they came back down, though, they were both wearing some of Kaylee's clothing; now that Kaylee has her hair cut like Katie's I can't tell them apart and they're not talking, either."

Jennifer looked at the frustration on her son's face but couldn't help bursting out laughing; that sounded so much like her self-sufficient granddaughters, especially Katie. _Good for you, girls..._

Justin huffed, not feeling amused at all. "This isn't funny, Mom! They're just making things harder than it needs to be."

Jennifer placed her hand over her mouth to calm down before she replied, "Well, they don't call them identical twins for nothing. As I recall, they don't even have a birthmark on their bodies to tell them apart." She knew, also, that Kaylee had gotten her hair cut short to look like her sister's. Despite her son's indignant face, she couldn't help remarking, "Reminds me of someone else who would go to all sorts of tricks to get what they wanted when _they_ were growing up."

"Mom, this is serious! This isn't the same as me changing a "D" on my report card to a "B!" Justin was certain that was what his mom was talking about; the only time he had gotten a bad grade in school was back in 4th grade spelling; the teacher at the time, Mr. O'Donnell, seemed to take inordinate glee in finding words no 11-year-old child would possibly ever use in their normal range of conversation. Only later did Justin come to appreciate the vocabulary words the teacher had subjected them to; that is, much later - after he had had to serve a two-week detention for doctoring his grade.

"No, it's not," his mother agreed quietly as she looked over sympathetically at her son. "But I think it _does _show how badly those girls don't want to be apart any longer - and how much they want their fathers back together again."

Justin sighed. "Now don't you start," he warned her. "I've already made it abundantly clear to the girls that I am merely back here to try and hopefully get the custody agreement changed. Now that they know about each other - however it came to pass - Brian and I will have to petition the court to change the agreement." He looked intently at his mother as he admonished her, "Don't go putting any romantic notions into their brains, Mom; trust me, they already have enough floating around in their little blond heads already."

Jennifer eyed her son compassionately; she could see - and hear - the turmoil in him; it was apparent in his body language and in his voice that he was hurt over what had happened but still harbored deep feelings for his ex-partner even now. For it to have been so long ago, she knew there were a lot of issues that still needed to be resolved between her son and Brian. It still amazed her how her own feelings for Brian had done such a 180-degree turn since the first time she had met him. Of course, Brian had done a lot of maturing and growing up over the years to the point where she had learned to respect - and love - him. She didn't always agree with what he did - his flagrant transgression that one day at work being among the most egregious - but she still knew that he loved Justin and that her son loved him. As the saying goes, though, you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink. She had succeeded in finding a way for the two of them to at least open up some sort of dialogue again; whether her efforts - and her granddaughters' - would bear any worthwhile fruit as a result would be up to them now.

"I understand," she told her son softly as she placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it, feeling the stiffness and tension underneath her touch. "But now that you're here - in Pittsburgh - don't you think it's time you and Brian talked about what happened?"

Justin gave her a long-suffering look. "Mom..."

Jennifer raised her hands as if in surrender. "Okay, okay," she murmured with a soft smile as Justin sighed again wearily. "Enough said about it for now. Where are the girls? With Brian?"

Justin nodded. "They wanted to spend some time together and I needed to talk to you alone, so Brian took them home with him to Britin."

His mother absorbed this information curiously. While her son acted like he didn't want to go down memory lane again with his ex-partner, apparently he didn't have an objection to Brian taking the girls home with him, though. Although perhaps she shouldn't be too surprised; there had never been any issue over whether or not Brian was a good father; Justin had never doubted that at least. She nodded. "So they're getting along well together, then? I mean, the girls?"

For the first time, Justin flashed a hint of his trademark smile over the thought of both girls bonding so deeply in such a short time as he nodded. "Yeah. They're very close to each other already." He grimaced. "Maybe a little _too_ close; I kept trying to trip them up on the way home so I could tell which one was which, but every time I thought I had them dead to rights they started whispering among themselves and wouldn't give me a straight answer."

Jennifer had to chuckle at that as Justin grinned at her wryly; even he could see the humor in the situation, despite the circumstances. "Little schemers," he muttered as his mother smiled at him. "Brian's not helping, either. In fact, I think he's enjoying the whole damn thing just a little too much."

"They're very smart little girls, Justin," she told him with just the smallest hint of pride in her voice. She could see a lot of her son in both of them, but also Brian's influence, too. She couldn't really be sorry that she had helped bring them together, even if it HAD been underhanded. If it served to allow the girls to rediscover each other again, as well as perhaps provide the catalyst to bring their fathers together once more, it would all be worth it.

"Too smart," Justin agreed as the room grew quiet.

"You eaten anything yet for dinner?" Jennifer asked her son softly as the silence became prolonged.

Justin shook his head in response; with everything that had happened today food - for a change - had been the last thing on his mind.

"Well, I'm assuming since you're here by yourself with suitcase in tow that you're planning on staying with me tonight? I'll fix us some sandwiches and get the leftover macaroni salad out of the fridge," she told him.

Justin nodded. "Okay...Thanks." Trying to sound unaffected by it, he advised her casually, "By the way, Brian's invited you and me for dinner tomorrow night at six; at Britin." Just the mention of his and Brian's old home that he had named and where so many memories had been forged made his heart flutter. He had to admit to himself silently that part of him was looking forward to seeing their home again, but an even larger part was dreading it because of everything that would bubble up to the surface as a result of being there once more. There had been a lot of happy memories created there, though - between him, Brian, and the girls; how he would feel being back on their old, sentimental turf again was uncertain to him at the moment.

Jennifer's eyes widened in surprise; for someone who had been so upset about being forced to relive old memories, her son's agreeing to return to Britin to have dinner with Brian and the girls seemed to be a contradiction. Perhaps Justin's heart was ruling his decisions a little more than his head presently. In either case, she was happy that he had at least agreed to visit Britin. "Sounds good; that should work out fine," she told him, careful not to let any hopefulness enter her own voice. "I have a couple of house closings to attend, but they should be done well before then. You want me to drive us out there?"

Justin nodded. "That's what I told Brian I would have you do, if that's okay." His mother nodded in agreement and turned to go, but Justin reached out and grabbed her forearm to stop her. She looked at him curiously as he informed her, "Mom, I still don't agree with the way you handled this; I understand WHY you did it, but I don't agree with how you went about doing it. But now that the girls know about each other, it can't be undone...And I realize how important it is that they remain part of each other's lives. That's the main goal I want to accomplish while I'm here - to try and petition the court to change the custody agreement. I think Brian and I can put aside our differences long enough to accomplish that. But that's the _only_ reason why I'm here; okay? As soon as the girls have a chance to spend a little more time together, and as soon as the court issue is resolved, I'll be going back to Chicago where my life is now. The girls can continue to see each other on a frequent basis throughout the year. I won't let them stay apart like they were before."

Jennifer gazed into her son's beautiful face; it was an older face now, still attached to a fiercely independent soul. She knew there was a lot of hurt buried deep inside, though, so she didn't buy that story for a second. He might _want_ to believe it, to make things easier on himself. But she knew deep down that it was not going to be as cut and dried as he might lead her to believe; something told her that Brian would see to that - and the girls. She didn't feel that now was a good time to call him on it, though, for fear he would just get more upset with her. So instead she nodded her understanding as she tenderly smiled back at him and said, "I'll go get us some dinner, Sweetheart. Why don't you take your things up to the spare bedroom and wash up in the meantime?"

Justin nodded as his mother reached over to give him a quick peck on the cheek. As she watched him heft his art portfolio up onto his shoulder and begin to wheel his carry-on over toward the hallway, she couldn't help gazing after him thoughtfully, knowing that her son was about to confront some long-ago emotions that he had suppressed but also realizing that it might turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to him, the girls, AND Brian.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time - Britin<em>

"Girls? Come on down - I've got your dinner ready!" Brian called up the steps as he stood with his hand grasping the smooth, curved hardwood knob of Britin's staircase, hearing the rapid footsteps approaching a few seconds afterward. He smiled as two giggling girls hurried down the steps almost at a full run, noting that Katie had on more typical attire now than before. She was wearing a plain, light-blue, short-sleeved tee shirt with a photo of a horse and the words _Let's Horse Around _scrawled across her chest in flowing silver script and a pair of her favorite, slightly threadbare jeans. He knew his daughter wouldn't waste time changing into her own clothes once they had arrived back home and Justin wasn't around to discern the difference, and it seemed his hunch had been correct. He would have to continue cautioning them, however, to be extremely careful once Justin was back or their attempt to thwart his efforts to tell them apart would disintegrate.

"Slow down, girls!" he cautioned them, afraid one or both of them would slip on the smooth surface; both were in their stocking feet at the moment, making the hardwood steps even slicker. Brian shook his head in amusement as both girls came to a flying stop at the bottom of the steps right next to him.

"Hi, Dad! What's for dinner?" Katie asked him, her blue eyes peering over at him curiously. "Tell me it's something fattening and sinful," she implored dreamily, missing her favorite food terribly while she had been gone. That - and her horses, and her father, of course - had been the worst part, even more than having to dress up like some real-life Barbie doll in Kaylee's prissy clothing while she had been in Chicago.

Brian grinned, knowing how much his daughter had probably been deprived of 'real' food. "How about a double-decker cheeseburger, thick-cut steak fries, and a Coke float?" Katie's eyes lit up at the mention of her favorite meal; Brian turned to Kaylee, noting her nose crinkling in distaste at the thought as he advised her, "I fixed you and me a turkey burger instead on a whole-wheat bun and some sweet-potato fries; I hope that's okay." He was rewarded with a grateful smile from both girls as they impetuously hugged their father around the neck and gave him a kiss on each cheek.

"Come on," he told them in mock gruffness, feeling emotion bubbling inside him at the knowledge that he had both girls back with him again. It felt surreal to him, but also wonderful; it felt _right_. Now if only they could find a way to place the one, vital piece of the puzzle back into place where he belonged...

He tamped down the morose thought and forced himself to turn his mind away from Justin for the time being as he let go of both girls and said softly, "Let's go eat before dinner gets cold." He placed a hand on either of his girls' shoulders as they all walked down the hallway toward the expansive kitchen. "I thought we could eat out on the back patio," he told them. "Katie, will you get the ketchup, paper plates and napkins down from the cupboard? Kaylee, I could use a hand with the iced tea pitcher and the glasses."

A few minutes later, the trio was sitting companionably at the round, glass-topped patio table, observing the quickly-setting rays of the sun lowering over the horizon beyond the stables at the back of the estate. Katie had insisted on visiting Eton and Ceres as soon as they had arrived back home; Kaylee had watched warily from several feet away at the time, wondering whether Katie had missed the horses more or the horses had missed her _sister_ more. Of course, the large, shiny red apples Katie had held out to each of them might have influenced how much she had been missed, because she apparently spoiled both horses terribly, but the smile of delight on her sister's face revealed that she didn't care either way.

Kaylee had hung back just far enough to feel safe with her father's arm comfortingly around her shoulders; the massive size of both horses still tended to intimidate her somewhat. She thought longingly of her cats back home, missing them just as much as her sister had missed her horses but knowing that their neighbor, a big cat lover herself, would take good care of them while she and her father were gone. How long she would be away from her beloved Dali and Picasso would be determined in large part by how successful she, her sister, and her father were in convincing her stubborn daddy that they all belonged together again. She refused to think of any other outcome.

* * *

><p>Now as the three of them polished off their burger and fries, Kaylee turned to catch her father's gaze, blushing a little at the tender smile he bestowed upon her. It was still just a little hard to believe that here she was, sitting next to the father she had dreamed of being with for so long and with a sister she had only recently become reacquainted with.<p>

"Something on your mind, Princess?" Brian murmured as he watched his daughter bite her lip in thought; he was still learning all the nuances of Kaylee's body language, but he had learned enough to know that her mind was preoccupied with something.

"I was just thinking about tomorrow," she admitted as Katie nodded in agreement a few feet away from her; the two of them had been unable to concentrate on practically anything else ever since they had dropped their other father off at their Grandma Jen's house. The two of them had been discussing the situation upstairs in Katie's room, trying to come up with ways to help bring both of their fathers back together. They had brainstormed several possibilities as to how to force more communication between them, eventually coming up with one that would involve getting some outside help. That was where tomorrow's visit to the diner would come in handy, they decided, because they both knew that their Grandma Debbie would know just what to do and how to contact their co-conspirator. The two girls, however, had sworn themselves to secrecy for now, even around their father. They had decided that while their Dad was solidly in their camp, they also figured their shroud of secrecy was more important; at least if their father didn't know their plans they figured he couldn't be blamed for any backlash that might result, so it was really for his own good. They didn't want their Daddy accusing him of any more deception.

Brian studied his daughter carefully. "You mean dinner - with your father?" he asked her softly as his fingers idly played with Kaylee's more coarser waves of golden hair, the texture different than Justin's but still reminding him of her father.

Kaylee nodded, her heart beginning to beat a little faster simply by thinking about tomorrow night.

Brian thought it was important to reassure her of something. "Kaylee, you know that no matter what happens tomorrow between your father and me, he loves you, just like he does Katie."

"And he loves you, too," she pointed out quickly, not wanting to waste an opportunity to mention it again.

Brian sighed softly as he dropped his hand away from his daughter's head, knowing exactly what his daughter was trying to say. "We've covered this before, Princess; sometimes simply loving someone isn't enough to fix things." _If it were, none of this would have happened..._

"Dad, can we ask you something?" Katie asked her father as she walked over to join them, knowing that Kaylee would be hesitant to broach the topic, even though it had been uppermost on both of their minds earlier in her bedroom upstairs.

Brian nodded with an affectionate smile. "Of course, Chiquitita," he told her. "What do you want to know?"

Katie paused for a moment as she exchanged a look with her sister, who nodded at her slightly as a sign of encouragement for her to continue. "Back in Chicago - when you told Kaylee and me to go upstairs?"

"Yeah?"

"Well...We didn't go to her room at first," she admitted to her father, staring at him unflinchingly with those insane blue eyes that were a carbon copy of someone else's.

Brian nodded solemnly as he swallowed hard, not quite liking where their conversation was heading. "I see...Why?"

Katie looked over at her sister again for a moment before she took a deep breath to steel herself and told her father, "We wanted to know what the two of you would say to each other."

Brian's pupils rapidly shifted from to side to side; a gesture he always did when he was nervous about something. "And what exactly did you hear, Katie?"

Katie bit her lip briefly before she let out a breath between her lips. "We...We heard you talking about why you broke up. About what happened to cause it."

Brian pursed his lips together in awkwardness; he should have known his two intelligent, inquisitive daughters wouldn't have gone straight up to Kaylee's room as they had been told to do. Why hadn't he and Justin had enough sense to close the door to the living room before they had rehashed what had happened between them? Just like with the fact that the girls knew about each other now, though, it was way too late to put the genie back into the bottle about his and Justin's conversation in Chicago. He would have to tell his daughters something.

Brian sighed in resignation as he stared over at both wide-eyed girls, trying to formulate just the right thing to say. He felt guilty enough about what had happened; now he had to try and explain what he wasn't even sure he understood himself to his and Justin's impressionable daughters. "How much did you hear?" he asked both of them cautiously.

Ceding to her sister, Kaylee nodded at Katie to continue as she responded with a choked up voice, "Enough. Enough to know that you cheated on Daddy." Her eyes filled with tears of disappointment as she asked Brian forlornly, "Why would you do that, Dad? Why would you do that when you loved him? When you loved _us_? Is that why he left? Weren't we good enough for you?"

_Shit_. _Talk about stabbing my heart with a knife and twisting it afterward. _ Brian swallowed hard in response to the hurt, accusatory tone of his daughter's voice. He had tried more times than he could count since then to answer that question himself; just exactly what _was_ wrong with him? Why HAD he done what he had done? Did he have such little confidence in his own advertising acumen back then that he had had to resort to some more 'primitive' form of persuasion to win over a client? Yes, he could try and blame it on his fucked-up parents at the time - they were always good for several rounds of convenient excuse creating when need be - but he knew deep down that wasn't the reason. Was he that screwed up and indifferent that he couldn't keep his pants zipped up in deference to being faithful to the one man who deserved such a commitment?

He inhaled a deep breath and let it out as he looked over at his daughters, pondering just how to respond. He finally replied softly, "I'm sorry you two had to hear that, Katie. That is definitely an issue that your father and I need to hash out while he's here." He reached over to take the hands of both girls as he told them firmly, "but there IS one thing I never want either of you to doubt; there was never any question of whether you were ever 'good enough for me.' I've loved both of you from the first second I saw you and that has never changed; it will _never_ change, no matter what happens. I will _always_ be your father, just like Justin is." He let out another breath before he told them, "As far as why I did what I did...You want the honest truth?" Both girls nodded, mesmerized by the conversation, as he explained honestly, "I ask myself that same question every day since it happened. And the God's honest truth is that I still don't really know why."

He let go of both girls' hands to stand up and turn around to stare out over the gently rolling hills of Britin in an attempt to try and calm his rapidly-beating heart, suddenly feeling embarrassed and ashamed over his previous actions. "I'm not proud of what happened," he told them, his hands clasped behind his back. "And I would take back what I did in an instant if I could. I know I hurt your father deeply that day." Even now the expression on Justin's face at Kinnetik when he realized what he had done haunted him still; to have disappointed Justin was one of the worst failures of his life.

He turned back around to face his daughters. "I know you both are still young, but you're also both very mature for your age; I guess you've had to grow up fast because of what happened to you. I won't go into all the details, but let's just say that before you were born my lifestyle was a lot different than it is now; I handled stress and competition much differently back then. And when I was feeling especially anxious that day I reverted back to that old lifestyle. Do I regret what I did to your father? You _know_ that I do; every single day. But you know what hurts most of all?" Both girls shook their heads silently as Brian let out a heavy breath. His voice stumbled a little as he told them, "Thinking that I've disappointed both of _you_ or that you're ashamed of me."

Katie stole a glance at her sister before replying hastily, "Dad...We both love you no matter what happened. And look at it this way; now you have a chance to fix what you did."

Brian bestowed a tender smile of gratitude on both his girls at the rather simplistic response. "It won't be that easy, Katie; your father can be very stubborn."

Kaylee snorted at her sister's side as she rolled her eyes knowingly. "That's for sure!" Brian couldn't help chuckling at that statement as Kaylee added earnestly, "But he still loves you, Daddy; he told me so. You'll just have to work hard to make up for what you did. Katie and I know you can do it, though. You're not going to give up on him, are you?"

Brian swallowed to gain some self-control before he reached down to tenderly cup each daughter's cheek with one of his hands as he vowed, "Give up? Not on your life! We're all in this together, remember?" Somehow he knew - this would be his one big chance to right the wrongs he had committed before with Justin; there was no way he was backing down now, not without a hell of a fight.

Both girls beamed at him in relief as they nodded. Brian pulled each girl to his waist and hugged them tightly, closing his eyes and silently feeling blessed that his two daughters loved him still despite his past transgressions.

"It'll be okay, Dad," he heard Kaylee murmur soothingly as both girls wound their arms around his waist. "We're going to make sure of it."

Brian pulled back to stare down into Kaylee's eyes curiously; she was beaming up at him with a confident smile that made his heart lurch at the similarity to someone else's smile. "What are you and your sister up to, Kaylee Marie?" he whispered.

Kaylee glanced over at her sister, sharing the same look of conspiratorial certainty.

"It's best that you don't know, Dad," Katie told him mysteriously. "That way Daddy can't accuse you of being in on it."

"Katie...I'm not so sure after what happened between your father and me that it's a good idea to sneak around behind his back. Maybe you'd better tell me what you two have in mind first."

But Katie shook her head firmly; she and her sister had had a long discussion earlier up in her bedroom and one thing they had agreed upon was that this was the best way to handle it. If things went the way they hoped, maybe, just maybe, their Daddy would be thanking them later for what they did and wouldn't _care _whose idea it was originally, but for now it was best to tread lightly around him.

"No, Dad," she told him as she gazed up into his soft hazel eyes, hoping he would understand. "Let the two of us handle it. It'll all work out; you'll see. You'll just have to trust us on this."

Brian studied his daughter's face and noted the conviction in her voice. If only he were that sure things would work out for the best, but just having both his daughters' support and unwavering love despite his shortcomings meant more to him than he could express and did give him hope that he could somehow get Justin to listen to reason. _Enough's enough, Sunshine, _he thought to himself. _It's time to come off your high horse..._

"Okay, Princess," he finally agreed as he pulled both daughters closer to him in a vise-like grip. He grunted as he gave them both a squeeze. He peered down into Kaylee's eyes to tell her, "I must admit - it _is_ nice to have a co-conspirator in crime that has been around your father all this time."

Brian let his daughters go as Katie nodded. "That's what _I_ told her," she said. "With her background knowledge and my creativity, Daddy won't know what hit him before it's too late."

Brian chuckled in spite of his worries as he told her, "Katherine Elizabeth - if I didn't know better I would think you're _my _biological child instead of Justin's. I think I've definitely rubbed off on you."

Katie beamed at her father. "I like that," she decided with a smile. "You're still taking Kaylee and me to see Grandma Debbie tomorrow while you're at work, aren't you?"

"Hmmm...Well, the idea sort of scares me now, but yeah, that's still the plan. This scheme of yours doesn't have something to do with her, does it?" While he loved Debbie dearly - she was certainly more of a mother to him than his own biological mother had ever been - the thought of his daughters co-conspiring with her to win Justin back sent chills down his spine.

Katie and Kaylee giggled at their father's look of dread. "No, Daddy," Kaylee assured him. "Not really, anyway."

"Not really? Kaylee..."

"Just leave it all up to us," Katie reassured him; Kaylee's cell phone ringing made her pause as she looked over at her sister. "Who is it?"

Kaylee reached inside her lightweight, light green jacket to pluck out her cellphone. "It's Daddy," she whispered to her sister and to Brian, whose heart skipped at beat at the statement. Why was it that Justin had that effect on him, even from a distance?

"Hi, Daddy," Kaylee chirped to her father brightly as she answered the phone and brought it up to her ear. She walked over and plunked herself down in one of the patio's chairs to get comfortable.

"Hi, Honey," Justin responded affectionately, his heart melting at the sound of his daughter's voice; at least over the phone Kaylee apparently felt no compunction in disguising which daughter she really was...Or did she? "This _is_ the owner of the phone to which I'm speaking, isn't it?" he teased her formally.

Kaylee giggled. "Daddy...Of _course_ it's me!" she told him with a gentle scolding. "You can't see me over the phone!"

"Good point," he told her with a wry smile. "Are you and your sister having a good time there?" Even with the less than auspicious circumstances surrounding the reason why he had returned to Pittsburgh, he was still thankful that his two recently-reunited daughters could spend some more time together. If anything, he was glad that they had bonded so quickly, that fact cementing his firm belief that they deserved to remain a constant in each other's lives, no matter what happened between him and Brian.

_Brian_. He couldn't get his ex-partner out of his mind, no matter how much he tried. He was uppermost in his thoughts as he lay there on his mother's guestroom bed, staring up at the ceiling. Just what were he and Brian going to do? Did he really think he could just have the custody agreement modified, whisk Kaylee away back to Chicago and simply ignore all of the intense feelings still churning inside him? If nothing else, he could expect to see Brian again from time to time as their two girls visited each other; he wasn't naïve enough to think that all he and Brian's paths would never intersect again once he returned home. No, he knew the two of them would have to come to some meeting of the minds; but was his heart telling him the same thing as his head? At the moment, he didn't even want to consider that; he knew things would be tense enough once he returned to Britin tomorrow. For now, then, he merely wanted to concentrate on the sound of his two daughters' voices.

He smiled as he heard Kaylee tell him, "Yeah, Daddy; we're having a good time. Katie had to go to the stables as soon as she got back to give Ceres and Eton some apples; have you seen how big they are?"

Justin's heart clenched; yes, he knew exactly how big they were. He and Brian had spent many a day riding them up into the gently rolling, wooded hills and pastures around Britin before the girls were born. They would pack a light picnic lunch and a lightweight blanket, stored in one of Eton's saddle bags, and depart in the early morning hours just after daybreak for a day of privacy and relaxation. Before the girls had arrived, those outings were one of the few occasions when he could convince his ambitious partner to leave his work behind him - it was a firm rule he had established to ensure he would have Brian's full attention; no laptops, no cellphone. It was just the two of them. Brian would always pretend he didn't notice when he would silently slide one of his sketchpads into the other saddle bag to use later in the day after they had trekked to one of their favorite spots - a small waterfall set deep into the woods that poured over gray, flat sheets of rock from above, worn smooth over years of erosion. They had discovered it merely by accident one day after a few hours of exploring their new grounds, and it had quickly become their favorite little secret hideaway from the rest of the world. As their horses grazed peacefully nearby on some grass and a couple of apples that Brian had pretended to slip by without Justin's noticing, they would make love over and over again to the sound of the rushing water nearby, worshipping each other's bodies and affirming their deep love for each other. Later, Brian would indulge in his whim to pose for some new sketches of him - some clothed, some not. Back then he thought he could never get enough of admiring Brian's magnificently bronzed, firm, long and lean body.

Now after seeing Brian again after so long, he had realized to his chagrin that he _still_ felt that way. Brian may have aged somewhat just like he had, but time had merely served to make him even more sexy looking in a distinguished, classic sort of way. Right now, in fact, his palms were sweaty and his heart was thumping madly merely at the thought of seeing him again tomorrow at their home. Their_ home_...Why did he still think of it that way, even now? He hadn't lived there in years. So why was he so apprehensive about returning there, then, and why did it continue to have such a hold on his emotions? He didn't have to answer that - he already knew the reason why.

"Daddy? Did you hear me?"

Justin sighed softly in melancholy and blinked his eyes, realizing he had zoned out into the past. What had his daughter been asking him? Oh, yeah...The horses. "Yeah, Sweetheart, I heard you," he told her softly. "Yes, the horses are pretty massive. But they're also very friendly. You just have to not show a lot a fear around them - they can sense that sort of thing and there's nothing to be afraid of with them. They're actually quite gentle."

Kaylee was skeptical of that, despite her father's reassurance. She had been up close and personal with them and they seemed like virtual towering giants to her. "You've ridden them before?" she asked him.

Justin couldn't help smiling wistfully in reaction. "Yeah...Brian used to ride Eton - he's the larger one. And I would ride Ceres. Back then I didn't know anything about riding horses, either, but I learned before too long."

Kaylee nodded. "Well, if it's all the same I think I'll just walk around the grounds."

Justin chuckled. "I'm sure that'll be fine, Honey. Is your sister nearby? I wanted to talk to her for a minute, too."

Kaylee nodded. "Yeah, she's right here. We're out on the back porch with Dad; he fixed us dinner all by himself," she told her father. "You need to talk to him, too?" she asked hopefully.

_Nice try, Kiddo_, Justin thought to him silently. "No, not right now, Kaylee; let me talk to Katie for a moment."

Kaylee sighed in defeat. "Okay, Daddy. What time will you be here tomorrow?"

"About six like we had decided," Justin informed her. "I just wanted to call before you went off to bed and make sure that you were doing okay...And to tell you that I love you."

"I love you, too, Daddy," Kaylee responded softly, suddenly finding that she missed her father's sweet presence. She knew that both her sister and her other father missed him, too, which just made her determination all that much greater to help bring them back together. "Here's Katie."

Brian couldn't help listening in on his daughter's part of her conversation as she spoke with Justin; nor could he mask his own disappointment over the fact that his ex-partner had apparently declined their daughter's offer to pass the phone onto him. Well, he still didn't know what exactly the two girls had in mind to try and 'persuade' Justin to help clear the air between him, but if his ex-partner thought he would just go slinking away with his proverbial tail between his legs, he had another thing coming. Now that he had seen him again, he knew he couldn't just let him walk away again - modified custody agreement or not.

"Hi, Daddy," Katie was saying to him as Brian turned his attention back to the conversation; Katie had walked over to sit down next to her sister and take the phone from her. He watched from his place leaning against one of the patio's support beams as his daughter's face transformed into a smile as she began to animatedly tell him about her past few hours back home, including how excited she had been to see their horses again. At one point Justin must have made a joke or said something funny, because his daughter giggled at his response. He couldn't help smiling at that, so thankful that his daughter was quickly bonding with Justin again. Although he wasn't really surprised; Justin had a way of making anyone feel at ease, and there had never been any question of how much he loved both daughters.

"No, Daddy," Brian heard Katie saying now with a laugh. "I did NOT eat another Portobello burger for dinner. Yuck!" Katie covered the phone a couple of seconds later as she turned to Brian to say, "Daddy wants to know what's for dinner tomorrow. He says he's not coming unless he knows the menu first."

Brian snorted. _Little shit_. At least Justin could kid about _something_. For just a moment, a wisp of optimism bloomed inside him as he retorted, "Tell His Majesty that I promise not to serve him anything healthy while he's gracing us with his presence tomorrow."

"Dad says that he promises that whatever we have tomorrow, it will be fattening as all get out."

Justin laughed on the other end of the phone, thinking that Brian's response might have been paraphrased just a bit. "Sounds good, Sweetheart," he told his daughter. His voice softened a bit as he told her, "Your Grandma Jen and I will be there tomorrow around six, then. We love you both - very much."

Katie's heart swelled as she told Justin, "I love you both, too, Daddy."

"I hope you have a good night, then; we'll see you soon."

Before Justin had a chance to say goodbye, Katie blurted out one of her heart's most fervent wishes, "Daddy?"

"Yeah, Honey?"

"One day...Can you and I paint something together up in the studio? Just the two of us?"

Brian's heart ached a little over his daughter's plaintive request. Silently he hoped that Katie wouldn't tell Justin that he didn't allow her up in his old studio; he didn't want his ex-partner reading too much into any resemblance of sentimentality on his part. Plus there was the added consideration that if she did paint with her father, it would shatter the mirror image she and her sister had so cleverly crafted.

Justin pursed his lips tightly together for a moment; he would like nothing better than to paint with his daughter by his side. How much should he promise her, though? Yes, he was definitely going to remain a part of Katie's life from now on; of that much he was certain. But he also knew that every trip back to Britin would make him confront feelings he wasn't sure he was ready to deal with. There was always his studio back in Chicago, though; they could paint there without Brian's 'ghost' hovering over them or the memories the two of them had created back in West Virginia. Although he had to admit the memories of his and Brian's lives at Britin - before and after the girls had been born - weren't bad ones; they had all been happy ones; _very_ happy ones. That's what hurt the most. He inhaled a shaky breath and let it out slowly, trying to sound more cheerful than he felt before he finally responded, "Sure we can, Sweetheart. I would really like that. The next time you come up to Chicago to visit Kaylee and me I'll make a point of us collaborating on a father and daughter original. How's that?"

"Okay, Daddy," was the half-hearted, somewhat disappointed reply; Katie had really been hoping that she and her father could create something together here at Britin, not when she eventually came back to visit them; that sounded so far away and _temporary_. But she also knew painting with her father really wasn't possible, at least not as long as she and her sister were striving to be matching bookends. To Katie, though, it didn't really matter all that much in the long run, she finally decided, because it was cut and dried - there were no 'shades of gray.' She and her sister would maintain their shroud of duplicity for as long as it took their stubborn father to reconcile with their other father - and it _would_ happen. Then she and her father could paint together - here at Britin, because to her there could be no other 'home' - as much and as long as they liked. "We'll see you and Grandma tomorrow then."

Justin bit his lip, reluctant to say goodbye for some reason but needing to distance himself for now from what he knew would be an emotional journey tomorrow. He felt so tired, so exhausted, more mentally than physically at the moment. He breathed in another calming breath before he assured her, "We'll be there, Honey. Sweet Dreams."

"You too, Daddy," Katie told him before her father quietly disconnected from their conversation. She lowered the cellphone to her lap and closed it before turning to look over at her father's face, not quite sure what she saw there but knowing what was uppermost on his mind. She took a deep breath, straightening her shoulders before she said, "We have a lot of work to do."

Brian looked at her confident face and had to laugh at her declaration. He grinned over at both daughters who were wearing identical expressions - a mixture of both youthful optimism as well as almost down right cockiness. It gave him just a little more hope that perhaps all was not lost. He knew in his heart that was his wish as well as his daughters; now all they had to do was work a little magic on his obstinate ex-partner. _Three against one - or should I say four with Jennifer? I like those odds..._

"Oh, we do, do we?" Brian teased his daughters who nodded back at him. "Well, I think the first order of business, then, is for two young ladies to get a good night's sleep. Kaylee - you can sleep in the guest room next to Katie's room, but no staying up until the early hours chatting."

"Daaaaad," Katie whined, elongating the word for emphasis. "We're not little kids anymore," she pointed out.

"No, you're not" Brian conceded. While they might be pre-teen age, he couldn't say that either girl hadn't had to do a lot of growing up over the years. But physically they were still quite young - and they were still his responsibility. "No, you're not little kids. But you're still my daughters and I need to take care of you. And no matter _what _age you are - or how mature you might be - you still need a good night's sleep if you're going to be productive tomorrow." That was probably the only persuasive argument Brian could make to get the girls to follow his instructions, and it proved to be successful as both girls looked at each other for a moment before Kaylee nodded at her sister.

"Okay, Dad," Katie told her father. "But only because we want you and Daddy back together. Like you said - he's a smart man. We'll need to be on our toes tomorrow."

"Not just for tomorrow," he warned them. "It won't be that easy, girls. Your father is a very compassionate and forgiving man, but one thing he expects me to always do is keep my promises." He sucked in a regretful breath as he told them, "And I messed up really bad in that department; big time."

"Yes, you did," Kaylee told him with uncharacteristic frankness; her more tender nature made her naturally protective when it came to her Daddy's feelings, and she could imagine how hurt he had been. "But I know you love him. And I know he loves you. So you will work it out...Won't you?"

Two pairs of topaz eyes peered back at him intently for an answer. How to answer that question? He finally settled on telling them, "You both know that's what I want. I'm going to do my best," he promised them. "I'm not going to let him go back to Chicago without a fight."

Katie put her hands on her hips and nodded in satisfaction. "Well, I would certainly hope not!" she told him, her eyes flashing like a school teacher scolding a recalcitrant child. "Kinneys don't back down!"

Brian laughed at the look on his daughter's face and the tone of her voice; things certainly weren't dull with both daughters around. If the situation with Justin wasn't so serious - and the result so pivotal - he would be enjoying the circumstances immensely. "No, they don't," he told them both. "Justin may be your biological father, but I'm YOUR father, too; and _Kinneys_ come from very persistent stock."

He walked over to place one hand on each of his daughters' shoulders. Giving them an affectionate squeeze, he told them, "It's getting late, girls; time for bed. We've all got a big day tomorrow." _Maybe the most important day of our lives_, he couldn't help thinking as Kaylee and Katie pushed back from their chairs to join their father.

"Let's go in," he murmured as together the three of them walked over to the double French doors and entered the home.

* * *

><p>Less than an hour later, both girls had showered and changed into sleepwear - Kaylee in a long, cotton, mint-colored gown with butterflies and Katie wearing a matching set of pajamas with a short-sleeved, red knit top and matching pajama shorts. When Brian checked on them after accessing his e-mails from Kinnetik, he had found both of them sitting Indian style on Katie's bed; he noticed that when he stuck his head inside the door they immediately became quiet. Assuming they were conjuring up all sorts of scenarios for tomorrow, he walked in and sat down with them on the edge of the bed. Despite what he had told them earlier, he couldn't be angry with them defying his orders to retire to bed. He was actually grateful over how close they had become.<p>

"I thought I told you two to go to bed," he gently chided them with a soft smile. "What are you up to?"

"Just talking," Katie told him, her blue eyes peering over at him curiously. "Dad?"

Brian sighed. "You're stalling, Princess. I already know the game you're playing, remember, and it won't work."

But Katie was persistent. "No, no, it's not that, Dad," she assured him. "We were just wondering something else."

"Katherine Elizabeth..." Sometimes Brian forgot how exasperating pre-teen girls could be, and now he had _two_ of them to contend with.

"Just one question, Dad," Kaylee chimed in in support of her sister.

Brian let out a breath as he looked at both girls' pleading expressions. He never _could_ resist those blue eyes on Justin when he looked at him that way, and it was the same with his daughters. "One question," he repeated in reminder. "What?" Brian eyed both girls curiously as they actually giggled softly to themselves, wondering what in the world had brought on that reaction.

Katie glanced over at her sister before she satisfied their father's curiosity. "We were just wondering...Why do you call Daddy _Sunshine_?"

_Oh...That_. Brian should have guessed that would come up in the course of their conversations at some point; he had expected that one or both of them would pick up on that eventually. He smiled a little as he responded dryly, "You noticed that, did you?" He WAS a little surprised, though, that they couldn't already figure out the reason why. Didn't Justin still flash his trademark smile from time to time around them? "You really don't know why I would call him that?" he asked them as they shook their heads.

"Well, I actually didn't come up with that nickname on my own," he told them softly, his mind going back in time to when he and Justin had first met. "You can thank your Grandma Deb for that."

"SHE came up with it?" Katie asked, both girls listening in rapt fascination as their father nodded. "Why?"

Brian's eyes clouded over as he thought back to that time so long ago - a time when things seemed much less complicated. "It was because of his smile," he explained. "When your father is happy - when he smiles that certain smile of his - it makes his whole face light up. Your grandma noticed that from the first day she met him, and she started calling him _Sunshine_. After a while, the name stuck and I started calling him that, too, at times." One side of his mouth curled up as he brought his attention back to his daughters to admit, "Normally when I called him that it was more like I was teasing him with it." His voice softened, though, as he added truthfully, "But not always. Sometimes I wasn't kidding when I called him that." Normally back then it was when he was feeling particularly emotional about something or especially grateful to Justin for something he had done, but sometimes - on rare occasions - he called him that in the throes of their lovemaking because it seemed natural and he adored seeing the look of happiness on Justin's face when he said it. Now, though, he knew he was using it as more like a taunt, and he knew Justin probably didn't appreciate it. He just couldn't help it, though; his ex-partner could be so downright pig-headed at times.

"Dad?" Kaylee called out to him softly, noticing the faraway look that had come into her father's eyes; it was obvious how deeply he still felt for her other father.

"Yeah, Kaylee?"

His daughter verified his suspicions when she told him, "Daddy doesn't smile like that anymore."

Brian swallowed the painful lump in his throat as he replied, "He doesn't? Ever?"

Kaylee slowly shook her head as Katie did the same, both girls confirming it. "No," she said. "Not like that. I don't think he's been that happy since you broke up."

Brian nodded, feeling both guilty and inexplicably relieved in a way, relieved because Justin's asshole boyfriend hadn't apparently meant as much to him as he had if he couldn't generate that radiant smile from him. He gazed into his daughters' eyes resolutely as he told them firmly, "Well, in that case it will be up to us to put that smile back on his face, then, won't it?"

Both his daughters smiled back at him in pleasure - still just a ghost of the smile that Justin would give him - as they nodded in agreement. "Yeah," they both said in unison as Brian chuckled softly.

"Okay...Well, _Operation Sunshine_ will commence tomorrow, then," he told them as he rose from the bed and the girls scooted over enough for him to pull the covers back. He gazed fondly at both girls who emitted identical yawns as he made a spontaneous decision. After all, Katie had a queen-sized bed and plenty of pillows. "You can both sleep in here tonight," he told them. "But the operative word is SLEEP. I don't want to hear giggling and more spy plans being discussed an hour from now, understand?"

Both girls giggled again as Brian smiled down at them. They both lay down on the bed as their father pulled the light blue sateen sheet and matching, lightweight fleece bedspread over them. Kneeling down on the mattress, Brian leaned over to kiss Kaylee's cheek and then Katie's. His voice choked up with emotion all of a sudden at the sight of _both_ his daughters back at Britin together after so long. He stood back up to whisper to them, "Sweet dreams, girls. I love you." It was amazing how easily those last three words escaped from his lips now, but it seemed so natural to say them.

"Good night, Dad," Katie told. "Love you, too," she said with a smile.

"Night, Dad," Kaylee added. "I'm so glad to be here," she told him, her eyes filling up with tears of happiness. She was still concerned that things might not work out between her two fathers, but she was hopeful that it would. She knew how much they still loved each other; that had to count for something.

Brian smiled over at his daughter - his beautiful, tenderhearted daughter; his daughter who was so like her biological father. "Not as glad as I am," he told her sincerely. "Good night, Princess."

Kaylee smiled back at him. "Good night, Dad," she said again. Just after Brian turned out the night table lamp, he heard her add softly, "I love you, too."

_I love you too, girls,_ he repeated silently. _And your father, too..._

* * *

><p><em>Early the Next Day - Jen's Condo<em>

Jennifer smiled from her place at the stove as her tousled headed son shuffled sleepily into the kitchen and sat down at one of her wooden dinette chairs. Silently she retrieved one of the mugs in the cabinet over the sink and poured some coffee from the coffeemaker before walking over and placing it down in front of him. "Good Morning, Sleepyhead," Jen teased him softly. It was almost like the old days back when she, Craig, Molly, and Justin were still a family and she was trying to rouse her son for school, except that she and Craig were no longer together and Justin most definitely wasn't a hormone-driven teenager anymore. It seems that some of his habits were still the same, though. She grabbed a mugful of coffee herself, along with a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon she had kept warming in the oven before joining him at the table. "Did you sleep well?" she asked as she placed the plate down in front of him; she had already placed some creamer and utensils at the table earlier, anticipating her son would awaken soon.

"Do I _look_ like I slept well?" he grumbled at her, hastening to curb his harsh words by admitting more softly, "No, I slept like shit. My mind was racing too much to really get a lot of sleep." He took a quick gulp of his coffee, gasping a little at the hot temperature; the overly hot liquid, though, somehow seemed appropriate considering his current temperament.

Jennifer eyed him sympathetically as she reached over with her free arm to grasp her son's wrist. He lifted his gaze from his coffee to stare at her as she replied, "I'm sorry to hear that, Sweetheart, but I'm not surprised; you've had a lot on your mind."

Justin snorted. "You have a knack for understatement, Mom; even if my brain was _twice_ as big it couldn't fit everything swirling around in my head right now." He sighed heavily. "I have no idea where to even start. I'm not sure how easy it's going to be to get the custody agreement changed prematurely, and I still have to deal with seeing Brian later tonight - at Britin. Not to mention I know the girls will be disappointed when they have to part again, even if Brian and I _are_ intending on letting them see each other a lot more now." He brushed one hand through his hair restlessly as he added, "And I fucking hate the idea of saying goodbye again to Katie, too."

"What about Brian?" Jennifer couldn't help asking as she gazed at her son's troubled face.

Justin feigned disinterest as he took another sip of his coffee and averted his eyes before he responded, "What _about_ him?"

Jennifer sighed now as she replied, "Justin...Do you really think it's going to be that easy to say goodbye again to him, too?"

"Mom, we've already discussed this," her son replied curtly as he turned his head to look at her, his blue eyes flashing in irritation. "Brian and I are ancient history. We've both moved on."

"Bullshit," was Jennifer's unexpected reply as Justin's eyes widened in surprise. "You are no more ancient history than the girls meeting at camp was. You two still have a lot to resolve - one way or the other. Tonight's your chance to do that, Justin. Until you can figure out where you and Brian stand, neither one of you can _move on_."

Justin huffed in exasperation. "Let's just drop it, okay? We've been down this road so many times before now; this is between Brian and me. You've 'contributed' enough already, Mom; please stay out of it, okay?" His heart hammering in his chest, he suddenly lost his appetite as he pushed back abruptly from the table. Taking one more swig of his coffee and feeling smothered all of a sudden, he dropped it a little too roughly down onto the table as he told his mother, "I have to get out of here. I'm going to go for a walk."

"Justin..."

Her son held up his hands in a silent command for her to stop as he said, "Drop it, Mother. I'll be back in plenty of time for dinner later; I'm still not sure it's a good idea, but I promised. And unlike someone _else _I plan to KEEP my promises." Snatching up his jacket from a nearby chair, he exited the kitchen and reached the front door in record time.

"Justin," Jennifer murmured sorrowfully as the door closed hard a few seconds later and the condo was bathed in silence. She felt so sorry for her son - she knew how much in turmoil he was. She didn't buy his "I've moved on" speech for one second, and she knew that Brian hadn't, either. At least he was still intending on driving out with her to Britin for dinner later.

The ringing of the phone jarred her from her morose thoughts as she walked over to the cordless wall phone and picked it up. "Hello?"

"Grandma?"

Jennifer couldn't help the soft smile on her face at the sound of her granddaughter's voice; which one was it, however? "Kaylee?" she ventured.

"No, Grandma, it's Katie. Is Daddy there with you?"

"No, Sweetheart, your father just left for a walk. Do you need for me to have him call you back when he returns?"

Katie sounded relieved as she replied, "No, I'm glad he's not there, because I need to ask you a favor."

Jennifer furrowed her brow curiously. "A favor?" After Justin had scolded her so angrily over her part in reuniting her granddaughters, she was a little hesitant to offer any more 'assistance.' "What kind of favor, Katie?"

"Tonight - when we're all together for dinner?"

Jennifer walked over with the phone and sat back down at the kitchen table as she said, "Yes?"

Katie glanced over at her sister who was listening in through the speakerphone feature; both of them had hurried upstairs to get dressed to accompany their father into Pittsburgh and were taking advantage of him being in the shower presently so they wouldn't be overheard. "Tonight before dinner Kaylee and I need for you to get our fathers alone so you can ask them something."

Now Jennifer was _really _curious. She was worried about meddling again, but she was more concerned with not taking advantage of what might be her and her granddaughters' one and only opportunity to get her son and Brian to open up some sort of cleansing dialogue between them. "What exactly do you want me to ask them, Katie?"

Katie took a deep breath before advising her, "We need for you to ask each of them to go downstairs to the wine cellar to get a bottle of wine before dinner. But they need to be alone when you ask them so each one doesn't know the other one has been asked. And you need to have them do it before the other one has a chance to come back up. I'll give you a vintage and year for a bottle that's located at the back of the wine cellar so it will take them a little longer to find it."

Jennifer shook her head warily, not bothering to wonder how her young granddaughter knew anything about wines, much less vintages; she knew that Brian certainly wasn't giving his daughter wine, so how did she know so much? "Katie...Exactly what do you and your sister have in mind?"

Katie winked at her sister before replying, "I think it's better that you don't really know, don't you? Please, Grandma. Can you do it? For us?"

Jennifer bit her lip pensively, torn as to which allegiance to side with. She sighed in resignation, knowing her decision had already been made. "I...I suppose so," Jennifer finally replied, her wish to see the girls - and fathers - happy again overriding her son's agitation should he find out she had a part in yet another scheme.

Katie glanced over at her sister before adding urgently so they could finish before their father got out of the shower, "There's one more favor we need, Grandma. Can you call Dad and tell him that you want to be the one to cook the meal for us instead of him? You won't really have to do it, but I need for you to act like you're going to anyway."

Jennifer's scrunched up her face curiously. _What a strange request. _"Let me get this straight, Katie; you want me to send Brian and Justin down to the wine cellar separately while the other one is still down there and you want me to offer to prepare dinner tonight, even though I won't have to actually do it?"

Katie nodded through the phone. "That's right. Can you do it, Grandma? Please? It's _really_ important."

"Katie...Honey...this doesn't make sense at all. Just what are the two of you up to now?"

Kaylee motioned with her hand to give her the phone as she put it up to her face to say, "Grandma, it's Kaylee. I'm with Katie up in her bedroom."

Jennifer couldn't help noticing that both girls were apparently conspiring together; she was so thankful that they had bonded so quickly in such a short time. "Hey, Honey," she greeted her. "You and Katie enjoying yourselves?"

Kaylee smiled over at her sister. "Yeah, it's been great. Listen, Grandma, we really need your help tonight. Will you please do it...For us? We have to get off soon so Dad doesn't hear us; he's in the shower right now. Please, Grandma; this is _soooo_ important." Kaylee turned the figurative screws perfectly, knowing just what pleading tone of voice to use to persuade her grandmother to help them. It had always worked before; would she be successful this time as well?

Jennifer let out the breath she had been holding. She never could say no to either of these vulnerable girls that reminded her so much of her son. "I still don't understand why," she said at last. "But okay; I'll give him a call a little later and offer to cook for us tonight. Won't he wonder, though, why I'm not bringing any food with me?"

The girls had already thought of that. "You won't need to," Kaylee told her. "If you and Daddy can get there a little early before we do, the dinner will already be made. You'll just have to heat it up and put it on the table. Dad will never know the difference."

Katie reached for the phone to retrieve it as she advised, "Grandma, it's Katie again. You do still have your emergency key to the house, don't you?"

Jennifer frowned; this was getting more and more peculiar. "Yes, I still have it," she confirmed to her. Brian had entrusted her with a house key to Britin for use when she needed to enter the house, either to take care of things while he and Katie were out of town on vacation or during the occasional times when Jennifer wanted to pick up Katie right after school to take her back to Pittsburgh to come stay with her. Sometimes she also took her to after-school events when Brian was unable to. "Katie...What am I supposed to tell your father? He will know that I didn't cook the meal. What if your Dad says something to me about it and he hears?"

Katie looked over at her sister apprehensively; they hadn't thought of that contingency. Kaylee shrugged her shoulders helplessly. "If Dad says something about how good it smells or something like that, just agree with him. And we'll try to keep Daddy away from him at first." She bit her lip anxiously. "Please, Grandma - will you do it? Will you take a chance on love for us?"

Jennifer had no way of knowing that her granddaughter was repeating the same words Brian had said to his 'prince' there at Britin when he had finally convinced Justin to accept his marriage proposal; Justin had never told her the specifics of that day and what Brian had said to persuade him that his intentions were real, preferring to keep that intimately personal moment to himself.

If she _had _known, though, perhaps she would have taken that as a good omen. In any case, she couldn't say no. She wasn't sure what her granddaughters had in mind, but she did know that it might be their best chance to make these two proud, stubborn men realize how much they needed to reconcile. "Okay, girls," she told them. "I'll do it."

* * *

><p><em>AN: Thanks to Boriqua522 for checking this over for me.:)_


	17. A Not So Fond Walk Down the Garden Path

_A/N: Justin arrives at Britin and has to confront his memories; the girls enlist help in their dinner scheme. _

* * *

><p>Justin absently fingered the delicate, twisted metal bracelet on his wrist as he watched the familiar terrain between Pittsburgh and West Virginia fly by. Why he had agreed to go back to Britin for dinner with Brian and his daughters was beyond him. Oh, he knew that he and his ex-partner would have to come to grips with occasionally seeing each other for the sake of their daughters, especially if they succeeded in changing the custody agreement, but did it have to take place at their old home? Why hadn't he just insisted that they meet back at his mother's condo instead? He glanced down at the adornment on his left wrist and wondered what had possessed him to keep wearing it after all this time. It had been a gift from Brian commemorating their first Christmas together after the girls had been born; the two strands of pewter and gold that were twined together were meant to not only symbolize their young twins, but Brian said in an uncharacteristically sentimental statement at the time that it also signified how they were two soul mates that were meant to always be together.<p>

He sighed very plaintively at that thought, a gesture so quiet that the sound went unnoticed by his mother who was in the driver's seat; apparently _always_ didn't last as long as it used to. He supposed he should take the damn thing off before they reached Britin to avoid any invariable comments about it or at the very least one elegantly-arched eyebrow lifted in unspoken question, but if he did it now he knew his mother would notice what he was doing and wonder about it. He had never explained the significance of it, merely telling her it was something he 'had picked up' for himself several years ago, and he didn't want to delve into the background surrounding it now. Instead, he turned once more to gaze out the window, his mind a jumble of mixed emotions, emotions that threatened to overwhelm him the closer he got to his old home - the home he had once shared so happily with Brian and their two daughters. The home that he had dared to think he might spend a lifetime of happiness in.

Jennifer glanced over at her son, biting her lip and fretting over her pending involvement in yet another scheme orchestrated by two young daughters who fervently wanted to bring their two fathers back together. She silently prayed that if her involvement were revealed her son would understand and forgive her for yet another intrusion into his life. Justin's inexplicable quietness hadn't escaped her notice, but she certainly understood it; it had been a long time since he had traveled back home and she could sense his nervousness and anxiety. She breathed in a tense breath between her lips and let it out before quietly saying with a reassurance that belied her inner turmoil, "Just a few more minutes, Honey."

Justin nodded mutely, his head still turned toward the window. He knew all too well how much longer it would take to get to Britin; God knows he had traversed that same path countless times before. What exactly would happen this time, though, once he got there? His mother had told him she wanted to leave a little earlier than necessary to account for any rush-hour traffic around Pittsburgh; they had made it out to West Virginia in record time, no doubt beating Brian there. Perhaps it was just as well, though; it was going to be strange enough coming to grips with his old home, much less seeing Brian and the girls back there. At least he would have a little bit of time to calm his nerves down and get used to the idea before they showed up.

Approximately ten minutes later, Jennifer slowed to turn into the long, curved driveway as Justin finally turned his head to gaze at the home he thought he might never see again. His breathing involuntarily quickened at the sight; even after more than a decade, the home was much like it had been before, only some of the pine trees surrounding the estate were much larger than he had remembered them. As he continued to stare at the residence, just as he feared it would so many memories began to instantly flow to the surface:

_Brian, crouched down in a catcher's stance in the driveway, clapping his hands and smiling in warm delight as Katie, who always seemed to be the daredevil of the two even at an early age, toddled slowly and uncertainly toward her father's outstretched arms as she began her first, unsteady walk on two feet, Justin walking closely behind her, ready to catch her if she started to fall on the hard pavement...  
><em>

_Two little girls, cheeks frosty and rosy from being in the crisp, winter air, squealing in joy as he and Brian clasped one girl firmly around the waist and accompanied them on two, hard-plastic, red toboggans as they slid down one of the gently-sloping side hills of their property. It would always be at least an hour before both girls would tire of this thrill, long after he and Brian had admittedly grown bone-weary and stiff from constantly pulling their precious cargo back up the hill to start all over again, but neither man would quit until their daughters had at least been happily worn out and ready to go inside for hot chocolate with mini marshmallows...  
><em>

_Kaylee tromping around the backyard in toy high heels, applying 'fake' lipstick to her lips from a hard, red plastic tube, giggling and throwing kisses to him and Brian as she whipped the ends of a bright pink feather boa dramatically around her neck festooned with not-so-precious jewels from her much-beloved jewelry case that she carried around her wrist like a Louis Vuitton handbag. Even then, Kaylee liked fashion so much that Brian always went around calling her his own little 'fashion diva' and questioning just whose genes she had been born with..._

_Brian and him carrying one twin each in a papoose-like knapsack on their backs as they took day hikes up into the low-lying, wooded mountains around their home, a wooden child's wagon pulled along behind him that carried all the accoutrements needed for a picnic - and some lovemaking while the twins slept later - held snugly in its bed. While they sipped wine from plastic goblets and fed each other 'ridiculously-romantic' crackers and brie and an occasional juicy, red grape, the twins would happily munch on their own picnic lunch, sitting on a separate, red-and-white checked blanket with miniature tea cups, plates, and saucers from their toy dishes. Even now it made Justin smile to think about how grown up they seemed to think they were as they took a fake drink of their tea from their plastic white cups decorated with dainty, pink roses while their little, chubby, pinkie fingers curled up just like an English lady's would. At that age they couldn't quite formulate a lot of words yet, but their smiles, shining, happy eyes and bubbly conversation that sometimes only THEY could understand had told him all he and Brian had needed to know, and he could still remember how happy, how fucking happy, he and Brian had been; how happy they had ALL been..._

Only after Jennifer had stopped the car and turned it off did Justin's mind revert back to the present - the stark reality of what was now, not what was then. He sighed once more and forced down the tears that threatened to fall as his mother turned to gaze over at him in what looked suspiciously like sympathy - or even worse, pity.

"I'm all right, Mom," he said a little more curtly than he meant to in response to her unspoken question. He bit his lip momentarily as he admitted, "It...it just brings back a lot of memories to be here, that's all."

Jennifer nodded, her own heart aching at the look on her son's face. It was obvious that the memories rising to the surface at that moment were painful; there was no way Justin could avoid it. She knew that her son and Brian had been very happy here - every time she had come out to visit them, the joy they shared was written all over both their faces. During that time, Justin had almost _glowed_ from the contentment and fulfillment he felt. It was a time she wished that could have gone on forever for her son's sake, but it had been over far too soon, just like the fading beauty of a rose in the fall. "I know," she told him softly. "But it has to be done, Justin. If the girls are to see each other regularly, you will have to confront your memories - and your feelings for Brian."

Justin bit his lip, a little aggravated but knowing his mother was right. It would be HIS responsibility to work things out with Brian, though, whatever path they may choose to walk - not his mother's or his daughters'. "Mom, I'm all grown up now and I can take care of myself. Please let me do this my way, okay?"

She pursed her lips together before nodding in agreement, too worried to tell him that she had already committed herself to being involved once more, unknown to him. She vowed, though, that it would be the LAST time; she loved her granddaughters tremendously, but Justin was right - when it came to matters of the heart, and especially the unique relationship and, yes, the love that still remained between him and Brian - her son was an adult and would have to work through his feelings for his ex-partner himself.

"Want to go in?" she asked as she came to a stop and turned the car off. She unlatched her seatbelt and opened the driver's side door to peer over at her son, who seemed to be hesitating before he let out a deep breath and finally nodded. As she emerged from the car, the sweet scent of numerous perennials blooming profusely around the grounds surrounded her and she couldn't help smiling at the marvelous fragrance. "Smell all of those flowers," she marveled. "So incredible."

Justin's eyes watered again as he closed the passenger car door and stood there dwarfed by the obscenely large Tudor home, a big, emotional lump forming in his throat as he re-memorized every line and angle of the residence again. He had spent many days here with their two girls while Brian was at work, planting bulbs all around the perimeter of the house in hopes of being rewarded with a vibrant blanket of color later. At the time, both girls had loved to dig their pink little fingernails into the rich soil, not so much concerned with planting bulbs that eventually would produce such a diversity of colors and smells, but more to luxuriate in the feel of the dense, wet material under their fingers. They always _did_ love to feel things - the gooier, slimier, stickier and dirtier the better, whether it was finger paints, caramel topping, wet sand at the beach, or rich, black, muddy soil, emitting giggles of glee whenever he dug down with a trowel and came up with a slippery, wriggly worm at the end; Katie especially had no qualms about picking up the struggling critters, holding them up to examine them closely before setting them back down with surprising gentleness so they could escape - but not before she had named each one of them, though, to Justin's amusement. Of course, often he couldn't figure out just what they had been named, but it didn't matter; it was funny as hell just the same.

Brian always acted like it drove him crazy, though, whenever he was met in the driveway with a couple of smudged, soiled little tomboys at the end of the day, but he always knew that his partner's look of disdain was just an act. If Brian really detested them being that way, he would never have been so willing to crouch down in his latest Armani suit and scoop each of them up into his arms to receive several slobbery, wet kisses on his mouth and cheeks or allow them to wrap their soiled clothing around his body and dirty hands around his neck to hug him as he pulled them closer and smiled down so tenderly at them. No, Brian loved them deeply for ALL their qualities...He _still_ did. That had never been in question.

He noticed now that his and his daughters' efforts to successfully plant so many perennials had been successful beyond his wildest dreams; everywhere you looked there were all shapes, colors and sizes of flowers: orange and burgundy Tiger Lilies, Lazy Susans, large, white Shasta daisies, Carnations in shades of whites, pinks, and reds, bright yellow poppies, and so many others as far as the eye could see, each one lovingly and meticulously planted by a father and his two young daughters so long ago. Back then things had seemed so easy, so wonderful...So _permanent_. In a way, it seemed like yesterday, but in another way it seemed like a lifetime ago.

"Yes," Justin murmured at last, sucking in a ragged breath and smelling the fragrant scents. "It's very beautiful." Justin slowly walked over to stand next to his mother, who placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "The girls and I planted all of these...before..." He found that he couldn't finish the sentence for some reason, merely choosing to let it drop that way he ended it as his voice trailed off into silence. He took in a deep breath before saying, "If you don't mind, I'd like to take a walk around the grounds before Brian and the girls get here; I have a lot of thinking to do."

Jennifer nodded sympathetically, actually breathing a sigh of relief because she could go inside and pretend that she was starting dinner, just like she had promised she would for the girls. She actually wasn't sure WHAT would greet her inside; only that they had promised her they would take care of the dinner issue themselves, how she had no idea. At least it would save her the dilemma of having to explain to Justin what was going on; she could merely pretend that she had found all the incidentals inside and had started the dinner herself. "Sure, Honey," she told him softly with a smile and a slight nod. "I understand. You go ahead." She wrapped her hand around her son's upper arm and pulled him briefly to her body for a hug before she let him go, watching him slowly walk toward the side of the house, lost in thought. She observed him pause in front of a large rosebush, an explosion of large, blush-colored blooms with just a hint of pink in the middle. He leaned down to gingerly cup one of the spectacular flowers with his hand and inhale the magnificent scent - a delicate-type fragrance that she could smell even from several feet away - before he turned and, with hands clasped behind his back, slowly wandered toward the corner of the house. Soon he was out of sight as she reached inside the pocket of her cream-colored, linen pants and retrieved her key that Brian had let her keep.

She quietly opened the door and closed it, immediately smelling a wonderful aroma coming from the kitchen. Obviously _someone_ had already prepared dinner for them, but how? She placed her handbag down on the foyer table as she walked down the hallway toward the back of the house, hearing the quiet banging of pots and pans now. She knew Brian wasn't home yet; she had received a text message from Katie about ten minutes ago, telling her that she, her sister, and her father were running a little late and were just now getting ready to leave Kinnetik. So it couldn't be them. Brian didn't really have a cook, either; there was a woman who came down from Pittsburgh every Sunday to drop off frozen, gourmet meals for the coming week so Brian merely had to warm them up, fix a quick salad, and some bread for a nutritious meal for him and his daughter. But he didn't have an actual cook, feeling it was an unnecessary expense. So who was in the kitchen, then?

As she came to the doorway, however, the answer was immediately clear. Their 'cook,' dressed in bright green leather-like pants and wearing a sheer, black, long-sleeved shirt, was swaying his hips to some upbeat tune on a pair of headphones as he hummed along with the music, unaware that he was being secretly observed with amusement at the moment. A long, wooden spoon was in his hand as he poured what appeared to be some sort of gravy over a large chunk of meat nestled inside a large, oval-sized Dutch oven sitting on top of one of the gourmet stove's six burners.

"Emmett," Jennifer called out as she walked closer, not wanting to scare him. The volume was apparently set quite high, because the man didn't turn around to acknowledge her. Raising her voice a little more, she called his name once again, but her overtures were ignored.

Quietly walking up to within a foot or two of him, she reached over and lightly tapped Emmett on the right shoulder from behind. As soon as her hand made contact, Emmett jumped at least a foot off the ground and came within a hair of dropping the spoon on the floor; only his quick reflexes and good, old-fashioned Southern luck allowed him to drop the spoon haphazardly into the pan as it made a splash, splattering some brown drops of gravy on his face and chest, along with a couple of spots on the front of his shirt.

"Shit!" he shrieked as he pulled his headphones off and placed them on his shoulders, turning around to confront his visitor; he quickly reached for a wet cloth he had lying nearby and began to dab at the gravy that thankfully wasn't quite hot enough to burn his skin. "You scared me to DEATH, Sugar! I thought it was Brian coming home early!" He looked around frantically, his heart still pounding from the scare he had received. "Where's my Tide-to-Go pen?" He asked unexpectedly as he spied the miniature tube lying nearby. "Gay boy's best product in a tube, next to lube anyway," he cracked as he quickly tugged at his top and began to dab where the gravy had landed on his shirt.

As usual whenever Jennifer encountered her son's friend, she had to stifle a laugh at his antics. Emmett was near and dear to her heart by now, always having treated Justin with both admiration and respect, but Emmett had certainly not changed much over the years. Oh, he was a little more filled out (read: slightly paunchier) than before, having stopped going to the gym on such a frequent basis now that the old gang had dispersed some time ago, but he was still the same over-the-top, flamboyant, no-holds-barred man he always had been. But he was also fiercely loyal to his friends, and the first to lend a hand when needed, though, so she wasn't totally surprised by his presence here.

"How did you get in here?" she asked curiously.

Emmett smiled as he laid the stain pen down and reached over to retrieve a single key hanging from a Soccer Ball key ring that was lying nearby on the counter. "Katie told me where to find the extra key," he told her as he twirled it around his finger. "I drove out here and parked down the street and walked the rest of the way. Believe you me, too, Honey - apparently they don't see a lot of men walking down the street in the latest fashion; I had mouths open as wide as the Grand Canyon staring at me when they drove by."

Jennifer laughed at that description; she had no doubt that Emmett made quite the featured attraction. "I can imagine," she told him as Emmett grinned back at her. She sobered somewhat as she told him, "You know Justin's here with me," she advised him. "What if he had come in just now?"

"I would have said it was fabulous to see him again, and told him that Brian had asked me to help out with dinner," he explained. "But I'm glad he didn't come in with you so I don't have to make up an excuse; I never WAS good at withholding the truth from that boy. Where IS he, anyway?" He wanted fervently to see his old friend again, but this particular task was much more important. As much as he retained ambivalent feelings toward Brian Kinney, he still never hesitated to do his part when true love was at stake, and two little girls had pleaded with him over the phone to help reunite their fathers again. He always HAD had a hard time saying no to blue-eyed blondes that batted their eyelashes at him, anyway, and two against one? Well, that was just damn unfair...

"He decided to take a quick walk around outside before he came in," she told him as he nodded. She took a whiff of what was on the stove nearby. "Mmmm," she murmured with an appreciative smile, despite her nervousness over the evening's events. "That smells heavenly. What _is_ it?"

Emmett beamed at her, his eyes twinkling. "It's my Aunt Lula's Angus Beef Brisket with Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Caramelized Onions - or as I like to call it, Sex in a Pot. Last time I served this to Calvin, he said to me, 'Baby, that brisket brings out the brown in your eyes' and my eyes aren't even _brown_! What was he thinking? Believe me, though; one whiff of THIS stuff and the boys will have some _other_ type of meat in mind." At Jennifer's red face, he hastily added, "Oops! Forget I said that; don't worry - it tastes damn _good_, too."

Jennifer smiled a little self-consciously, still not quite comfortable with such blatant references to sex. "I'm sure it is," she told him. She frowned. "I still don't understand what the girls' plan is, though, do you? I mean, it's just dinner with Brian, the girls and me."

"Is it?" was the mysterious reply as Emmett winked at her. "I'd better head out before a certain fly enters the spider's web. I'm running late already. If you get a chance, tell the girls that I've got everything handled, okay? The rest is up to them now. I'm going to slip out the side garage door while I still have the chance."

Jennifer shook her head in confusion, not understanding what was going on at all; perhaps it was better that she didn't know, though... "Yeah, of course, Emmett, I'll tell them. Be careful," she warned him as he turned to leave. "Justin's still out there and Brian and the girls should be here any minute." Emmett nodded in understanding and grinned before, with a quick pirouette on his heels and a gentle admonition to put the dinner back into the oven to keep it warm, he hurried over to the door that connected the kitchen with the three-car garage and with a quick wave of his hand, disappeared from sight.

Jennifer sighed; this whole evening was getting stranger and stranger by the minute. Turning back to the meal, she reached over to retrieve the glass dome to the heavy pot and, putting it back on top, she grabbed a couple of oven mitts and placed the dinner back into the low-temperature oven. Having been in the house on numerous occasions before and being familiar with where everything was, she then turned her attention to opening up the top cupboard over the sink and began to set the table in the adjacent dining room, anything to keep her mind preoccupied.

A few minutes later, she heard one of the metal garage doors being opened and then the sound of car doors slamming. It didn't take long for the door from the garage to the kitchen to be flung open and one of the girls to come rushing in.

"Grandma!" her granddaughter cried out as Kaylee - or Katie, she didn't know which - came running up to her and pulled her into a fierce hug. "I'm so glad to see you!" Her sister followed close on her heels as Jennifer noticed both were wearing similar clothing, recognizing them both as outfits of Katie's. As she looked at how identical they looked - from their type of clothing to their hairstyle and even the lip gloss they were wearing - she realized why Justin had been having so much trouble figuring out which girl was which; she couldn't tell, either.

She glanced up as Brian came in behind them, carrying his leather laptop bag which he deposited down on the small desk located by the garage door. "Jennifer," he greeted her with a nod as he removed his suit jacket and draped it over the desk's chair. She could see him looking around curiously and instantly knew what - or who - he was looking for. She watched as his face fell, no doubt thinking that Justin had backed out at the last minute. "He's here," he reassured him. "You didn't see him outside?" she asked.

Brian frowned, his heart beginning to beat again at her response. "Outside?"

She nodded her head. "He said he wanted to take a walk around the grounds, so I thought you might have seen him when you pulled up."

Brian shook his head, wondering why Justin was outside but enormously relieved that he hadn't changed his mind about having dinner with them. He was nervous as hell, though; this wasn't just a dinner with his ex-partner's mother and their two daughters. He was convinced this might be his last chance to get through to Justin, his last chance to make him listen to reason - to listen to his heart.

"No, I didn't see him," he told her as both girls wound their arms around their grandmother and Jennifer pulled them close. "How was he? I mean, what was his mood?" He couldn't help wondering; he was craving any hint as to how Justin would react tonight to his wish for them to hash everything out and move beyond it. He wanted so much more than just a civil discourse on how to handle the custody of their daughters, although that was certainly a priority. He wanted some time alone with Justin, some time to try and make him understand that his love for him had never disappeared.

Both girls peered up at her as she responded quietly, "He has a lot on his mind, Brian; he was pretty quiet on the way out. He...This house; it's hard for him to be here again."

Brian nodded; he could certainly understand what Justin might be going through. Just the thought of his ex-partner finally being back at Britin brought a lot of memories surging back up for _him_, too; a lot of GOOD ones for sure, but some painful ones as well...He gazed over at the source of why so many memories had been happy ones, though; of that he would be forever grateful and it helped to keep his spirits up and his hopes alive.

"It does for all of us," he told Jennifer honestly. He sighed. "I think I might know where he is. I'll be back in a few minutes, okay?" He gazed into his daughters' faces and gave them a reassuring smile. "You two can stay here and help your grandmother out with dinner."

Wanting to go with their father, but also knowing they needed some time to talk to their grandmother, both girls reluctantly nodded in agreement as Brian walked over to the double French doors leading out to the backyard and opened them up to walk outside. Jennifer waited for him to close the doors behind him before she said, "I'm glad we have some time alone, girls. Maybe NOW you can tell me what in the world you're both up to so I know what to expect. I already know that Emmett's involved with this, by the way, because I caught him here in the kitchen earlier. Don't worry," she hastened to reassure them as she noticed a look of panic appear in her granddaughters' eyes. "Neither one of them knows he was here; he sneaked out of the house through the garage while your father was walking around the grounds and he was gone before you got here."

Katie huffed out a breath of disbelief. "Em was supposed to get here two HOURS ago!" she exclaimed. "He could have spoiled the whole thing!" Katie and Kaylee looked over at each other in relief that he hadn't been detected as they let go of their grandmother. Kaylee nodded back at her in a silent type of communication in response to her sister's unspoken question as Katie instantly understood. "Okay, Grandma," she said as her eyes lit up with a sort of conspiratorial glow. "Here's what we have in mind."

* * *

><p>Brian walked steadfastly along the curved, meandering, stone path behind the house that traveled from the back of the residence to the stables a couple of hundred feet away; over the years what was once just a dirt field trail worn down by time and situated behind the grassy backyard had been transformed into a shady garden spot with the help of a team of professional landscapers. It had always been Justin's dream to change the open, untouched area into a spot for mediation and reflection, and thanks in part to his attempt to honor his ex-partner's wishes the pathway was barely recognizable now from what it used to be. There had been numerous shade trees planted along the way that were now mature and elegantly curved, providing plentiful shade, along with several perennial bushes and flowers, a koi pond teeming with large, plump goldfish and lily pads that served as launching points for the bullfrogs that loved to laze on top of them, and a couple of stone benches and three marble sculptures along the route that had been custom designed from photos he had used of Kaylee and Katie when they were younger. One depicted them as two little girls walking hand in hand together, another one of Katie on her first swing, her face glowing with delight and her hair flying in the wind, and another one of Kaylee standing with her arms outstretched like they both used to do whenever one of them wanted either him or Justin to pick them up and give them a 'raspberry;' slang they always used with the girls to mean a wet, slobbery kiss that the girls always excelled in giving and something which they both loved to receive. Brian knew that it always turned him into a big mound of emotional mush every time it happened, especially when either girl would nuzzle their face into his neck and whisper "I love you" to him. Even now, just the memory filled him with both happiness as well as longing for what used to be and could never be recovered again. Perhaps, though, if things would only go right, he, Justin, and the girls could start making some <em>new <em>memories...

Brian expected to see Justin sitting on one of the stone benches, no doubt lost in thought just like HE was. But to his mild surprise, he wasn't. In his mind, then, that left only one more possibility where he might be. Walking further, he rounded the corner of the walkway that at last revealed the stables at the other end and knew he had been right: he could see into the open doors of the structure and his heart skipped a beat as he spied Justin standing near Cerus' stall, stroking the side of the horse's neck as he looked up into the horse's eyes. As he got closer, he could hear Cerus' telltale, soft neighing, indicating the horse knew exactly who Justin was. Justin always _had _been the horses' favorite; BOTH horses. It had always been a running joke between them that he had garnered their affection so strongly. Justin always used to tease him that HE had taken over as 'chief stud' now as he liked to call it. At least as far as the horses went, Brian had been forced to agree with him. It might have had to do with the fact that Justin spoiled them terribly during the day when he was at work with grooming and indulgences such as sugar cubes and apples, among other things. But in a way he thought it might have more to do with the soothing tone of his voice as he spoke to them, just like he was doing now as he murmured words of greeting to the smaller of the two horses. He could see Eton in the stall next to them, his head leaning toward the two of them as if straining to get the same treatment.

"Don't worry," he could hear Justin telling Eton with a soft chuckle. "I haven't forgotten you." He watched, transfixed, as Justin reached inside his pocket and took out a cube of sugar and held it out in his hand, palm up, as he leaned over to place it under the other horse's lips. Brian heard his ex-partner giggle as the horse's lips tickled his skin, just like he _always_ did before, and Brian couldn't take his eyes away from the scene. It was surreal seeing his ex-partner back where he used to be, acting precisely the same way he always did when he came out to the stables. Except now their little girls weren't so little anymore, and Justin wasn't the young, blond twink he used to be. He was a beautiful, mature man now, more self-assured, more physically defined and more elegant in a way. One thing was the same, though - the sight of him still made Brian's pulse quicken with desire and his heart pound in anticipation. He swallowed hard as he walked closer to the open barn, wondering how to approach Justin. He was finding himself at a loss all of a sudden, feeling oddly awkward and unsure of himself. It was a feeling he wasn't used to experiencing; it only seemed to happen when this man was involved.

Justin heard just enough of a soft snap of a twig to know he suddenly wasn't alone; he knew before he even turned around who it would be, but his heart began to pound anyway. As he turned slightly to see Brian standing about ten feet away, he bit his lip nervously, inwardly cursing his body's reaction to him. He was wearing a dark blue, almost black silky type of dress shirt with a black-and-silver pinstriped tie loosely hanging around his neck; the shirt had been unbuttoned a few buttons, exposing the "V" of Brian's bronzed skin, still tight and smooth like he remembered. A pair of what was no doubt custom-fit, tailored black slacks strained against Brian's legs as he stood there gazing back at him with a sort of inscrutable look on his face. His expression was definitely hard to read; thoughtful, yes, and intense, but beyond that he couldn't see behind the visage or the eyes gazing into his to know what he was truly feeling. If it was anything like his _own_ feelings at the moment, however, he knew the same memories were probably all bubbling back to the surface just like his were. He couldn't help thinking once more as he stared over at him how magnificently Brian had aged; despite the horrid man who had been his father, apparently Brian had inherited the type of genes that made him age gracefully, because he was still stunning and oh-so-handsome.

"Your mother told me you had gone for a walk around the grounds," Brian told Justin softly. One side of his mouth turned upward into a slight smile as he added, "I thought I might find you out here; or else sitting on one of the benches." As he continued to once again drink in the sight of his partner, standing there like he always used to do, he longed to walk over and sweep him up into his arms, to murmur words of both regret as well as hope that they could finally put everything behind him, but the rigid stance of his former lover stopped him. Justin had his arms hugged across his chest, almost as if he were trying to keep his heart from escaping as Brian locked stares with him. He thought he saw the flicker of something else flash across the blue eyes before the veil of protection dropped back down firmly into place.

Justin, however, was currently anything but sure of himself; as he stood there, it was all he could do not to run over and plaster his lips against Brian's, to feel the touch of his arms again, to smell his unique, masculine scent that always made him wild with desire for him. To his consternation but not his surprise, those feelings had not abated after all these years; if anything, the separation from his former partner had made it more pronounced. But the strongest of his emotions presently - his damn, stubborn, righteous pride - wouldn't allow him to act on his true feelings, so he remained locked in place, firmly kept at what he thought was a safe distance from his ex-lover. _WAS_ there such a thing as a 'safe distance,' though, when Brian was involved? Somehow he knew that he was only lying to himself if he thought that were true.

"The walkway..." he began as Brian stared back at him studiously, waiting for him to respond. "When did you do that?" he asked curiously as he shuffled nervously side to side on his feet; he jumped slightly as he felt Cerus nuzzling his neck unexpectedly, no doubt looking for some more treats. "Not now, Boy," he chided the horse as it whinnied in reaction. He moved just far enough away from the animal so he couldn't repeat the ticklish action. "That's it for now."

Brian had to smile over at him at his reaction, remembering so many times that had happened before, and Justin found himself returning the smile just a bit as he heard his ex-partner tell him softly, "I did it the spring after you left."

Justin furrowed his brow. "Why?"

Brian shrugged, feeling unexpectedly like he was being probed under a microscope as the blue eyes gazed back at him intently. "You wanted it done," he answered by way of quiet explanation. "And I promised you I would," he added in a whisper, realizing how odd that sounded under the circumstances. "Did you see the sculptures?" Justin hadn't thought of including that part in the initial plans, but somehow he knew he would still like them, at least he _hoped_ so. The ironic part was that he didn't know if Justin would ever see them, though.

The left side of Justin's mouth curled up into a tender smile as he thought back to his first glimpse of them; his heart had stopped in his throat as he had recognized his daughters and what Brian had done in his absence. "Yes, of course," he admitted, his eyes locked on Brian's in a show of appreciation. "I...I was surprised to see them. I never expected that. That's probably my favorite part, actually."

Brian nodded, noticing the grudging respect for what he had done in his ex-lover's voice. "I thought you would like them."

Justin frowned. "You didn't even know I would ever see them," he pointed out.

"No," Brian admitted quietly. "But I _hoped_ you would - one day."

Justin pondered that statement silently as he turned his gaze away, unable to look at Brian any longer for fear he would realize his fortitude was quickly slipping away the longer he stayed in his presence. All the memories he had tried so hard to keep inside, to lock away to a colder part of his heart, were quickly beginning to surface again and he found that he was powerless to avoid it, unable to tamp them down like he wanted. And just when he thought he had perhaps gotten them under control again, the man would go and do something like finishing the meditation garden he had dreamed of completing and he would totally throw him off balance again. All he knew at that moment was that he had to get away from there, away from Brian, and somehow manage to survive one evening with him. Just one evening, and then he could go back to his mom's and not have to deal with the memories any more.

"The girls with you?" he asked Brian finally as he turned his gaze back to peer over at his ex-partner, finding Brian still looking over at him silently; he apparently hadn't moved one inch from his spot near the stable doors. Brian nodded in confirmation, his face partly in shadow as the long rays of the sun began to recede into the horizon.

Justin nodded back at him. "Well, I'm sure they're wondering where we are and dinner's probably getting cold; we'd better get back to the house, then."

_Where it's safer, Justin? _Brian couldn't help asking mutely. Was it safer for Justin, though, or for HIM? He reckoned that _nowhere_ was far enough to be 'safe,' not if the feelings coursing through him were any indication. To his satisfaction, though, he had a feeling that Justin's emotions weren't exactly under control at the moment, either. Justin might be trying to hide that fact, but he knew he was right just the same.

He held out his hand toward the walkway. "After you, Sunshine," he told his ex-partner politely, standing to one side of the doors expectantly.

"I know the way," Justin told him stiffly, secretly afraid to walk any closer. Besides, he knew Brian was simply taunting him, daring him and he wasn't going to rise to the bait.

"I would hope so," Brian quipped. "You don't look feeble just yet." He pursed his lips together into a challenge, knowing his stubborn ex-partner would be unable to resist. "You're afraid," he told him accusingly. "You can't handle being close to me, can you?" _There...He knew THAT would do it..._He found out that he didn't have long to wait at all.

"I'm not afraid," Justin retorted promptly just like Brian knew he would. "Don't flatter yourself."

"Then let's go; you said yourself that dinner's getting cold." Brian continued to hold his hand out like he was some asinine tour guide until Justin huffed in resigned irritation and began to walk toward him, toward the only way out of the stables, but also toward distinct danger.

The closer he got to Brian, the more his heart began to pound; he could feel his face beginning to flush with heat as he strove to keep his gaze steady and sure. Inside, however, his stomach was doing somersaults, nervous knots coiling around his body like tightly wound serpents...

Just as he thought he had managed to successfully call Brian's bluff and ignore him (at least as best he could), he felt a muscular arm grab him around the waist a couple of seconds later as his body was thrown flush against his ex-partner's; he instinctively brought his hands up to Brian's chest to try and steady himself, noting with a little surprise that Brian's heart was beating just as rapidly as his own. "Let me go, Brian!" he growled as he began to push his palms against Brian's chest in an attempt to free himself. But it was no use; both arms were now securely bound around his waist and linked behind his back like a steel trap. "This is ridiculous! Stop this shit right now!"

"Stop what?" was the husky reply as Brian's eyes bored into his; Justin's hands immediately stilled and he found himself frozen to the spot as he gazed into the hazel orbs, unable to blink his own eyes or even breathe. He could feel Brian's warm breath on his face as he spoke; unable to give away what he knew must be written all over his face, he turned his head in an unsuccessful attempt to avoid looking at Brian, but that merely gave his ex-lover an opportunity to lean in and nuzzle the pale flesh of his exposed neck that he was so conveniently offering. He gasped at the sensation of Brian's lips on his skin, soft, probing, and warm, oh so warm and oh so familiar, even after all these years. _God_..._No...Please..._

"Justin..." The voice was soft, alluring, full of need, full of want, full of longing. It was obvious that he was having the same effect on Brian, but he couldn't do it. He couldn't give in to what his body was so desperately wanting him to take and go down that path again.

Justin began to struggle anew. "Brian, I said stop it," he repeated firmly as he pushed again on the rock-hard chest. He could feel the beginnings of arousal between them, which made time critical; just one more minute in this man's arms and he would do whatever the fuck Brian wanted him to do, principles and pride be damned. So he thought of the only possible way that he could hope to take control of the situation. "Is this your tactic now? Are you going to _force_ yourself on me? Is that how it's going to be? I thought you had more class than that, Brian."

The effect was akin to throwing water in Brian's face as he instantly let go of Justin and stood back, his face red and awash with anger and hurt. His voice was hard-edged as he responded, "I don't have to _force_ myself on anyone, Mr. Taylor. Have it your way. Let's go." He leaned against one of the weathered, wooden doors as he folded his arms across his chest and glared over at him.

Justin forced his breathing to slow down as he nodded, feeling unexpectedly guilty and remorseful over his actions, but unable or unwilling to take back what he had done. He felt Brian's heated stare as he passed by him and emerged out into the quickly-cooling dusk; it felt comforting against his heated, sweaty skin. Just as he had gotten about ten feet away, however, he heard Brian clearly say behind him, "Don't kid yourself, Justin; I wouldn't have had to force you to do _anything_."

Justin paused for a moment, his back to Brian, realizing how true that statement was, before he let out a tense breath and proceeded on down the walkway toward the house, his ex-partner following along at a safe distance behind him.

* * *

><p><p>

_A/N: I will have another update to this story in the next day or so; I decided to break it up into two parts so I could post this segment faster. Next up is the dinner! **Thanks as always to boriqua522 for being my beta and for watching my back - you're awesome, my dear.:)**  
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	18. Breaking Point

_The girls' scheme takes flight, but will it have the result they hope for? Brian gives Justin a choice to make. *Finally some physical contact, but angst alert here!*  
><em>

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><p><em>A Few Minutes Later...<em>

"I see them!" Kaylee called out excitedly to her sister and grandmother as she stood by the back door. Night was quickly approaching, but she could still clearly make out two forms walking back toward the house. She quickly jumped away from the French doors, not wanting her fathers to think she was spying on them as she hurried over to the others near the stove. "Get ready, Grandma!" she urged Jennifer. "Daddy needs to go first; Katie and I will take care of Dad when he gets here."

Jennifer nodded in agreement, her heart racing now that they were about to put her granddaughters' plan to the test. She wasn't sure if they would be successful, but at least this would force both stubborn men to talk to each other. That would be a start at least. "I'm as ready as I'll ever be," she told them. All three turned at the sound of the French doors being opened to observe Justin walking in first.

Jennifer noticed the glum look on her son's face and her heart dropped a little; it was obvious that things were still tense between her son and his ex-partner. Justin's locked gazes on her and gave a slight shake of his head as if he were asking her not to ask any questions; his face transformed into a tender smile upon spying his daughters nearby, however. "Hi, girls," he called out to them as they came rushing over to hug him at the waist. His hands reached out to pull each of them closer as he embraced them tightly, his eyes closing for a few seconds before he let them go. "Did you have a good time together today?" he asked them. He noticed both girls were wearing similar outfits; apparently their plan to be evasive about which one was which was still in effect. He wouldn't be surprised if Brian had put them up to it, even though he had insisted that he hadn't.

Both girls nodded; they were unable to answer his question before Brian walked in through the still-open door. He and Justin stared at each other for a moment, some sort of silent communication passing between them, before he nodded over at his daughters. "Well, if it isn't the Bobbsey twins," he quipped with a smirk as his two daughters looked at him in confusion. "I'll explain later," he told them as he looked over at Jennifer who was standing at the kitchen counter with a large bowl in front of her, using a pair of oversized, wooden forks to mix up some salad. "Jennifer," Brian acknowledged her with a soft smile and a nod; despite his and Justin's differences, he had always maintained a high degree of affection and respect for his ex-partner's mother, and to her credit they had kept their relationship cordial and pleasant, mainly due to the love they shared for his and Justin's two girls. He sniffed the air. "Something smells good," he told her.

"Hi, Brian," she greeted him, trying hard to keep the nervousness out of her voice. She still hated all the deception that was going on, but again she told herself it might just do some good. She hurriedly wiped her now-sweaty palms against a towel lying next to her on the counter as she advised, "Dinner should be ready soon. I just need to wait until the bread is done; shouldn't be long."

"Dad, can you take a quick look at our cellphone? I think there's something wrong with it. It's in the library on top of your desk. Please?" Katie urged him with a quick wink at her sister as she walked over and pulled on Brian's hand.

"_Our_ cellphone?" Brian repeated in amusement over their cunning choice of words as Justin snorted softly nearby in frustration; apparently the twins weren't planning on giving up their little game of Charades anytime soon.

"That can wait, girls," Brian told them gently as their faces fell a little in temporary defeat. "I don't want Jennifer to keep dinner waiting and I need to go wash up; you, too."

"It'll just take a minute," Kaylee cajoled him, joining with her sister to use her best, most persuasive tone of voice. If this didn't work they would be out of luck. They had to get their father away for just a moment, just long enough to...

"You could wash up in the bathroom down the hall," she quickly suggested as she batted her baby-blue eyes up at him; even though she had only been reacquainted with her father for a brief time, she already knew he never could resist that. She suspected someone _else_ used to do that, too, and she had a feeling he normally got what HE wanted when he did that as well. "Please, Dad? It was dropped earlier and now it's acting kind of funny."

Brian sighed as he glanced over at Justin, who was leaning against the kitchen counter, silently watching the whole interaction. "What have I told you girls about being more careful with your things?" His voice was scolding but devoid of any real anger as he shook his head. "Okay, I'll take a quick look at it. But if I can't fix it right way it'll have to wait until later, okay?"

Katie smiled in relief, casting a grateful glance over at Kaylee for being so persuasive. "Uh, sure, Dad. Thanks. I'll show you where it is." She began to tug on her father's hand as he allowed her to pull him toward the hallway.

"We'll be right back," he told Jennifer as she nodded. As soon as he was out of earshot, she took a deep breath and turned to her son; time for the next part of the girls' plan. "Honey, would you go downstairs to the wine cellar and get us a bottle of wine for dinner?"

Justin frowned. "Wine cellar? _What_ wine cellar?"

"The one down in the basement," Kaylee helpfully supplied nearby. "Dad had it put in a few years ago." She tried to put as much confidence in her voice as she could muster, making it sound like she had known about it for years, even though she hadn't been all that familiar with _any_ of the house until she had done some exploring on her own and her dad had told her more about it recently. Despite having lived there before as a young child, she recalled very little from that time.

"How convenient for him," Justin dryly responded as he looked over at his mother. What _else_ did he not know about this house? He paused. "Brian would be better to go do it, then, don't you think? He said he'd be right back."

From her place nearby, Kaylee bit her bottom lip anxiously. That would definitely NOT work. She watched intently as she noticed her grandmother contemplating how to respond, silently pleading with her to think of something.

"Probably, but I can tell you exactly what kind I want and where it is, and dinner's almost ready. Would you mind?" Jennifer asked him with a smile, hoping her son would go along with her wishes.

Justin sighed, a sort of melancholy, sorrowful sigh that went straight to his mother's heart, before he nodded finally in agreement; she knew his mood had nothing to do with her request, though. "Okay," he told her as Kaylee's eyes lit up hopefully. She glanced over at her grandmother who was trying to keep a decidedly neutral expression on her face. "What kind do you want?"

"I wrote it down," she told him as she reached inside her pants pocket. "I think a burgundy would go really well with the meal. The girls told me the red wines are located at the far end of the cellar."

He glanced over at his daughter standing in the kitchen with them, again realizing he didn't know which one it was; she merely gazed back at him with a sort of odd grin on her face, obviously enjoying his befuddlement. Apparently she wasn't going to be offering him any clues as to her identity anytime soon, either.

"Oh they did, did they?" he responded wryly. "Well, in that case why not have one of _them_ go down and get it?" Justin asked her, walking over to retrieve the information. He didn't really mind doing it, but this business of constantly trying to figure out which daughter was which was starting to wear thin with him. He was quickly beginning to feel like one soldier in a battle against a legion of others in this house.

"Justin..." Jennifer figured this would need to be an Emmy-winning performance as she pressed him, "Please. I want to get the table completely set and if you go get it now I can have the wine on the table and ready to pour by the time they get back. You know how I am about keeping things on schedule."

Justin twisted his face in resignation as he studied her face. "Yeah, that's certainly true," he told her, remembering how she used to be a regular taskmaster when it came time for him to get ready for school. He glanced down at the information his mother had scrawled on the paper. "Okay, I'll be right back," he told her in agreement as he turned and walked down the hallway toward the door leading to the basement.

As soon as he was out of earshot, Jennifer let out a huge sigh of relief as she looked over at her granddaughter. "For a second, I wasn't sure he was going to buy it," she admitted as Kaylee nodded. "That's one; now we need your dad back here."

Kaylee nodded eagerly, her heart pumping madly as she realized how urgent their time was. Everything had to occur in precise timeframes or it would all be for naught. "Katie! Dad!" she yelled out. "Dinner's almost ready!" That was her pre-arranged signal to her twin that it was time for the next part of their plan to go into action.

* * *

><p>Down in the basement, Justin turned on the light switch at the top of the bare, wooden stairs, noticing immediately that Brian had done some extensive remodeling since the last time he had been there. Before, the basement had been an unfinished area with block, stone walls and a bare cement floor and was used mainly for storage; one part of the room had been partitioned off to form a decent-sized laundry room at one time, but since the basement ran the entire length of the house, there had still been an enormous, unused space in the rest of the area. Brian, however, had apparently decided to take advantage of how cool the lowest level of the house always was to install a state-of-the-art wine cellar at the far end; the cement floor had been completely replaced with what appeared to be a rich color of hardwood laminate, and the stone block walls had been plastered over with a smooth, painted matte finish in a calming, sage green color; additionally, one large corner of the basement had been walled off into yet another separate area. The door was presently closed to it, however, so he couldn't figure out what it was for. He was curious to know, but he realized his mother was expecting him back shortly for dinner, so he turned to walk toward the rear of the basement where the wine cellar had been constructed, vowing to find out later.<p>

As he walked over to the wine cellar area, he gazed in amazement at row upon row of bottles lying on their sides in custom-built pigeonholes, their labels sticking up so they could more easily be read. They were classified by type of wine and year of vintage, according to the nameplates fastened to the walls at various points; there must have been at least a hundred bottles stored there. It would take a virtual lifetime for Brian to drink them, he thought, unless he often brought 'visitors' to Britin to help him out. Just the notion of his ex-partner entertaining men in their former home produced a sour taste in his mouth which he refused to identify as jealousy before he promptly quashed it down. He hoped the enormous wine supply was more for business clients or used for gifts to woo potential new accounts than for lovers; while he didn't doubt that Brian probably DID have men over on occasion, he didn't think he would flaunt them in front of their daughter, though.

He brought his mind back to the present as he peered down at the handwritten note his mother had given him; she had written the vintage and type of a red wine on it; all he knew other than that was that it would be near the back of the cellar according to her. Twisting his lips in concentration, he slowly began to walk toward the back, stopping periodically to search for the bottle she wanted. "What difference does it really make?" he grumbled softly; he was in no mood to 'celebrate,' but he continued to search nonetheless, wondering if he should take some gulps from one of the other bottles to build up his fortitude. Something told him he was going to need it tonight during dinner...

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><p><em>Same Time Upstairs<em>

Kaylee breathed a sigh of relief as her father came back into the kitchen, Katie practically pulling him along at breakneck speed to hurry things up.

"Where's the fire, Princess?" Brian murmured in amusement, looking around curiously for Justin. He was trying to act subtle and nonchalant about it, but something told him from the knowing looks he was receiving from his two daughters that he was failing miserably. _Am I that transparent to them_? he couldn't help thinking.

"We're hungry, Dad."

He smirked. _Where had he heard THAT before_? "Well, tell your other father that; _he's_ the one with the big appetite. Where is he?"

Kaylee and Katie had already rehearsed their answer to that question. "He went upstairs to wash up, too," Kaylee told him, the lie falling smoothly from her lips. "He'll be right down." She peered over at her grandmother, trying to flash a look to her that urged her to speak up.

Fortunately for them, Jennifer immediately took the hint. "Uh, Brian? Do you mind if we enjoy some wine with dinner?"

"Oh, I think I can scrounge a bottle up somewhere," he teased her, knowing he had a virtual endless supply downstairs. "What kind would you like?"

Parroting her previous action with Justin, she reached into her pocket to retrieve a similar piece of paper. "How about a burgundy? I think it would go great with the beef."

Brian nodded. "Sure thing," he told her as he reached over for the paper. He smiled as his two daughters jiggled nervously on their feet, not realizing they were scared that their other father would be back upstairs any minute. "You've got good taste, Jennifer," he told her with grudging respect as he read off which type and year of wine she wanted. "Or should I say _expensive _taste. I LIKE that in a person," he told her with a grin. "I'll be right back." He turned to walk toward the door heading down to the basement as both girls bit their lips in apprehension. _Hurry...Hurry...Please..._

"Go!" Kaylee hissed at her sister in an urgent whisper as Katie nodded; she quietly rushed down the hallway toward the basement door just as their father closed it behind them. She waited just a few seconds, long enough for her father not to detect what she was doing, before she firmly turned the deadbolt to engage it. Her heart pounding triumphantly in excitement, she turned to look over at her sister and her grandmother, flashing them a 'thumbs up' sign and a big grin of accomplishment.

Kaylee jumped up and down wildly in glee, wanting eagerly to whoop out a congratulations along with it but knowing now wasn't the time. She turned to her grandmother with a big smile on her face, so like her father's. "We did it, Grandma; we did it!"

Jennifer nodded, her own heart pounding in anticipation. "Well, you managed step one," she gently reminded her. "The rest is up to your fathers now. You know, neither one of them is going to be happy when they find out what you two did." _What they ALL did_, she couldn't help thinking. She and Emmett were up to their elbows in it as well...

"I don't care," Kaylee told her, her chin jutting out in defiance. "They're just too stubborn for their own good." Katie walked up to join her co-conspirators, her arm wrapping around her sister's in a show of support. "They love each other, and they need to quit acting so childish. Maybe now they'll actually talk things out."

"If they don't kill each other first," Jennifer murmured. Her face softened at the look of hope in both her granddaughters' eyes. "I want things to work out for them, too," she told them with a tender smile. "Just...don't get your hopes up too much, girls. They have a lot to talk about first."

"But they love..."

"I know, Kaylee," Jennifer told the granddaughter who was most like Justin when it came to the emotions she wore so clearly on her sleeve; everything was so simple to her. _If only it COULD be that easy_. "I know. But sometimes love isn't enough, Honey. If it were, they would still be together."

"Well, they're not getting out of there until they've forgiven each other," Katie chimed in, her lips forming a determined line. "That's all there is to it."

Jennifer chuckled softly as she reached to enfold both of her granddaughters in a firm embrace. "Oh, girls," she told them tenderly. "If hopes and dreams are enough to get what you want, then we shouldn't have any problems. But just the same, I'll keep my fingers crossed, too." She grunted softly as she squeezed them hard for a second before letting them go. "Well, I don't think we're going to get any wine for a while tonight," she said with a smile. "Katie, why don't you get the iced tea out of the refrigerator? Something tells me we won't be having a big crowd for dinner after all."

Katie grinned as she nodded in agreement; that was just fine with her.

* * *

><p>"You've got to be kidding, Mom," Justin muttered as he read label after label, trying to find the exact wine vintage and type that his mother had asked him to retrieve. One more minute of futile searching and he would just grab whatever burgundy he could find and be done with it. He was so intent on studying each label that he didn't hear or see Brian walking up to his side.<p>

"What the fuck are YOU doing down here?" Brian asked him as Justin twirled around, startled; his pulse automatically sped up at the sight of his ex-partner, even though he was simply standing there with a quizzical expression on his face. "I thought you were upstairs getting ready for dinner."

Justin waited a few seconds for his heart to start beating again normally before he replied, "Sorry to disappoint you, but my mother asked me to come down and get a bottle of wine to serve with our meal."

Brian frowned. "What the hell? That's why I'M down here! She asked me the same thing! Why would she send _both_ of us down here for the same bottle?"

Justin pondered that conundrum for a moment before a sudden realization struck him and he growled, "Fuck. I'm going to kill her." _Could his mother be any more obvious_? Eyes flashing, he thrust the piece of paper into Brian's hand. "I know why; she set us up - again! Here...It's YOUR wine cellar; you go find the damn bottle!" He spun on his heels in an angry huff and briskly set off toward the basement steps, unwilling to be a pawn once more in his mother's scheming. Reaching them in record time, he jogged up the stairs two at a time, not daring to spend another minute in the company of his handsome ex-lover. It was bad enough thinking about having dinner with Brian in an open dining room; being in a basement alone with him sounded twice as dangerous.

"Nice try, Mom," he muttered to himself as he reached the top step and turned the doorknob to open it. He pushed on the door, expecting it to open easily but finding that nothing happened. Frowning in confusion, he turned the knob again and used his shoulder this time to push harder against it, thinking that perhaps the wooden door was warped from the heat during the day and had stuck; he remembered that had happened before when he had lived there. As he applied more pressure against the door and it still didn't budge, however, he slowly began to realize there was _another _reason why it wouldn't open.

He sighed heavily in exasperation as he noticed Brian now standing at the bottom of the steps silently observing him, the notorious object of his mother's matchmaking attempt perched near his feet. "Mom! Open the damn door!" he called out. "This isn't helping! You promised me, Mother!" He could feel his face burning partly in embarrassment. He suddenly felt like some petulant, whiny child under Brian's microscopic gaze, which only made him feel even MORE perturbed. "Mom, I know you can hear me!" He brushed one hand through his hair in agitation. "This is fucking ridiculous!" he growled at her. "You're treating me like some fucking _child_!"

"Maybe that's because you're acting like one," Brian couldn't help commenting dryly as he watched his ex-partner practically stomp his foot in exasperation over his predicament.

Justin bristled at the comment as he glared down at him. "Stay out of it, Brian; this is between my mother and me!" He frowned as he thought he distinctly heard the sounds of giggling coming from the other side of the door now. "What the...?"

"I don't think your mother was the only one involved with this little ploy," Brian advised him as he contined to peer up at Justin. "You forget who _else_ we're having dinner with..."

Justin shook his head; _of course...duh..._ "Shit," he muttered softly, realizing Brian was right; how could he have been so dense? He used his best 'father is pissed' voice to say authoritatively through the door, "Kaylee Marie and Katherine Elizabeth - I want this door unlocked NOW!"

Jennifer stood in the hallway, hearing her son's angry voice and watching her two granddaughters crouched side-by-side in identical poses on the opposite side of the door, their faces pressed up against the hard, oak wood as they listened to their father's tantrum, seemingly nonplussed by his angry tone. She didn't know whether to congratulate them or scold them for getting her involved in their latest scheme, but she that what's done was done. And now that she understood the extent to which they had gone to prepare for this latest endeavor, as well as how much its success meant to them, she knew she was in too deep to back out now anyway.

To Justin's dismay, his stern admonition was simply greeted with even _louder_ giggling. "No way, Daddy!" he heard one of them say as Brian's theory was promptly confirmed, the voice slightly muffled by the thickness of the wood. "You're not coming out of there until you and Dad talk things out!"

"See...told you, Sunshine," Brian replied haughtily, unable to restrain from curling his lips under in both admiration as well as amusement over what their daughters had done. Somehow he wasn't all that surprised, but he had to give them credit for their ingenuity nonetheless.

"You're not helping, Brian!" Justin hissed back at him as Brian continued to smile regardless. "This isn't _funny_!"

Brian took just a few seconds to admire his 'view' of his ex-partner's backside before he replied, "Come on, Justin! When did you lose your sense of humor? It IS funny...Admit it!" He added, "Actually, I'm damn proud of their creativity; looks like I might have to put them to work in advertising when they get older..."

Justin tried to ignore his ex-partner's rambling as he gave the door another, harder shove, knowing it was useless to try and break the door down. He was certainly no Superman, and he knew these old doors were made out of solid wood. Even if BRIAN were prone to helping him to break out - which he knew the smug man would never agree to - there was no way with the deadbolt in place they could bust the door open. No, they were stuck there until someone let them out, and something told him help would not be forthcoming anytime soon. Aggravated beyond belief over their daughters' trickery, his body surged with righteous indignation and pent-up frustration as he leaned back on the narrow landing and gave the door one last, desperate shove anyway. When he did, two things happened: one - just as he feared it would, the door held firm and didn't even budge, and two - he somehow lost his balance on the narrow ledge as he rammed his side into the door and felt himself beginning to fall. He blindly reached out to try and grab the round, wooden banister secured to the wall alongside the steps, but he missed it by a hairsbreadth just before he felt his feet give out from under him and he began to tumble down the steps.

Brian's face quickly turned from amusement into horror as he watched almost in a sort of slow motion as Justin stumbled and lost his footing; he knew it was only a few seconds in actuality, but to him it seemed like a lifetime. He lunged forward just as Justin fell into a heap at the bottom of the steps at his feet with a loud grunt of pain. Brian quickly crouched down, his face contorted in concern as he knelt at Justin's feet; without giving it any conscious thought he grasped him by the upper arms and helped him into a sort of sitting position.

"Shit! Are you all right?" he asked, his voice choked with worry as he looked at Justin's ashen face. He didn't _think_ Justin had hit his head on the way down, but that was always a constant thought whenever Justin hurt himself; he knew that fear would never go away no matter how much time had passed.

Justin's face contorted into a grimace; his ass hurt like hell from how he had toppled down the steps, but it was nothing compared to his left ankle at the moment, which was throbbing like a motherfucker. His breath came out in short gasps of pain as he shook his head "no" to Brian's relief. Sitting on the carpeted floor of the remodeled basement, he leaned over to rub his ankle where it had been injured. "My, my ankle..." he struggled to say, forgetting his previous anger directed toward his ex-partner.

"Let me see it," Brian told him softly as he partly released his hold on Justin and moved to push his pant leg up to examine it.

Justin's breathing continued to be sharp and shallow as he replied defensively, "Leave it alone, Brian! I can take care of myself."

"Like hell you can, Justin!" Brian retorted as he ignored him. "You just fell down the damn steps; now let me see if you broke it!"

Justin crossed his hands over his chest in defiance, but he allowed his persistent ex-lover to proceed anyway. He bit his lip at the sensation as a pair of warm, gentle hands slowly lifted his left pant leg cuff and gingerly slid their fingers over his bleeding, raw, red skin in studious exploration. He held his breath and his eyes watered at the pain as Brian lifted his gaze to look at him. "I won't ask if it hurts," he said; that was plainly obvious by the look on Justin's face. "Can you move it, though? Can you wiggle your toes or turn it any?"

Despite his trepidation, Justin slowly moved his toes ever so slightly; when he tried to pivot his ankle, however, sharp, agonizing pains shot up his body and he cried out again. He closed his eyes tightly in reaction, feeling a few tears escaping to his embarrassment. He had just gotten through telling his mother he wasn't a child and now this...and in front of the one man he didn't want to show any weakness to...

He opened his eyes quickly, however, as he felt Brian wrapping his hands under his thighs. "What are you DOING?" he asked, too shocked to be angry at the moment.

"What's it _look _like I'm doing?" Brian asked as he began to stand up with Justin in his arms. "It's apparently not broken, but you certainly can't walk on it!"

Justin expected him to begin carrying him up the steps so he could have one of their daughters unlock the door; surely under the circumstances they would finally listen to reason and let them out. To his dismay, however, Brian turned instead and began to walk toward the petitioned-off room that he had noticed earlier. "Where the hell are you taking me? The door's THAT way!"

Brian rolled his eyes. "Don't be such a drama princess; I'm not going to take advantage of poor, widdle, injured Justin," he told him in a condescending voice as Justin fumed at him. "I'm just taking you to the most convenient spot so you can get off your injured foot."

Justin huffed in irritation as Brian continued to carry him toward the closed room. "Convenient for whom and for what?" he asked, his brow narrowed in suspicion. He knew he had to go where Brian took him, though; there was no way he could possibly walk at the moment on his injured ankle, and he wasn't sure the girls would let him out even if he could. He thought he should try one more time, though, before it was too late. Surely they had heard him fall before?

Taking as deep a breath as his pain would allow him, he raised his voice to shout, "Kaylee! Katie! I fell and hurt my foot! I need you to let me out of here NOW!"

"Nice try, Daddy!" was the astonishing reply a few seconds later as Brian chuckled softly. "Now go play nice and we'll be back to check on you two later. And don't forget to say please and thank you," he heard what sounded like his other daughter say as both chortled enthusiastically. "Time for dinner now; see you later!"

He could hear footsteps receding down the wooden hallway upstairs as his mouth hung open in disbelief. "I don't believe this..."

Brian unexpectedly shifted Justin in his arms just then, almost as if he were about to drop him, as Justin quickly grabbed Brian around the neck to hold on. He looked up into a mischievous pair of twinkling hazel eyes as his own narrowed in suspicion. "You did that on purpose," he accused him as Brian smirked back at him. "You son of a bitch..."

"Now, now, what did the girls say about playing nice, Sunshine?" Brian quietly scolded him as Justin scowled back at him. Reaching the closed door, he quirked one side of his mouth up as he leaned down just enough to push the handle down and gave the door a gentle push with his foot to open it wide. As they stepped inside the room, low-wattage, recessed lights built into the far wall came on as motion was detected, bathing the room in an unexpectedly soft, warm glow. The room was smartly furnished with a medium-brown leather couch, two matching chairs that looked ominously like Brian's former 'ice-cream' chair as Justin so vividly remembered it, and a curved, sleek, chrome-and-oak wet bar built into the far wall with two matching barstools cradled under its lip. Built-in bookshelves on another wall displayed numerous advertising awards that Brian had won over the last several years; he had apparently been awarded so many accolades by now that there was very little precious space available to display any more.

What caught Justin's attention the most, however, was a large, wooden wine barrel standing on its end in front of the couch and chairs, draped with a starkly white, crisp linen tablecloth. A single ivory-colored, half-melted candle was flickering in the mouth of an empty, netted wine bottle, the now-melting wax from the flame congealing like volcano lava down the sides. Two white-with-gold trim, fine china plates rested on either side of the barrel's surface with a couple of squat wine goblets and crystal water glasses standing at the ready nearby. Twin bottles of wine sat unopened on the wet bar near a corkscrew whose wooden handle was whimsically fashioned to resemble someone's cock, along with a cheese and fruit tray chilling on top of a bed of slowly-melting shaved ice; some sort of dessert - a cheesecake, perhaps? - was displayed on a heavy, stemmed, glass cake plate and a double-compartment, buffet tray was placed next to it, the domed, steamed up plastic lids indicating a meal was being kept warm inside.

Soft saxophone music - slow and sensual, one of those jazz melodies you always recognize but can't quite identify - flowed unobtrusively through the built-in, whole-house speakers that Brian had had installed a few years ago, although at the time he really had done it merely to enjoy listening to relaxing music out by the pool or in his study when he worked. He had never imagined using it for _this_ purpose, but at the moment he wasn't complaining at all. Besides, someone _else_ in his arms was doing that exceedingly well at the moment.

Justin sounded like a sputtering locomotive trying to get up enough steam to move as he let out a large, heavy sigh of exasperation at the overtly romantic setting. "Oh, for the love of..." Temporarily forgetting that Brian was still holding him in his arms, he surveyed the entire room thoroughly. "I don't fucking _believe _this!" he growled in irritation. "When did they have time to DO all this, anyway?" He huffed in astonishment, temporarily forgetting his physical impairment before the sudden, sharp stab of pain shot through his ankle as a stark reminder and he lifted his gaze to stare into Brian's concerned eyes. He narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

"I did not know _anything_ about this," Brian protested firmly in response to Justin's unspoken accusation. "And I had both girls with me today; there was NO way they could have come here to do this!" He studied the flushed, indignant face of his ex-partner as he suggested, "What about your mother? She had to be involved. Maybe SHE came out here and did this for them." If he hadn't been so concerned at the time with Justin's injury, he might have noticed the telltale hints that pointed directly at the actual accomplice: a certain sentimental nelly queen who was near and maybe not-so-dear to him. For the time being, though, the clear-cut clues that normally would have instantly given Emmett away remained far back in the recesses of his mind.

Justin had no idea why he was defending his mother after her admitted complicity before, but he found himself replying, "No way. I was with her most of the day and she wouldn't have had _time_ to drive all the way out here today and do this." He struggled in Brian's arms now, feeling decidedly uncomfortable as he detected the beginnings of desire stirring within him for his ex-partner, even with his pain. "Will you please stop playing Caveman and let me down now?"

Brian was tempted to do just that and drop his ex-partner promptly on his ass for his insolent manner, but he only knew that would make matters worse. Secretly, he was thrilled by their predicament. Justin would HAVE to talk to him now, whether he liked it or not. First, though, he needed to take care of his ankle or he would be in too much pain to even consider it. "Anything you say, Wilma," he quipped as he walked the few steps over to the buttery-soft couch and deposited Justin down lengthwise on it with surprising gentleness. As Justin slowly sunk down into the couch's folds, Brian sat down gingerly at the other end of the couch by his ex-lover's feet to study him. He couldn't help staring, despite their current difficulties. He just couldn't stop looking at him. _Justin - here - in Britin_. He had never dreamed it would happen again, and he regretted the circumstances, but he certainly didn't want to waste the opportunity. He savored one more gaze at his perturbed former partner before he rose from his place and walked over toward the wet bar, walking around behind it to lean down and retrieve a first-aid kit that he kept under the sink for medical emergencies.

He grabbed a dark-blue cotton kitchen towel from the counter and turned on the tap, waiting for the water to run for several seconds until it was lukewarm before he wetted the towel and wrung it out in the sink. He noticed Justin watching him silently from his place on the couch as he carried both it and the kit back over to him and resumed his place at the end.

"I can do it," Justin maintained, still trying to latch onto whatever shred of dignity he had left. He didn't want to admit that it wasn't just stubborn pride that was making him anxious; it was also the thought of Brian touching him again that did that as well. Every touch, even a simple brush of their hands or every caress of his fingers on his skin, made each nerve ending in his body come alive and tingle with desire, with remembrance of how they used to be; of how they could be again if he would only let it, and it filled him with nervous anxiety. Their time apart should have muted that feeling, tamped it down, but instead it had done just the opposite. Dare he trust his body not to betray his innermost thoughts and emotions? Did he have a choice to refuse Brian's help, though? He knew that he couldn't handle tending to his foot on his own - not in the pain he was in.

"Justin, quit being so fucking stubborn," Brian scolded him as he opened up the plastic first aid case and began to rifle through it to find what he needed: some miniature scissors, antiseptic, a self-adhering, flesh-colored bandage roll, and a self-activating cold pack.

"What are you going to do?"

Brian rolled his eyes as he placed the kit down besides Justin's leg and reached for the scissors. "We need to clean your wound first, stabilize your foot, and ice it to reduce any swelling," he told him gently, almost like he was talking to one of their daughters. He held the pant leg taut in his left hand as he lifted the scissors.

"Hey! You're not going to cut into that, are you? These are my GOOD pants!"

Brian laughed at the indignant look on Justin's face. "Since when did you turn into such a fashionista? If these are your GOOD pants, I'd hate to see your work clothes. Although I must say this is a particularly stunning ensemble you're wearing this evening, Mr. Taylor. Now quit being such a baby and hold still so I can take care of your ankle."

Justin opened his mouth to issue a snappy comeback but promptly closed it, finding his voice failing him, especially with Brian's fingers brushing up against his leg as he began to make a vertical cut into the bottom of his pant leg. Truth was, this pair WAS quite a few years old and hopelessly out of style. But they were still in good shape and had worn well - at least they HAD been in good shape. The look of determination on his ex-partner's face, however, and the commanding tone of his voice told him that Brian wasn't going to budge from his mission as he watched him deftly cutting about an 8" slit in the fabric, enough for him to work on his ankle.

Having completed his task, Brian placed the scissors down back into the kit and gently peeled back the two flaps, carefully looking at the scratches and abrasions; Justin had really done a number on his ankle when he fell. There were angry streaks of red where he had fallen, but fortunately not a lot of blood. "Does it still hurt just as much?" he asked softly as he lifted his gaze to look into the expressive blue eyes. Their eyes locked as Justin mutely shook his head.

"It's not quite as bad," he told him before he averted his eyes, feeling unexpectedly uncomfortable and knowing what was about to happen but helpless to stop it. His pulse raced in anticipation and he closed his eyes as Brian's hands touched both sides of his lower leg and began a slow, careful exploration of his bruises. The feelings his mere touch generated were almost too much to bear; it was at once new but oh-so-familiar, and brought back all the feelings of desire he _always_ felt whenever Brian touched him.

Brian clearly saw the struggle taking place on his ex-partner's face. He could tell he wasn't the only one being affected by the two of them being alone. He forced himself to concentrate on what he was doing and why he was doing it, even though every fiber in his body wanted to start stripping Justin of the _rest_ of his clothes, throw his own body down on his and make him remember how good they once were together. Since they had met, no man could make his body thrum with pleasure the way that Justin had; not since the first day they had met if he were totally honest. By the time they had separated, Justin had learned every touch, every caress, every stroke of his hands, his lips, and his tongue to drive him wild, and touching him now brought all of that rushing back to the forefront. How he longed to just let go, to show Justin just how much he still loved him. But something held him back. He refused to properly acknowledge it, but deep down he knew what it was - it was fear; Brian Kinney was actually afraid of being rejected. For if Justin rejected his physical advances outright, he knew then that it was truly over between them and he refused to even consider that prospect. The reaction he was receiving at the moment, though, began to fill him with renewed hope that his feelings were being reciprocated. That, and the fact that Kaylee had assured him that Justin still loved him, made his determination remain steadfast. All he had to do now was convince Justin to move on from their mistakes and start over again. Perhaps tonight he would finally get that chance.

For the time being, though, he savored what he _could _accomplish as he lightly ran his hands along the pale flesh of Justin's ankle, now mottled with dark bruises and scrapes. His face remained etched in concern over the cuts he saw, but he was relieved when he failed to note any telltale lumps or ridges that might indicate a bone out of place; the fact that Justin could freely wiggle his toes earlier probably meant that the ankle had merely sustained a bad sprain, not a break or a fracture.

He looked up at Justin sympathetically as he heard a soft grunt of pain. "Sorry," he found himself mumbling, hating like hell to cause him any more pain.

Despite his discomfort, Justin mourned the loss of Brian's touch as he stopped his examination, but felt somewhat relieved; he knew his ex-partner was merely examining his injury, but it still made his breath hitch. He watched, transfixed, as Brian reached over and retrieved the warm kitchen towel to lightly wash the impacted area to prepare it for the antibiotic cream. Placing the towel down on the floor, he squeezed some of the cream onto his long fingers, rubbing it between the tips of his fingers before he began to spread it slowly over the open scrapes on Justin's skin.

In an eerie recreation of a time long ago, the words were out of Justin's mouth before he realized the significance of them: "It's cold," he remarked as a slight shiver went through him.

Brian's lips turned up as he replied almost automatically, "It'll heat up." He locked onto Justin's eyes, both instinctively realizing they were reliving that moment so long ago, before he saw just the hint of a smile on Justin's face and his own face relaxed just a bit. The moment passed, he lowered his head to return to his task.

A few minutes later, he had the bandage snugly wrapped around Justin's ankle, pressing the material together so the Velcro ends bonded against themselves. He then broke open the portable cold pack to activate it and pressed it against the injured area as Justin winced at the sensation; he fastened it firmly but not too snugly with some medical tape before he slowly replaced the flaps of Justin's pant leg back down and let out a deep breath. He dug into the first aid kit one more time and fished out a small pack containing two Advil tablets. Standing up, he grabbed one of the two water glasses and, walking over to the wet bar, filled the glass half full of water before returning to Justin's side.

"Here," he instructed as he stood next to Justin and held out the two tablets and glass of water. "Take these; it'll help with the inflammation and the pain."

Justin nodded and for once did as he was told without further comment. As he reached up to take the two tablets out of Brian's open palm and accept the glass from him, though, their hands brushed against each other and he felt the same electric feeling passing through his body at the simple contact. Was the gesture accidental on Brian's part or not? He had no way to tell, but he suspected it was probably done deliberately.

Brian watched as Justin tilted his head back to swallow the pills, finding the smooth, pale skin of his neck strangely erotic as his ex-lover gulped the water down. _God, everything about this man fascinated him, even now..._He couldn't help thinking as he bit his lower lip and returned to his place at the end of the couch, observing Justin finishing off the water before placing the glass back down on the wine barrel.

"Are you hungry?" Brian asked him unexpectedly, thinking that was a safe topic to broach. "You must be hungry by now if you haven't eaten since lunch, and you shouldn't take that medicine on an empty stomach." He glanced down at his Rolex, noting it was almost eight o'clock. The aroma coming from underneath the domed lids of the serving buffet was starting to smell mighty appealing even to him, despite his no-carbs-after-seven rule.

Justin snorted softly. "I thought _I _was supposed to do all the public service announcements," he chided Brian. His face sobered as he admitted, "Yeah, I AM pretty hungry." He had been so nervous about meeting Brian for dinner tonight that his stomach had been tied in knots too much for him to eat a lot at lunchtime, and now he found that despite his pain he was starving.

Brian nodded back at him as he rose from the couch. "Can you sit up?" he asked as he stood in front of Justin. He reached toward him as if to help, but Justin's huff of exasperation stopped him.

"I hurt my ankle, Brian, I'm not a fucking cripple," he growled quietly. "I'm fine."

Brian shook his head sadly, feeling like they were taking one step forward, two steps back. "Have it your way, Mr. Taylor," he told his ex-partner as he held his hands out in supplication. He turned to pick up the two dinner plates and walked over to the nearby buffet server to lift the lid on the first compartment.

Justin couldn't help his curiosity. "What is it?" he asked.

Brian shrugged; he was by no means an expert when it came to identifying meat cuts. "It's some kind of beef," he told him as his ex-partner craned his neck to take a look. Recognizing the large piece of meat tied up with a series of crisscross strings, Justin quipped dryly, "It's a beef brisket; a large piece of meat. How appropriate; you should like it."

Brian had to smirk at that statement; at least he was hearing just a bit of the old Justin in his ex-partner's voice. He reached over to retrieve a carving knife lying next to the buffet and a large serving fork as he began to cut up some slices of the meat. "Well, it's certainly a _tender_ piece of meat," he told Justin with a grin. "No cream sauce, though." He saw Justin's face redden into a blush as he turned his back on him to pull two slices out of the container and place them on the china plates, using a large ladle nearby to scoop out some of the gravy, potatoes, and onions. Lifting the second domed lid, he found a small loaf of homemade bread, already separated into six, even slices. Using a small set of tongs next to the bread, he plucked out two slices and placed one each on the plates.

He noticed Justin watching his every movement as he silently returned to set the plates down on the top of the barrel, walking back over to grab one of the two wine bottles. Picking one up, he grabbed the corkscrew by its cock-like handle and gave the bottle a twist. "Puts a whole new spin on jerking off," he quipped as he slowly twisted his wrist and the cork began to pull out.

"I'm glad your skills haven't gotten rusty in my absence," Justin replied, just the hint of sarcasm in his voice as Brian pulled the cork completely out and turned to look at him with a weary look on his face. Did Justin really think with Katie around that he brought tricks home on a daily - or even weekly - basis to fuck? If he did, he was going to be soundly disappointed to find out the real truth - if he would believe him, that is...

He brought one of the wine bottles back to the couch, pouring some of the dark liquid into the two goblets and leaving Justin's on top of the barrel, figuring he would let "Mr. Independent" retrieve it. Justin gave him a pained sort of look before he reached over to curl his fingers around the stem of the glass and brought it to his mouth to take a sip, eyeing Brian warily from his place next to him. Now that he was sitting up in closer proximity to him, he could distinctly smell the familiar fragrance of Brian's expensive cologne, the scent of his shampoo, and see the clearly-defined lines of his chest muscles framed against the silky shirt. He longed to slide his hands up the chiseled biceps of those arms, and feather his fingers through what he knew would be extraordinarily baby-soft, auburn hair at the back of Brian's neck. Brian always _did_ have the softest hair. While he knew that his ex-partner always had loved to play with his hair, especially when he kept it longer, he wasn't the _only_ one that enjoyed imbibing in that luxury. The truth was, Brian's hair was even more alluring and softer than _his_ was, and it took everything he had at that moment not to indulge himself once more in that pleasurable activity.

He quickly averted his eyes as he noticed Brian catching him staring over at him, feeling the telltale warmth of embarrassment on his cheeks as he took another sip of his wine to steady his nerves.

"Should you be drinking all that?" Brian couldn't help asking as he watched Justin take another, larger sip from his glass.

"Why not? Have you joined AA or something?"

Brian huffed out a soft breath of exasperation. "The pills. Should you be mixing alcohol with them?"

"YOU brought me the pills - and the wine," Justin pointed out stiffly. "It's just a couple of Advil and some red wine, Brian; not poppers and a bottle of Beam. I hope you won't be disappointed when I don't OD on them."

Brian bristled as he hurriedly gulped down the rest of his own glass and placed it down on the wine barrel none too gently, his patience thoroughly rattled. "Damn it, Justin!" he snapped, turning to stare into startled, blue eyes. "I've had just about enough of this treatment!" He stood up abruptly, agitatedly pushing back some errant hair that had fallen into his forehead with his hand. Facing his ex-partner, he asked him, "What the fuck do you want from me, Justin? Huh? Tell me!" Brian crossed his hands over his chest, his quickly-cooling dinner forgotten for the time being.

Justin's eyes widened at the bitter, angry tone in Brian's voice; it was the first time that he had used that tone since they had reunited. The fury in his voice, plus the intense stare he was receiving, made him stumble on his own words as he replied, "I never said I wanted _anything _from you Brian; not anymore. I'm only here to get the custody order changed for the girls' sake."

"Bullshit," Brian spat back at him as he plopped down next to Justin again and deliberately pushed his thigh against his; even through the stiff fabric of Justin's jeans and the softer linen of his dress pants he could feel Justin's leg trembling at the simple touch. "Let's take the girls' advice and just get this out in the open, shall we? I'm tired of dancing around our problems here."

Justin hugged his arms around his chest as he replied simply, "I didn't create them, Brian; _you_ did when you couldn't keep your dick out of that other man's ass. Was it that much more impressive? You always said mine was _incomparable_." He tried to sound indifferent and nonchalant, like it was water over the bridge now and not important to him anymore, but his cracking voice betrayed him much too clearly. He turned his head away from Brian toward the wall as tears once more formed in his eyes, not wanting his ex-partner to know how much it still hurt, even now; even after all this time. He had managed to stay so strong when he was away from him, when he was out of Brian's sight, when he didn't have to see him and feel the emotions surging through him. He had succeeded in fooling himself - at least most of the time - that he _could_ go on and have a happy life without him and without seeing Katie until she was an adult. Now, though, as his heart ached and his pride spewed out words that he didn't really mean, he knew that had all been one, big, fat lie.

Brian let out a tense breath between slightly parted lips before he dared to reach over and place his hand under Justin's chin; he felt his ex-lover tense under his touch, but he held firm as he forced him to turn and face him, noticing the blue eyes glistening now with unshed tears. "Justin..." he whispered, his anger fading as his eyes drifted lower to look at the mouth that he had kissed countless times before and was longing to kiss again. "That was never the reason why," he quietly told him.

"Then why, Brian?" was the plaintive cry as Justin tried to pull away from his grasp, but Brian wouldn't let him. "Tell me why you did it. I need to know. Was it worth it, Brian? Was it worth what it cost us? What it cost our family? What it cost our little girls?" He finally managed to wrench himself free from Brian's fingers as well as his probing gaze, wanting desperately to stand up and create some much-needed space between the two of them, but he knew with his injured ankle he couldn't do it. Instead, he reached over to pour some more wine ¾ full into his goblet and took another large gulp to steady his nerves, savoring the smooth but tart taste as it slid down his tongue and throat. "Our dinner's getting cold," he abruptly announced before Brian had a chance to respond, realizing how absurd his statement sounded but not knowing what else to say. He picked up his fork and, taking an almost violent stab at his meat, brought a large bite up to his mouth and chewed on it; he did the same thing to a chunk of potato before he had swallowed the meat, concentrating on his dinner as his heart pounded and sweat broke out on his skin. Feeling Brian's eyes boring into him out of the corner of his eye, he felt his appetite soon fading away as he placed his fork down and turned to look at him; he was still sitting way too close, but at least Brian had fidgeted just enough that he wasn't touching him now.

"You want to give me an answer, Brian?" he pressed him, his voice breaking as he turned to stare at him; Brian was returning the gaze quietly, his lips pursed tightly together. "Just give me a good reason; make me understand what was so important that day that you would forgo everything we had worked for and what we had achieved and throw it all away like that."

Feeling like a dog beaten one too many times, Brian's eyes narrowed in anger as the words began to flow out of him like an avalanche. "Justin, it was ONE mistake! One, stupid, regrettable mistake! Why is it so hard for you to forgive me for it? Ten years, Justin! Ten fucking years! Neither one of us was an angel back then. I took you back when you left me for _him_." The words stung as Brian found he was still unable to say Ethan's name; it was quite possible that even now Justin still didn't realize how much that had hurt when he had left him. Yes, he had pushed him to do it, but he did not understand what it had taken to let him go and how damn painful it had been until he had returned.

Justin shuddered at Brian's stinging words of defense; it was like déjà vu and sounded much too much like the same response he had received from Ethan when he had cheated on him. Except back then, Brian hadn't promised him anything as far as fidelity went. This time it had been different; _totally_ different. Not only had he promised, but he had committed to him in a way that he had never done with any other man. Didn't he see that?

He didn't know if it was the effects of the pain meds kicking in, the wine, a combination of both, or just plain, bone-aching weariness, but Justin was tired; tired of fighting, tired of going around on the same merry-go-round in an endless circle, and tired of his heart aching for what used to be. He sighed a mournful sound as he looked over at Brian. "Brian," he murmured softly. "Why are we doing this to each other?"

Brian placed his hands on top of his thighs, anywhere to avoid touching Justin, even though his need to do so was so palpable that his fingers were clenched into the fabric of his pants. Any remaining anger disappeared at the mournful tone in Justin's voice. He always _did_ hate to see Justin hurt or upset, and it was obvious that he still carried both inside, even now. Still, he also couldn't help thinking about how obstinate - and unreasonable - Justin was being for carrying this grudge all this time. Didn't his feelings count here, too?

He gazed into the troubled, blue eyes, the irises so wide with emotion he felt like he might drown in them if he stared at them too long. Once more, despite his conviction that Justin had punished him long enough for his one indiscretion and that he needed to finally let it go, at the same time he tried to formulate how to explain the reason why it had happened in the first place when he couldn't quite explain it himself. He continuned to have an absolute abhorrence when it came to talking to any professional about his feelings. The only time he had ever come close to seeking therapy was when he sought his friend, Alec, out for advice after Justin's bashing. Even then, he couldn't do it in a staid, professional setting. He had to meet the guy casually over drinks and with a cocky attitude. Just the thought of confessing that he and Justin couldn't fuck - no, call a spade a spade, _make love_ - had been enough to make his skin crawl with discomfort, and it had been all he could do to discuss it with his friend at Woody's. The only reason why he had been able to do it in the first place was because he had truly cared for Justin and he had felt guilty and responsible for what had happened to him. He just didn't discuss such things to anyone, especially a 'professional.' So he had never sought out anyone's opinion as to why he had done what he had done that fateful day at Kinnetik. It seemed that now, though, that might be coming back to haunt him, because he would have to try and explain his reasoning behind it to the man who meant the most to him and he had no real, fucking clue how to do that.

He turned his attention back to the present as he heard Justin say softly, all bluster and furor missing now, "Don't you understand how much it hurt me, Brian? How much it _still _hurts? Don't you realize that when I saw what you had done, it destroyed a piece of my heart, too? We had just made a commitment to each other, that one commitment between us that no one had ever gotten from you. We were so happy back then, Brian; at least _I _was. Weren't you? What had I done that would have caused you to do what you did?"

Brian sighed. Sometimes he wondered if Justin understood him that well at all; it really had not had anything to do with HIM or his shortcomings. Why did everything have to have a complex, methodical explanation? This was HIM they were talking about - not some logical, simple-minded, unfucked-up individual. He always thought that was one of the reasons that Justin had first been attracted to him, or at least one of the reasons why he had continued to pursue him, even after he had told him he didn't 'do' repeats. Now he wanted some rational Aristotelian explanation for his actions?

He leaned over, watching as Justin instinctively pulled back, toward the rolled end of the couch as if he were trying to avoid him, his body half-on, half-off the couch with only his uninjured leg now touching flat on the floor. He tried to ignore the lead pit in his gut at the thought that Justin was trying to escape from his touch, knowing now that it was going to be inevitable anyway from the looks they had shared and the heat that was practically pouring out of both of them. Of course, it had _always _been that way between them, and he suspected it always _would _be, despite the bullshit that Justin had thrown at him in the stables. He knew better - they BOTH knew better, and he would prove it, damn it...

Brian was careful not to brush up against his ex-partner's injured ankle, but that was ALL he tried to avoid as he slid up to drape himself over Justin's smaller frame, his chest flush with his ex-lover's and their lower bodies tangled together. He studied the eyes that widened at his action, the pink blush that crept up into Justin's normally pale cheeks, and the small beads of sweat that began to break out on his forehead; he could feel Justin's heart beating so fast it seemed like it might explode at any second. He smiled slightly as he noticed Justin's normally sapphire-blue irises begin to darken with the telltale signs of desire for him as he whispered, "If you're looking for some grandiose explanation as to why I did what I did, Sunshine, the truth is I can't give you one. Even _I _can't explain it," he admitted as his arms came out to grasp Justin by the upper arms; he heard the sharp intake of breath underneath him while at the same time noticing Justin's breaths coming out in small, tense, anticipatory pants, his lips parted slightly, perhaps in preparation to issue some righteous retort but probably more in a silent plea to do what Brian was fully intending to do - kiss the fucking daylights of this man he had been hungering for for the past ten years. "But there is ONE thing that I'm sure about..."

He watched Justin's lips in rapt fascination under half-lidded eyes as they tried to speak; this time he could tell his ex-lover was having problems expressing himself. Gone was the righteous indignation of before, the fury of a lover scorned and betrayed; in its place was a man who was struggling to even verbalize his thoughts now as Justin sputtered out, "I...I still need you to help me understand..."

Instinctively, Justin placed his hands around either side of Brian's neck near his collarbone and curled his hands over the smooth, muscled flesh for support; his heart began to beat furiously at the lust-driven look on Brian's face and the warmth of Brian's skin still hidden underneath his dress shirt as he whispered his ex-lover's name breathlessly, unable to control what he knew was about to happen, what he had secretly _hoped_ would happen ever since he had first seen Brian again despite what he had said earlier...His tongue slid out then, just enough of the tip to wet his dry, parched lips as he watched Brian's face coming closer and closer...

There was an almost triumphant, even smug look on Brian's face as he watched Justin's tongue snake out to wet his lips and say his name. _God_, _how he had longed to hear that again from that luscious mouth!_ His own eyes darkened into a smoldering shade of deep brown as at last his lips touched those that he had longed to taste again. He heard a whisper of his name once more on Justin's lips as he took a long, sensual swipe across his mouth, licking, familiarizing himself with that exquisite, intoxicating taste that he hadn't sampled in so long and was uniquely Justin's.

He pulled back just enough to whisper, "Open up, Justin; let me back in." It was part plea, part command, and even he wasn't sure if he meant it figuratively, literally, or both, but he was rewarded with his tongue successfully sliding inside the wet, moist surface of Justin's partly open mouth. He heard a soft whimper from his ex-partner, providing him with enough encouragement to take his hands and place one on Justin's left cheek and the other around the back of his head as he rammed their mouths together firmly, angling his head to deepen the kiss.

Justin's heart was pounding, his entire body was tingling as he and Brian kissed; he knew, somehow he knew that they would reach this point, that they would be unable to avoid acting on their passion for each other, and the sensations were even more powerful than he remembered. His arms came up to slide around Brian's neck and pull him even more impossibly closer, their mouths fused together as if they were one. Brian's fingers were caressing his cheek and the hair at the back of his skull as he plunged his tongue inside of his mouth with a master's stroke, and Justin thought he might pass out from lack of air and the pleasure of it all. It was all he could do to hang onto consciousness, to remember to breathe through his nose as his body quickly made a complete mockery of what he had told Brian in the stables earlier.

Brian laid his full weight upon Justin's smaller frame, letting him know in no uncertain terms WHO was in control now; his cock was becoming almost unbearably hard and he could feel Justin's equally impressive arousal lying heavy and full between them. _Fuck, how he wanted him so badly at that moment!_ But he _also_ knew he had to drive home a point, to make JUSTIN understand now that he had been punished enough, that he had done adequate penance; that Justin was a terrible liar. It was time that someone _else_ did some apologizing as well as forgiving...he had lived as a prisoner of guilt long enough.

With extreme willpower worthy of a man dying of thirst in the desert and declining a drink of water, he thoroughly swabbed the inside of his ex-partner's mouth one last time with his tongue, hearing a moan in the back of Justin's throat in response, before he broke off the kiss and pulled back slightly from their embrace, noting the flush of his ex-partner's skin, the hair plastered to his sweaty forehead, his swollen and bruised lips, and his mussed-up hair. It took everything he had to remove his straying hands from Justin's waist where they currently lay as he raised himself up on his knees and then stood by the couch, his own legs feeling surprisingly unsteady. He tried hard, however, to mask what it had meant to have Justin back in his arms again as the blond peered up at him with a dazed, thoroughly confused look on his face, his eyes still dark and glazed from desire. His chest was heaving visibly up and down as he gasped for some much-needed breath while he stared up at him in complete shock and disbelief. As he looked at Justin's disheveled state, Brian thought it was the most erotic sight he had ever seen, but he wouldn't, he _couldn't_ back down. He only hoped that what he was about to do would eventually get him what he most fervently wanted. And truth be told, Justin's words from earlier still jabbed at his heart like the twist of a knife...

"What...what happened?" Justin asked him breathlessly, temporarily forgetting about his need for Brian to explain his actions of so long ago. All he knew was that one minute he and Brian had been sharing a mind-blowing, glorious kiss, and the next moment his body was suddenly devoid of warmth as Brian abruptly let go of him and stood up.

Brian hoped that he was putting on his best poker face as he stood tall and pulled his wrinkled shirt down to try and smooth it over his dress pants as he informed him, "Sorry, Sunshine. I don't know what came over me. I wouldn't want to be accused of_ forcing _myself on you. Playtime's over."

Justin's open-mouthed look of incredulity at being ceremoniously rejected was replaced with one of deepening anger as he struggled to sit back up on the couch; he felt humiliated as well as used. "You...you did that just to make a point? Is that what this was? I don't believe you, Brian." _Please...Please tell me I'm wrong..._

Brian's heart broke just a little at the wrenching tone in Justin's voice, but he had reached his breaking point himself. He knew he was taking a big risk, but he had paid his price over and over again, too many times to count now. If Justin wanted to reconcile with him - and God knows he wanted that as well - he was going to have to come to HIM now.

He took a deep breath, slowing his breathing down so he could sound more like his old, sarcastic, cocky self as he chided him, "Now, now...don't raise your voice or I'll have to tell the girls that you didn't play nice after all. And I didn't hear a _please _or a _thank you _once for tending to your injury."

He watched as Justin's face turned red with rage as he spat out, "How's this for common courtesy, then? How about _fuck_ you, Brian! You can go to Hell! Get out and leave me the fuck alone!" He had no idea how he would possibly get up the steps with his ankle the way it was, but at the moment he didn't give a shit. All he wanted to do was be as far away from his ex-partner as possible.

Brian's face turned deadly serious as he stood there staring into Justin's eyes; eyes that were almost the color of coal now. They were angry, hurt, and miserable. "Yes, I did do that to make a point, Justin," he told him calmly. "I did it to make you realize how _I've_ felt for the past ten years. How _I've_ felt each time I've tried to tell you how much I regretted what happened and tried to make amends but you wouldn't listen. How _I've_ felt each time you pulled away from me and wouldn't forgive me. How _I've_ felt waking up each day to a cold, barren bed because you weren't there with me. How _I've_ felt knowing that I was instrumental in our daughters not being in each other's daily lives and how _I've _felt each time I tried to obtain your forgiveness and I didn't receive it."

He felt the beginning of tears prickling the back of his own eyes as he turned his head away, not wanting Justin to know how deeply he had been hurt, how it was hurting him NOW to say and do these things to him. Maybe he _should_ let him see how vulnerable he felt at the moment, but just like Justin had been with him before, his pride wouldn't let him. Instead, he focused on a painting hanging above the wet bar. It was one that Justin had done several years ago, a piece that he had left up in the attic studio in his haste to leave for Chicago with Kaylee. It was one of his medium-sized abstracts, comprised of hues that were warm, vibrant, and yes, _happy;_ painted just before they had decided to commit solely to each other and before Brian had made the one, single mistake that Justin could apparently not forgive_. _Brian had found it a few months later when he had finally worked up enough nerve to go upstairs, and he had selfishly clung to it afterward as one of the few remaining vestiges of his former life with him.

Justin followed his gaze over to the painting, gasping a little as he recognized what it was; how had he not noticed it before?

Feeling a little surer of himself now, Brian turned his gaze back to his ex-partner, his voice still breaking slightly with emotion as he admitted, "I love you, Justin. I never _stopped _loving you. But until you can forgive me - truly forgive me for what happened - we're done; we can't move on. I will work with you to alter the custody agreement for the sake of our girls, and I will give you all the time you want with Katie. But that's it," he told him, as he held his hands out to his sides. "I can't do this anymore." He paused, watching a myriad of emotions flashing across Justin's face but unable to accurately decipher them as he told him, "I'll send your mother down to help you."

Just before he turned to go, he softly asked him, "Remember that day a long time ago when I told you that I hoped you get what you want? Well, I still do. I hope we _both_ get what we want. The choice is up to you." Silently, he turned around and headed toward the still-open door, his footsteps muted on the carpeted floor as he quickly disappeared from sight.

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><p><p>

_A/N: Readers, I'm taking an informal poll here. Would you rather continue to have long chapters or smaller ones that are updated a little faster? Most of you are no doubt aware that I tend to be on the long side of chapter length, but it does make me update a little slower than some other writers. Any thoughts? At any rate, I hope you enjoyed this latest chapter; thanks as always for reading and for your support.:)_

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><p><em><em>_Thanks once more to my beta, Boriqua522.:)_


	19. What Super Power Do I Use Now?

_The girls discover their latest scheme backfired; Brian and Justin continue to struggle with their emotions. _

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><p><em>A Few Minutes Later...<em>

Jennifer couldn't help smiling at the goofy grins on both of her granddaughters' faces; their joy over pulling off their plan was contagious, despite her trepidation. "Girls, you need to eat before everything gets cold," she chided them, noticing they were much too occupied with whispering amongst themselves to eat what Emmett had so painstakingly prepared for them. "What are you whispering about _now_?" she asked them curiously; it wasn't as if she didn't already know what their plans had been.

She HAD noticed with a little concern that the basement had been noticeably quiet for the past several minutes, ever since her son had determined what the girls were up to; she didn't know if that was a good or a bad sign, though, since the thick, insulated walls of the lower level kept most conversations muffled or even totally blocked from anyone's hearing. She had to give her son credit, though, for the '_I'm injured'_ ploy earlier; he could have won an Oscar for that performance, but the girls had seen right through it.

Katie grinned from her place at the other side of the dining room table. "We're just trying to figure out what's going on down there. It's been _awfully _quiet," she answered as if she had been reading Jennifer's mind. Kaylee nodded beside her in agreement, her smile a mirror image of her sister's.

_"I _think it's because they're too BUSY to 'talk' right now," Kaylee chirped as the two sisters broke out into giggles.

Jennifer sighed at their youthful exuberance as she sobered somewhat, reminding them softly, "Remember what I told you. You can't necessarily hear _what's_ going on down there, and as much as I might like to agree with you girls, they have a lot to work out yet. I hardly think some small talk is going to resolve everything."

Kaylee, ever the more romantic one, replied, "Well, I don't think they're _talking _right now at all. I think they're kissing." She sighed wistfully. "Did you see the way they were looking at each other earlier?" She could see it in both their eyes whenever they didn't realize she was looking at them. Both of them had already admitted that they still loved each other, so a heartfelt smooch would be a natural progression of that emotion in her opinion. One kiss - one kiss, and that would remind them just how much they cared and how much they had shared - STILL shared. In her mind, that would go a long way toward them working everything out, because it conveyed the deepest of feelings. She smiled dreamily, imagining her two fathers gazing into each other's eyes before they drifted closed and their lips sweetly came together...

Jennifer smiled over at her sympathetically, wishing it could be that easy. "Honey, it's not always like in the movies," she told her regretfully.

Just then her granddaughter's daydreaming was interrrupted by the sound of a loud, harsh knocking coming from down the hallway. Two sets of eyes got big as saucers as they heard the familiar, authoritative sound of their father calling out to them.

"Girls! It's your Dad! I need you to open this door NOW, young ladies!"

Jennifer's heart dropped as both girls' faces fell; _this was definitely not a promising sign_...She sighed as she pushed back from the table and walked over toward the hallway.

"Grandma..." Two voices pleaded desperately in unison, anxiety written all over their faces.

She shook her head firmly. "I have to see what's going on," she told them sympathetically. "I'm sorry," she whispered as she walked out and down the hallway toward the basement.

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><p>"Katie! Kaylee! I'm NOT kidding here - I need this damn door opened NOW!" Brian shouted through the door as he continued to pound on it with his fist; the basement was suddenly feeling more and more like a tomb to him, a smothering, emotion-riddled crypt of quicksand. He couldn't get out of there fast enough now as he tried a different tactic when he still did not receive a response. "I know you're out there, Jennifer! Come and open this goddamn <em>door!"<br>_

Jennifer bit her lower lip apprehensively as she approached the door, knowing this was not some inconsequential game they were playing now. It was obvious that Brian was highly agitated. Why had she agreed to this latest bout of manipulation on the girls' part in the first place? She already knew why; it was because she was secretly hoping it would succeed this time, too - it had to, they were quickly running out of options now - but obviously from the impatient sound of Brian's voice something had turned sour between them.

"I'm here, Brian," she told him as she flipped the deadbolt to disengage it and turned the knob to open the door. As she did so, she was met by a pair of dark, stormy eyes and a weary-looking expression. Her fears were immediately confirmed by the look on Brian's face as well as the conspicuous absence of her son. "What's going on?" she asked anxiously.

Brian sighed heavily at finally being freed, feeling like a diver coming back up for air as he grasped the narrow, wooden railing and urgently informed her, "Justin needs your help. He DID fall earlier."

Jennifer's eyes widened with instant worry as she craned her head around Brian to search for her son, her unease over Brian being angry with her temporarily forgotten. "My God! I thought he was kidding before! Where is he? Is he okay? Did he hit his head?" That was always a vital concern, considering her son's previous medical background.

Brian shook his head quickly to reassure her, his own thoughts chiefly centered on his ex-partner's welfare, despite everything else going on. "No, not his head," he told her as she sighed in relief. "But he missed a step and fell down and hurt his ankle. I don't think it's broken, but I'm pretty sure he won't be able to walk on it for a while." He cocked his head toward the far corner where the recreation room was located, unable to keep his thoughts from briefly dwelling on what had happened between the two of them earlier - how it had felt to finally kiss Justin again, to hold him, to smell him, to...

"He's in there," he told her abruptly as he took a deep breath and forced himself not to think about any more of it. "I bandaged it as best I can, but he's going to need your help getting back up the steps." He averted his gaze from her as he added more softly, the pain evident in his voice, "He doesn't _want_ my help any longer." He stepped out onto the landing as he bypassed her and turned to go, but he was thwarted by Jennifer's hand on his arm.

"Brian?" Jennifer didn't know what to ask first - she was anxious to go see her son, but her mind was swimming with all sorts of questions she wanted answers to. Her eyes bored into his, asking him all sorts of things silently as he shook his head sadly at her.

"Not now," he replied, surprisingly with no hint of anger or resentment in his voice. "I can't talk about it; don't ask me. Just...go help him, okay?" He let a breath out between his lips, his face reflecting both resignation as well as grim acceptance. "I've done what I can; the rest is up to him."

Jennifer nodded, somehow knowing they weren't talking about her son's ankle injury now. She locked gazes with him, wanting desperately to say more, to ask more, to tell him how sorry she was about a _lot_ of things, until Brian gently pulled away from her and turned to leave, his normally stoic demeanor gone and his shoulders drooping wearily.

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><p>"Justin..." Jennifer whispered sorrowfully as she watched Brian go, her heart going out to him over his look of dejection. "What have you done?" she murmured as she quickly but carefully rushed down the steps, not having any idea what she would find. She turned right and headed toward the segregated room, stopping at the open doorway and quickly honing in on her son who was perched long ways on the couch, his left leg bent slightly as he propped his injured ankle up with a flat pillow lying underneath. The cuff of his pants was in tatters - no doubt so his leg could be tended to - and he was awkwardly sitting up with his head in his hands, his elbows propped up on his knees. He looked up as he heard his mother approach, the hope in his eyes that Brian was returning quickly disappearing as he realized who it was. After his and Brian's discussion a little while ago, he had been highly annoyed at first, even resentful, but as he had spent a little more time thinking about it, his anger had turned more into a need to continue his conversation with Brian; their departure had left him feeling oddly empty and even more confused. Apparently, however, Brian didn't feel the same way at the moment.<p>

Jennifer briefly noted the highly romantic scene that Emmett had created for her son and Brian as her eyes swept around the room, noticing the muted lighted, soft music, and the makeshift dinner table before her eyes focused once more on her son. She just had time to notice the hopeful look in his eyes be effectively extinguished as he realized it was her instead of Brian before he greeted her, his voice strained and ragged.

"Well, at least Brian kept ONE promise to me," He told her. "He must have been more convincing to you than _I_ was."

Jennifer sighed guiltily as she walked into the room further, not having been sure of what reaction she would get from her son. She carefully sat down on the edge of the couch near his feet. "I'm sorry, Justin; we really thought you were kidding earlier." She gently pulled the torn flaps of Justin's pant leg apart to look at his injury. "Brian told me what happened just now. Does it hurt a lot? He didn't think you had broken it at least."

Justin gritted his teeth; since Brian had bandaged it a while ago, his immobile ankle had become more stiff and painful. Lips pressed tightly together, he curtly rasped out, "Just help me get upstairs." He was in no mood to rehash his and Brian's discussion with his mother or even discuss her involvement in this scheme, even though he was still quite perturbed by her interference - again. She had to have known what the girls were doing, and despite his firm admonition that she stop trying to play matchmaker for them, apparently his wishes had been completely disregarded once more.

Jennifer nodded, biting her lip as she stood up and watched her son gingerly turn so he was sitting up with his back to the couch; he winced as he placed his foot just barely on the floor and steeled himself to rise. "Justin..."

"Mom, I do NOT want to talk about me and Brian right now," he warned her curtly as he held onto the rolled-up arm of the couch and slowly rose to hop up on his good foot, purposely keeping weight off the other. He didn't even want to think about how painful it would be when he _did_ bear weight on it.

Jennifer moved to place her arm around her son's waist for support as he did the same around hers. "Just take it slow," she coached him.

"Mom..." Justin didn't know which one made him more aggravated at the moment, the fact that she was treating him like a five-year-old, or the fact that she couldn't seem to stay out of his affairs. _Okay - poor choice of words there..._

She turned her head to stare nervously into his troubled, blue eyes. "Yes?" she whispered.

Justin sighed; he needed to talk to her, but he was just too damn spent - physically as well as emotionally - to even venture there at the moment. He shook his head in dismissal. "Nothing. Never mind - let's just get going, okay?" He didn't want to spend one second longer than he had to in this 'cozy, little hideaway' that had been created for him and his ex-partner.

His mother nodded, secretly relieved that at least for the moment she was spared any reprimand that she felt sure would arise later. Slowly then, with her support, Justin began to hobble toward the door.

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><p><em>A Few Minutes Earlier...<em>

Brian stood near his previous place of confinement, attempting to collect his thoughts and trying to decide exactly what to do. He had just gotten through making it clear to Justin that he was done being his whipping boy; that despite his love for him which had never wavered, he could not and _would_ not continue to apologize for something that, for fuck's sake, happened a _decade_ ago. But as he stood there he thought to himself, _what now_? In the past several days he felt like his world had taken a 180° turn, and he wasn't used to feeling like his life was out of control like he felt it was now. The discovery that both girls were aware of each other and had switched places, along with traveling to Chicago to see Justin again, had turned what he thought was an 'acceptable' life completely topsy-turvy and had made all the deep emotions he had been trying to suppress come back with a roaring vengeance. And just being near Justin again, touching him, hearing his voice again, and worse, kissing him had made all sorts of possibilities spring to mind...

_No...don't go there_, he scolded himself. _Nothing has changed_...He blew out a breath and rubbed his face with his hand. _What a fucked up situation_! he decided. And it wasn't likely to improve anytime soon, either...

He caught a slight movement out of the corner of his eye as two identical heads peeked at him from the dining room archway. He shook his head as they quickly disappeared back out of sight, knowing then what he needed to do first. _Not fast enough, girls..._

Walking down the hallway and shortly arriving at the entrance to the dining room, he stood just outside the archway, noticing Kaylee and Katie studiously surveying their dinner plates as they picked at their food silently, their attention so seemingly focused on their meal that they appeared not to notice his arrival. He wasn't fooled for one second, however.

Blowing out a soft breath between his lips, he walked in and quietly sat down across from them, noticing the remains of someone's half-finished dinner in front of him, undoubtedly Jennifer's meal that had been interrupted by him earlier.

He stared over at his two girls, both of their heads still down and remarkably silent as they pushed their food around on their plates; he noticed that neither one of them were actually taking any bites of it now, and he knew that this type of 'meat and potatoes' meal wasn't the healthiest of foods, but it was still one of Katie's favorites; the fact that she wasn't really eating it was very telling. He wasn't sure how much time they had before Justin and Jennifer came back up from the basement, but he knew he definitely needed to talk to both of them. He had thought he would be furious with them over their treachery, but he found that as he gazed over at them he couldn't generate sufficient ire to stay that way. He understood why they had done what they did, and he could even empathize with them, but it was time to put a stop to it. Enough was enough. No matter how much they wanted a reunion between him and Justin, there was only one person now who could make that happen.

"Let's go outside," he quietly said to them at last. "We need to talk, girls."

Katie slowly raised her gaze to stare into her father's, afraid of what she might see now that their trickery had been discovered and things had apparently not gone the way they had hoped. His face, however, while solemn, was otherwise unreadable as to his current mood. "Is...Is Daddy okay?" she asked him anxiously as Kaylee, too, lifted her eyes to stare over at her father, the concern evident in her face.

"Yeah, he'll be okay, "he hastened to assure both of them. "He hurt his ankle and he's a little scraped up, but I don't think he broke any bones. He's just a little bruised in places. Your grandmother is down there helping him now, though. He'll be fine." _At least physically_, he couldn't help thinking to himself. Both of them were emotional wrecks at the moment. He pushed back from the table to rise. "Come on," he urged them, knowing the two girls weren't very hungry; he surmised they were just as upset by what had happened as _he_ was, but he still needed to make some things very clear to them. "We need to have a heart-to-heart talk - without your father around. Get moving, girls," he pressed when they hesitated.

Kaylee and Katie looked at each other before Katie took the lead, nodding at her sister as encouragement before they both stood up. Silently they followed their father out the room to the hallway and then over to the sliding glass doors and soon joined him outside at the nearest, round patio table. Using the remote attached to the pole of their shade umbrella, he pressed a button to turn the outdoor Tiki lights on, the twinkling orbs bathing the now dark exterior in tiny balls of soft yellow light.

Brian leaned his head back against the patio chair's fabric headrest, closing his eyes briefly as he pondered just what to tell his young daughters that wouldn't break their hearts any more than they already were. While both of them had grown up relatively happy and in stable households, he knew he was powerless now to give them the one gift that they most fervently desired. If only he had a magic potion to do just that...

"I think you know what I'm going to discuss with you," he began slowly as he opened his eyes and, clasping his hands in front of him, gazed over at his two nervous daughters, his two, beautiful, manipulative, but well-intentioned daughters. "What you did tonight was not acceptable, girls. You were told to stop orchestrating these schemes to get your father and me back together, and you did it anyway. And you got your grandmother involved again to boot."

Both girls' eyes began to fill with tears of sadness and bitter frustration, as well as fear that they had disappointed someone they both loved deeply. "We just wanted you back together, Dad," Katie finally spoke up, her voice barely above a whisper.

Brian had to strain to hear her above all the nocturnal sounds around them; somewhere off in the distance he heard a mournful-sounding train whistle as he told them, "I know you did; that you still do. But I need you to promise me, girls, that you will NOT interfere any longer in my and your father's relationship. We discussed it tonight - that's what you wanted us to do and we did. Now you both need to step back and let us handle it."

Kaylee bit her lip, trying hard not to point out that it was debatable just how 'adult' her fathers were being. She was afraid to ask, but found that she had to anyway. "What happened, Dad?" Both girls held their breath as they waited for a reply, knowing it was probably not going to be the response that they wanted; otherwise, the expression on their father's face would be much more hopeful.

Brian played with the remote in his hands, inexplicably unwilling - or unable - to meet their gaze. He just couldn't bear at the moment to see the crushed look on their faces when he told them what had happened.

"We talked," he began tentatively. He wasn't willing to tell them about the kiss; that would remain private between the two of them. "We talked about what happened before to drive us apart, and we talked about the two of you. How we both want the best for you, and how we will make sure that you both see each other as much as possible; and how your father and I will be in both of your lives constantly. Things will change regarding that going forward, I promise you." He paused for a moment before he added, "And I'm sure you both know how much we love you."

Katie exchanged a worried look with her sister, both silently focusing on what their father _wasn't_ saying. Kaylee nodded at her sister in a silent plea as Katie spoke up. "Dad, what_ aren't_ you telling us?"

Brian finally lifted his eyes to meet his daughters'. Other than perpetuating the biggest deception of them all - that they had a twin sister neither knew about - he had taken great pains never to tell a lie to them, and he wasn't about to start now. "I...I told your father that I felt I had been punished enough for what I had done, and if he couldn't find a way to forgive me, then..." His voice trailed off as he found it hard to continue.

"Dad?" Kaylee prodded softly, her eyes filling with tears of dread. Somehow she knew what was coming, but she knew she had to know for sure anyway.

Brian took a deep breath before he finished, "...then I told him that we were done as far as any reconciliation was concerned. I still love him," he told them quickly, "But the ball is in _his_ court now, Princess." He wasn't sure, but he had a good idea from the look on her face that it was his more tenderhearted daughter he was talking to now.

"But surely..."

"Kaylee," he gently chided her, noting that she didn't correct him. "It's my decision - and your father's. You have to leave it alone, and let US figure it out. I think you and Katie have made it abundantly clear how you feel and what you want to happen. And just for the record, that's what I want, too. But the older you get, the more you will come to realize that you can't always have what you want. Your father has a lot of thinking to do - and so do I. But you have to promise me - both of you - that you will no longer interfere and let US take care of it. Understood?"

The two girls stared over at their father glumly, their disapproval and sadness abundantly clear. Their father's voice left no question that he would not back down on his expectations - or his mandate.

"Kaylee? Katie? I want your word. Promise me."

"But..." Katie tried one more time on behalf of the two of them.

Brian huffed slightly; now he had no doubt which was which, leading him to another matter. "No, that's it, Katie. And while we're on this subject, there's no point anymore in the two of you trying to fool your father any longer; I think all that's done is just get all of us into more trouble." He looked over at Kaylee to address her directly. "The jig is up, girls; starting tomorrow, I want you to start dressing - and acting - the way that you should. No more of this _you can't tell us apart_ business. And if you don't come clean, I will tell your father how he can tell the difference." Once he and Justin had gotten everything aired out earlier, he found that he no longer wanted to be a part of any more subterfuge. From now on, everything - good or bad - would be out in the open between them.

Brian fucking _hated_ the look of defeat on his girls' faces, but he knew this was the right thing to do; the ONLY thing to do. Being deceptive had caused way too many problems already. "Girls?"

Katie sighed deeply as she reached for her sister's hand and gripped it tightly for support, seeking as well as giving strength. Somehow she knew it was coming to this, but she had still hoped that she was wrong. "Yeah, Dad," she finally told him, her voice breaking as she spoke; in contrast to her sister, though, her eyes were still dry. "We promise."

Brian nodded. "Kaylee? You, too?"

Kaylee sniffled as she squeezed her sister's hand even harder, almost like a vise. _There has to be another way_, she silently pleaded, feeling all hope disappearing now. "You love each other so much," she managed to insist softly; a couple of tears slowly trickled down her cheeks, escaping as she unsuccessfully tried to blink back her tears of sorrow.

"It'll be okay," Katie soothed her from her place beside her. But even SHE wasn't sure of that; not now, anyway. For once she didn't feel very much in control at all.

Kaylee swallowed the lump in her throat and sniffled once more before finally she nodded in acquiescence. "I promise," she finally managed to choke out feebly, but her heart was definitely not in it.

Brian stood up and walked around the table to kneel down between the girls' two chairs so he was closer to eye level with them. Placing one hand on each of their shoulders, he whispered, "I know this isn't what you wanted to happen. But this is the way it needs to be handled. If it's meant to happen, it will. But if it does, it will be because both your father and I want it, okay?" Seeing the twin looks of despair on both their faces as they turned their heads sideways to look up at him, their faces so reminiscent of Justin's, he felt the urge to offer them at least a small glimmer of hope.

"I haven't given up on us yet," he told them quietly. "But the rules have changed. They HAD to change. Your father and I can't move on unless he decides to let go of what happened and forgives me." He sighed. "He can be very stubborn," he conceded.

Kaylee actually harrumphed at that statement, knowing all too well how true that was. She nodded, recalling how her father always insists on knowing every place she goes whenever she's spending the night with one of her friends, and how he needs almost a play-by-play description of her every move while she's gone, even when her friend's mother comes to the door to pick her up. And he had demonstrated his inflexibility when he had persuaded her to go to Camp Pineland, even though she had been quite hesitant about the idea at first. Of course, if he _hadn't_ insisted, though, she would have never been reunited with her sister, so perhaps his stubbornness wasn't all bad at times. Now, however, was NOT a good time for her father to be carrying on with that particular tradition.

Brian smiled wryly at her look of exasperation. "I guess I don't have to tell YOU that, huh?"

Kaylee actually managed just the hint of a smile herself as she shook her head. "No," she whispered.

Brian nodded, adequately satisfied that the girls would keep their word. He was suddenly at a loss, though, as to what to do now. The thought of encountering Justin again inside the house was somewhat unnerving after their discussion downstairs, but by the same token he wasn't going to shy away from him, either, just to make things easier on both of them...

He was spared having to make any decision at all about it, though, as he heard one of the glass doors sliding open from a few feet away. His pulse sped up at the thought it might be Justin before he lifted his gaze to peer over at Jennifer standing in the doorway; her stiff body language indicated her anxiety as she placed one hand across her body to grasp her opposite wrist and peered over at Brian wearily. He made a cursory look around, not seeing his ex-partner anywhere nearby as he asked softly, "How is he?"

"He's in quite a bit of pain," she told him. "I think it's stiffened up since the fall. I gave him some more Advil, but he's still hurting quite a bit." Jennifer noticed the sad looks on her granddaughters' tear-stained faces, and knew that Brian must have given them some discouraging news. They probably knew more about what was going on than SHE did, in fact; Justin had clammed up tighter than Teflon on a new frying pan after they had managed to get upstairs, refusing to say anything more about what had happened between the two of them.

Brian nodded. "Where is he?" He actually had felt guilty abandoning Justin alone downstairs to wait for Jennifer to take care of him, but he just couldn't stay there anymore; not now.

"I helped him up the steps; he's lying down on the couch in the study."

"We want to see him," Katie decided as she and Kaylee began to spring up from their seats.

"Girls, no," Jennifer told them quickly, holding her left hand up like a school crossing guard. "I don't think now's a good time. Let him rest for a while, okay?" The girls looked disappointed, but both glumly nodded and sat back down as Jennifer informed Brian, "I think I need to take him to an urgent care center; he needs to have some x-rays done and have that ankle looked at to make sure nothing's broken." She crooked the left side of her lips upward as she informed him, "He's not too crazy about the idea, though; but I'm going to insist anyway - mother's prerogative."

_Yep - stubborn, all right..._Brian nodded as he glanced over at Kaylee and Katie. "The girls can both stay here with me tonight if you want." He glanced over at Kaylee - at least the one he _thought_ was Kaylee. "That okay with you, Princess?"

She nodded, torn between wanting to see her biological father to make sure he's all right, and not wanting to be separated from her sister. "Can I see him before you leave, though?" she pressed.

"Me, too," Katie piped up, needing to know how he was okay, too.

Jennifer and Brian locked gazes as she finally gave a brief nod of acceptance; apparently Brian wasn't having too much trouble telling the girls apart. She nodded in agreement and smiled at them tenderly. "Come on," she told them as she held out her hand.

As they hurried over to her and she placed her hands on either girls' shoulders to lead them back inside, Brian held back, rubbing his hand over his face uncertainly. He, too, wanted to go to Justin - to see for himself how he was doing and to reiterate to him how much he still loved him and how he wanted everything to work out. But his _own_ stubborn pride held him back, along with his conviction that it was time for a little 'tough love,' so instead he just sat there at the patio table, listening to the almost deafening sound of the crickets nearby; they weren't quite loud enough, though, to drown out his own thoughts.

* * *

><p>Justin squirmed on the leather couch, but every time he even slightly moved his injured ankle, a fresh stab of pain shot up through his leg. Grimacing at the result, he looked up as he saw his mother coming back in with both daughters. As he gazed into their troubled faces, full of sorrow and worry, his previous ire at them for tricking him and Brian quickly evaporated as they came rushing up to him.<p>

"Daddy," Kaylee cried out tearfully as she reached over to tightly hug his neck from her place next to the couch, careful not to nudge his injured foot. "Daddy, I'm so sorry we got you hurt." She pulled back to look at her father contritely, the tears temporarily blinding her sight. At the time she and her sister had concocted their scheme, she never thought their father would wind up being physically hurt. Now, as she looked at him lying there on the couch in obvious discomfort, however, she was overcome with guilt and remorse.

Katie walked up behind her, her lips pursed tightly together. _I'm not going to cry like Kaylee is,_ she told herself firmly, but she was having a hard time keeping that bargain with herself. All the events from the past few days - all the frustration, disappointment, and sorrow -quickly bubbled up inside of her as well, and despite her best intentions, the tears began to flow unbidden down her cheeks, too.

_Shit,_ Justin thought, feeling terrible. The worst thing he could imagine was seeing both of his girls crying and knowing he was the cause of it. It wasn't their fault that he had taken a misstep on the stairs, and it wasn't their fault that he and Brian's relationship was so fucked up at the moment. He wrapped his right hand around Kaylee's back as he motioned toward Katie with his other. "Come here," he whispered to them as he pulled both girls to his chest. "It's all right," he reassured them softly. "It's all going to be okay. This was none of your fault." He could feel the wetness against his shirt as two, identical, blond heads snuggled deeper into his embrace for solace. He wasn't sure at that moment which of them was receiving the most comfort - him or his daughters - but it was during times like this, when he had both daughters with him, that he could finally begin to start feeling whole again. How had he managed all this time to go without having BOTH of his daughters in his life? They were still little girls, even now, although the passage of time had relentlessly marched on since he and Brian had separated. One thing he knew for sure, though - no matter how much older they were, they didn't deserve to be handed such an adult dilemma. He vowed silently that no matter _what_ the future held for him and Brian, he would not subject them to any more trauma than they had already experienced.

He pulled back slightly as the girls lifted their heads to stare into his eyes, both girls' faces red and splotchy from where they had been crying. Temporarily forgetting the throbbing pain in his ankle, he reached up to place one hand on each of the girls' cheeks to softly wipe their tears away. "Everything will work out somehow," he told them. "You'll see."

Kaylee sniffed to try and compose herself; she felt like she must have cried a million tears tonight. "How, Daddy?" she cried out doubtfully, feeling like their world was falling completely apart. She and Katie had had such hopes that what they did would make a difference and result in both of their fathers reuniting again so they could be one, big, happy family. Now it appeared from what their father had told them earlier that it wasn't going to happen - ever. "How?" she cried again. She wiped her face with the back of her sleeve as she sputtered, "You...and Dad..." She couldn't finish the thought; it was just too painful.

Justin swallowed hard as he looked at one daughter and then the other. "I don't know just yet, Honey," he told both of them. "I can't promise you that everything will work out exactly the way that you both hope it will. But I DO know that your father and I won't keep the two of you apart any more. You will always be able to keep in touch no matter what happens between the two of us." He groaned as pain flared up again in his ankle as he shifted slightly.

"Sweetheart, you need to get that ankle looked at," Jennifer interrupted him as the girls reluctantly pulled back further to stand beside him, their faces still etched with concern. "Can you walk to the car if I help you? Brian has offered to watch the girls while we're gone," she told him.

_How convenient_, Justin couldn't help musing silently, unable to stop wondering if there was more to his 'altruistic' offer than what it appeared to be on the surface.

Just then, Brian appeared in the doorway, unsure if he should even be there but unable to stay away any longer. He had overheard what Justin had just told the girls; it had all sounded so final, so irrefutable, so unchangeable. As his eyes glanced over to meet his ex-partner's, he thought he saw just the flicker of remorse and sadness there before the mask promptly dropped back down and Justin looked away, returning his attention back to his mother.

Justin sighed. "Mom, I told you. I do NOT want to see a doctor! I just need to get some rest, that's all." Something told him if he stayed HERE that rest would be a very elusive commodity, however; there was no way he was staying here tonight. "Just...Just help me up and out to the car, so I can go back home and lie down." There was no way he was staying at Britin, not after what happened downstairs. Even if he and Brian stayed in separate wings on on different floors, it still wouldn't be far enough away for his comfort.

Brian inexplicably felt sad, hearing Justin referring to his _mother's_ condo as "home" and not Britin, even though he knew Justin hadn't called Britin home in years.

To his ex-partner's consternation, however, his mother decided to put her foot down as she replied instead, "Justin...I won't take no for an answer; I don't care how _old_ you are now! I'm still your mother, and I'm saying you need to listen to reason and have that ankle checked out. I'm not suggesting you need to go to the hospital," she reassured him, knowing how much he abhorred them, especially after the bashing. "I'm just saying that you need to visit the urgent care clinic to make sure nothing else needs to be done for it, that's all. It's obvious that it's really bothering you."

"Mom..."

Brian huffed in exasperation as he walked up to the small group, deciding he was going to have to buttress Jen's side of their argument. "Justin, quit being such a twat and just do what your mother asks."

"I am NOT being a twat," was the fiery retort as Justin glared up at him. "Besides, this is between me and my mother, not you. So can you kindly butt the hell out?"

Brian smirked. "Sorry, no can do, Sunshine," he told him as he approached even closer.

"What the hell do you think you're _doing_!" Justin growled in protest a few seconds later as Brian bent down and promptly scooped him up carefully in his arms, holding him under the thighs against his torso. Justin pressed his hands, palms down, on Brian's chest and pushed fiercely against him, finding the muscles under his touch even more firm than how he had remembered them; he attempted to disengage from his ex-partner's embrace, but Brian stood firm, pulling his body even more tightly against his. "Let me down, Brian!" he snapped as he flailed his good leg out in an attempt to be dislodged; he inadvertently moved his injured leg slightly in the process, though, and wound up groaning involuntarily as yet another flash of pain rose up from his ankle. He couldn't believe that Brian was pulling this stunt yet again, and it infuriated him, as well as made him feel powerless and vulnerable as he seethed inside.

"I'm taking you out to the car," Brian told him curtly, ignoring his vehement objection. "And you are going to do exactly what _your widdle Mommy_ tells you to do!" He glanced over at their two girls who were watching them with avid interest before he added, "Now stop acting like you're the same age as your daughters and get over yourself, Justin!"

Justin blew out an indignant breath, insulted at the insinuation that he was a child; gazing into the defiant, no-nonsense look in Brian's eyes, though, he knew he wasn't going to win this battle. Huffing out an angry hiss of resignation, he finally slid his hands up tentatively to curl his fingers over Brian's shoulder blades for balance as he lifted his gaze to peer into the darkened eyes. He could feel Brian's hands practically searing into his skin through his jeans and he flushed at the feeling, embarrassed over how much this man could still affect him as he cursed his body's predictable reaction to him. It brought back so many wondrous moments before when Brian had held him in his arms after they used to make love, and despite his current predicament he couldn't help thinking how much he had missed that feeling.

Jennifer couldn't help holding back a slight smile at her son's grudging acceptance to Brian's demand as she exchanged a secret look with her granddaughters. Obviously Brian still evoked the same sort of influence on her son that he always did. _Perhaps hope wasn't lost yet after all..._

Justin fumed, feeling both disgusted as well as mortified as Brian cradled him against his chest. If he didn't know better, he'd say that Brian had stretched some thin piece of nylon cord across the top step earlier, just so he would trip and fall down the stairs and he would have an excuse to do this. But even with all their difficulties lately, he knew that Brian would never do something like that. They had been through much too much in the past, and he knew that Brian would always protect him, even in their current situation.

"It seems I have no choice," he finally told him as a pair of unyielding, hazel eyes bored into his. As a smug-looking Brian began to steadily walk toward the doorway and out into the hall, Justin twisted his neck around to look at his daughters. "I'll be back tomorrow to get you," he vowed. He had to address it to both of them, since he _still _couldn't figure out which was which. "You sure you want to stay?"

To his surprise, ONE of the girls answered him directly now. "Yeah, Daddy...I want to stay with Dad and Katie."

His mouth gaped open as he stared back at the one he knew was Kaylee now; what had changed all of a sudden? Before he had a chance to find out, though, Brian turned and headed determinedly down the hall toward the front door. "Get the door, will you, Jen?" he asked Justin's mother as he waited briefly by the front door for her; there was no way he was going to let go of Justin now.

She nodded as she skirted around them to open the door. "I'll be right out," she told Brian as she turned to address the girls. Justin threw her a sort of look that said _can you be any more transparent?_ before Brian turned and carried him out toward Jen's car that was still parked in the driveway.

Jennifer turned around to address her granddaughters, who had been raptly following every step of their fathers' movements. "I'll probably leave your father back at the condo tomorrow when I come and pick you up," she told Kaylee. "Whether it's broken or not, I imagine he'll need to stay off it for a while."

Kaylee bit her lip and nodded, torn between wanting to make sure her father was okay, and not wanting to be separated from her sister for any longer than necessary. Right now, with things as bleak as they appeared, they needed each other more than ever. "Grandma, if you need to be around to take care of Daddy, couldn't Dad just bring us in with him to work tomorrow instead like he did before?"

Jennifer eyed her thoughtfully. "I guess that would work," she decided as she glanced toward the door. "I'll have to check with both of them first, though, to make sure it's all right with them. Just swear to me that the two of you will NOT be trying to come up with any more schemes behind their backs to get them back together in the meantime, okay?"

Both girls placed their hands behind their backs and crossed their fingers at the same time as they looked at each other and nodded before solemnly promising them, "We promise."

* * *

><p>"Damn it, Justin; quit squirming, will you?" Brian groused as his ex-partner continued to try and break free of his grasp. "I have to open the passenger door." Just feeling a certain blond's bubble butt shuffling back and forth in his arms was making him go crazy.<p>

Justin huffed. "Well, put me DOWN, then! I can open the fucking door myself; it's my ankle, Brian, not my damn arm!"

"Shit, Justin! I ought to just drop you right on your tight little ass!" Brian retorted, clearly fed up with his ex-partner's antics and lack of gratitude. "Don't tempt me," he warned him as Justin once more pushed against his chest, more than ready to be freed from the confines of Brian's embrace. Being held firmly against Brian's body - to be able to feel him, to smell him, to just be anywhere _near_ him - continued to make his heart pound and his body react in ways that he didn't want it to. Just a few more minutes longer, in fact, and Brian would know exactly HOW strongly it was affecting him; it would be all too painfully obvious.

Brian gazed into the beautiful, defiant face as his own face moved closer, his eyes lowering to take in the dusky, rose colored lips. He couldn't stop himself; it was like some sort of entrancing spell..._God, the man was too damn intoxicating, _he thought to himself; he couldn't let another opportunity pass him by. Who knew if he would ever receive another one?

Justin's eyes narrowed in wariness. "Don't you dare, Brian," he warned, his eyes widening in realization. But he couldn't engender the sharp edge to his words that he wanted them to convey; it was just too impossible with that face, that wondrous, glorious face of the man who both infuriated him as well as captivated him, moving toward his at such a close range. His heart began to pound even harder, and his hands all of a sudden began to feel clammy...

"Sorry," Brian replied softly, feeling his emotions laid bare as Justin's eyes instinctively drifted shut in anticipation almost against his will - and his common sense. "But I just can't help it..."

Time seemed to stop as Brian's eyes, too, fluttered closed just before their lips touched again, tentatively at first but then with more fervor. _Come on, Justin_, he silently urged his ex-lover as he pressed his lips harder against his. _Remember...Remember what we meant to each other..._For one brief, glorious moment, he was given what he wanted as Justin's lips opened slightly to accommodate his silent plea and his tongue joyously slid inside, but just as quickly he was abruptly rebuffed as Justin pushed even harder against him and soundly broke off their kiss, this time succeeding in Brian reluctantly releasing him to lower him to the ground; strangely, though, he didn't feel triumph when it happened, but a definable, distinct loss in its place.

He didn't have much time to contemplate that fact as his injured foot touched the blacktop and he gasped at the contact. He quickly elevated his leg up off the pavement and leaned against the car's passenger door for support as he yanked the door open, his harsh breathing a clear indication of his physical discomfort. Somehow that pain didn't seem as piercing as the emotional trauma he was feeling at the moment, however. Would he ever be able to be around Brian without his emotions running rampant and his thoughts in utter turmoil?

Brian folded his hands across his chest in disgust as he watched his stubborn ex-partner hop on one leg before he managed somewhat awkwardly to enter the passenger side of the car and sit down. He heard Justin groan as he did so. _Serves you right, you pigheaded, little shit_, he muttered silently, but he took no joy in the thought.

It had taken Justin several seconds before he could put both legs into the vehicle, but finally he was completely inside, his own arms crossed over his chest in an almost exact imitation of Brian's. He stared out through the windshield, his lips pressed tightly together as he stared straight ahead in a blatant but totally unsuccessful attempt to ignore Brian. _What was keeping his mother?_ Despite Britin sitting on several acres, right now he felt like he was in the most cramped space on earth next to his formidable ex-partner. He watched out of the corner of his eye as Brian knelt down next to him beside the car.

"Why did you do that?" Justin asked him curtly. "I thought we had agreed..."

"We agreed on nothing," Brian told him abruptly. "You _told_ me what you wanted - or didn't want - and I told you what I _needed_. The only thing we agreed upon was working together to change the custody agreement for the girls."

Justin finally turned to look over at Brian, whose face was shadowed by the darkness of night; only the overhead light in the car, along with the glow from inside the house, illuminated his face as he asked him point blank, "Why did you kiss me?"

Brian rubbed his hand over his face, taking a moment to ponder that question. _Because you're my fatal disease, the sickness I can never recover from..._He finally settled for turning to look directly into Justin's eyes and simply admitting, "You know why. Because I told you before. I still love you, damn it. Just because we aren't together doesn't mean that I've stopped feeling that way. I can't turn my feelings off like some fucking light bulb, despite what you might think."

"And you think that _kissing_ me will resolve everything, Brian?" _You kissed me? In front of everybody? _ came unbidden to his mind from another place and time as he firmly tamped it back down into a deeper recess of his brain.

Brian sighed heavily; he was so weary of their battling. "Justin, why does everything have to be psychoanalyzed? It was one kiss...one kiss that you wanted as much as I did. Just like you wanted the other one before; admit it."

Justin averted his gaze back to the car's windshield, unwilling to admit that Brian was right. He _had _wanted it; both times. He never _could _resist this man, not since the moment they had met. When he had left with Ethan that night so long ago, it was the hardest thing he had ever done, and it felt like he couldn't breathe again, not until he and Brian had finally been reunited. This time, though, sex wasn't going to fix all their problems; in fact, it had been the cause of their difficulties to begin with. He mustn't let that escape his memory. There wasn't much chance of that happening anytime soon, though.

"I'm admitting nothing," he told Brian at last as he heard him softly scoff at his statement. He shrugged nonchalantly. "Like you said, it was just a kiss."

"Keep saying that, Justin, if it makes it easier for you," Brian vowed.

Justin rolled his eyes, prepared to issue some sort of snappy comeback, but he was interrupted by his mother.

"Brian?" Jennifer called out softly from inside the doorway, sensing she was disturbing something between the two of them but not sure exactly what; she could see Brian kneeling down next to the open passenger door. "The girls are asking if you can bring them back into town tomorrow morning instead of my coming back out. Would that be okay with you? I can either pick them up at Kinnetik or the diner, or you can drop them off at my condo on the way in."

"Justin?" he asked his ex-partner softly. At least when it came to the girls they could maintain a semblance of a civil truce. "Okay by you? Actually, I can work from home here for the next couple of days so you can recuperate. I can bring them back into town sometime later this week, if you want." He wished Justin would just stay there, too, but between their previous discussion downstairs and his injury, he knew that was wishful thinking.

Justin took a deep breath and let it out before he came to a decision. He and Brian may be having problems still, but he never doubted his ex-partner's love for both daughters and the assurance that he would take good care of them. "Yeah...Okay. But I want the chance to spend some more time with both of them, too, before I head back home."

"That's fine, Jennifer," Brian called back to Justin's mother in response. "But give us a few more minutes, okay?" He waited until she nodded and turned to go back into the house before he turned his attention back to Justin in the car. He didn't like the sound of that last statement; to him, they still had too much to resolve yet, and the thought of Justin returning soon to Chicago - to his previous life - filled him with a sense of doomed finality. "When do you think that will be?" he asked cautiously.

Justin shrugged; he winced once more as a slight movement of his foot on his part caused another jolt of pain to flare up. He turned to look at Brian as he told him, "Depends upon how long it takes to work out the custody agreement for the girls."

"Only that?" Brian pressed him quietly, his eyes piercing into Justin's.

Justin shook his head sadly as he averted his gaze, unwilling to answer the unspoken question; he had moved beyond anger to more of a mentally exhausted state now. "Brian...Let's just drop it, okay?"

Brian gazed over at the beautiful, tired face for several seconds before he nodded in agreement. "Fine, I'll drop it; for now. Besides, like I told you, Justin, it's _your_ decision where we go from here. I've told you where I stand and I've done all that I can do."

"No, you haven't," Justin told him, the pain still evident in his voice. "You still haven't given me a good enough reason why you did what you did. I think I deserve one, don't you? Or we never CAN move on like you said. Telling me that you don't _know_ the reason isn't good enough, Brian. I need an explanation for my own peace of mind...and I suspect so do YOU."

Brian shook his head in frustration and stood up, tired of going around and around in an endless circle. "Get your ankle looked at and get some rest," he said softly as Jennifer walked back out with the two girls in tow. "Say goodbye to your father, girls," he told them as they approached. "I'll...I'll be inside when you're finished." Without another look at his partner, he turned and walked back toward the house, needing at least a few moments alone to gather his thoughts before his daughters came back in.

Perhaps Justin was right, he silently conceded as he entered the study and poured himself a shot of beam, collapsing promptly into one of the dark leather, overstuffed chairs sitting at both ends of the couch. They were _both_ looking for the same answer, actually. He had skipped around the question long enough in his own mind, ever since it had happened, like a circle without an end. He knew Justin was right; he hadn't done what he had for no reason. No one did anything without a stimulus involved, whether it was material or psychological.

But the true reason continued to elude him, perplex him, even now. He had lost track of how many times he had asked that same question to himself, over and over again. Why would he throw away what he had for something like that? Deep inside he had to know the real reason, didn't he? He must; no one did anything without a type of motivation, good or bad. Until he could figure it out for himself, he had no way of explaining it to Justin. Perhaps the biggest challenge, though, would be finding not only a way for his ex-partner to forgive him, but also a way for him to forgive himself. Until that happened, he knew they would be continued to be mired in the same trap - unable to go backward but also unable to move forward. Downing the rest of his drink in one gulp, he placed it down on the glass coffee table, knowing he needed to do something that he had never been comfortable doing before - he needed to talk it out with someone who could help him sort out this mess he was in before he missed his one, last chance of being reunited with the man he still deeply loved.

He heard the car door close outside and knew he only had a few minutes before the girls would be returning. Reaching inside his pocket, he pulled out his cellphone number and dialed a one-number listing. He was grateful that the other end was answered after a couple of rings.

Taking a deep breath, he said, "Hey, Mikey...It's your favorite superhero. Rage needs some rescuing."

* * *

><p><em>AN: Thanks to my beta, Boriqua522. I appreciate all the effort and time you put forth for me, my friend.:)_


	20. Forging the Bonds of Forgiveness

_Brian has a heart-to-heart talk with his daughters before Michael's visit; Justin comes into contact with some friends from the past._

* * *

><p><p>

_An Hour Later – Katie's Room_

Both sisters sat together cross-legged on Katie's bed, Katie sketching silently in her sketchpad with a graphite pencil while Kaylee worked on beading a new bracelet in shades of light pink and green, two of her favorite colors, the iridescent jewelry scattered at the bottom of a round, plastic container to be threaded onto a nylon string. Tonight they had followed their father's instructions he gave them earlier, opting to wear sleepwear that more appropriately reflected their individual style and set them apart for a change. Katie was wearing a no-nonsense, two-piece pair of pajamas consisting of a solid, navy-blue tee shirt and a pair of gray sweat pants, while Kaylee had chosen to wear a knee-length nightgown that Katie had retrieved from her bottom dresser drawer. She had never actually worn the prissy-looking gown; it had been a Christmas gift last year from their Grandma Debbie and she had found the white lace trim and pink color too girly for her taste. Kaylee, on the other hand, had loved it, so much so that Katie had promptly gifted her with it. A favorite CD of Katie's played quietly over in the corner of her room as they worked companionably together, both girls preoccupied with the situation regarding their fathers and the events of the past several hours.

"Tired?" Katie asked her sister, glancing up from her sketch pad as she heard her give out a big yawn.

"A little," Kaylee admitted as she placed the half-completed bracelet down and stretched her hands above her head. "What time is it?"

Katie glanced over at her bedside clock made in the shape of a soccer ball. "About eleven," she told her.

Kaylee nodded as she glanced over at her sister's drawing of their father. It depicted Brian sitting at his desk in his office, glasses perched on the bridge of his nose as he looked at some work on his laptop. "You're really good," she complimented her. "That looks just like Dad."

Katie smiled wistfully. "Thanks," she said softly. She sighed as she placed the sketchpad down on the mattress in front of her.

Picking up on her sister's gloomy-looking face, Kaylee asked, "Katie?"

"Yeah?"

"What are we going to do?" She didn't even have to elaborate about what she was referring to; it was almost as if they could read each other's minds.

Katie bit her lip thoughtfully. To her sister's dismay, she shook her head sadly. "I don't know," she told her honestly in a whisper. Everything they had tried had come crashing down, and now their father had forbade them to do any more, even dressing up alike. "Nothing we do seems to help anymore."

Kaylee's eyes glistened with the beginning of tears. "I know," she said, her face clouding over. "I'm afraid, Katie." Her sister had always been the strong one throughout their endeavors, and to see her so uncertain now made her all the more anxious.

Katie reached for her hand and grasped it, feeling it tremble beneath her. "Me, too," she admitted. "I'm afraid that now that Daddy will be able to tell us apart, he'll want to take you back home right away, and things will go back to the way they were before." She reached inside the pocket of her sweatpants, drawing out the old photo that she had found in the library book. Even though it had only been a few weeks ago, at the moment it seemed like a lifetime. She stared down at the photo of their two fathers, looking so young, so happy, and so in love. She swallowed the lump in her throat before she whispered, "I was just getting to know Daddy again, and now…now…I don't even have a recent picture of him yet." Her words failed her as her own heart began to drop at the thought of all of them being separated again, and tears formed in her own eyes. Normally she was the strong one, the leader, the determined one. Right now, though, she merely felt like the child that she was, a pawn in a battle between two very obstinate and proud men, and it made her feel inordinately helpless.

To her surprise, Kaylee shook her head firmly. "No," she told her, her jaw set. "Daddy told us that he wouldn't leave until he and Dad had changed the custody agreement so we could see each other again. He always kept his promises to me, Katie. He won't leave until they work something out with the judge."

Suddenly their roles were reversed as Katie sought comfort and reassurance from her sister. "You think so?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. "I don't want us to ever be apart again. And I don't want to have to say goodbye to Daddy again, either. I love them both so much, Kaylee. And you. You're the best sister anyone could ever have." She sniffled and swallowed hard at the painful, emotional lump in her throat.

Kaylee's eyes filled with tears as she reached to tightly embrace her sister. "I love you, too, Katie," she told her as they clung to each other desperately, all the events seeming to culminate in their tight embrace. Their mournful sobs filled the air until they finally pulled back after several seconds, both faces tear-stained and their hearts heavy with sorrow and dread.

Their hands were still clasped together as the door to their bedroom was quietly opened and Brian peered inside. His heart broke at the sight of his two little girls, miserable and frightened, as he slowly walked into the room. At the moment he had no fucking clue what he was going to say to them, but he knew he had to tell them something to reassure them.

He walked over and sat down on the edge of the bed, having said goodbye to Justin and Jennifer a few minutes earlier. Michael would be coming out to the house tomorrow morning to see him. He had hoped it could have even been tonight, but at this late hour he realized that was unreasonable of him, even though Michael had offered. It wouldn't really make any difference, he supposed, but he knew he would be having a restless night tonight. Sleep would be the furthest thing from his mind.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked them softly as he scooted over onto the bed to sit between them. The two girls instantly melted into his side as he wrapped his arms around their shoulders and they laid their heads against his chest. He sighed, regretting what they were having to go through because of him and Justin's difficulties. Their sadness and fear were yet another painful ramification of what had happened between him and his ex-partner so long ago and how it still lingered even today.

"Are you both okay?" he asked them softly as his thumbs slowly caressed their shoulders in small circles. He could hear their soft breathing and feel their hearts beating against his chest as he pulled them closer to his body, trying somehow to convey his deep love for them and to somehow show them that everything would work out okay. He only wished he knew how that was going to happen.

Kaylee sniffled against him as she whispered, "We're scared, Dad."

He pulled back then to look down into her tear-washed face, again seeing an exact replica of Justin's blue eyes peering back at him. His heart did a flip-flop as he stared at her. "Scared? What are you scared of, Princess?"

Kaylee looked over at her sister before confessing, "We're afraid everything will all go back to the way things were before."

Brian eyes bored into hers as he said, "You mean before you and Katie found each other again? Before you came here to stay with me?"

Kaylee nodded as Katie explained, "She's afraid that we'll all be pulled apart again. Dad, we don't _want_ to live that way."

Brian straightened himself up in the bed so he could brace his back against the headboard. It helped to provide him with more support, but it also gave him a few seconds to think because frankly, he didn't quite know how to address their concerns. Depending upon what happened, there was still a chance that they _would_ be apart again, at least for much of each year. If he and Justin couldn't resolve their problems, or if the judge somehow didn't agree to a revised custody agreement, Kaylee and Katie would be just like the thousands of other children who are raised in broken homes across the country.

"I'm not going to lie to either of you," Brian began as two sets of worried eyes peered up at him for reassurance. "I'm kind of afraid of that, too." He let out a tense breath before gently advising them, "There's going to be a chance that things will not work out the way you want. And even if your father and I come to an agreement between us, the judge could still decide to keep the original custody agreement intact, although I don't see how he can do that now that you two know about each other. But you both need to be prepared just in case it does happen." He swallowed uncomfortably; the last thing he wanted was to hurt his and Justin's daughters any more. But he refused to build their future relationship on false hopes, also. "Your father and I will do everything we possibly can to make sure that the two of you see each other all the time. And we both want to get to know you both a lot better. We will always be in your lives no matter what," he rushed to assure them. "But I won't make false promises to you and guarantee that everything will turn out all right between your father and me personally, because the truth is, I don't _know_ what's going to happen."

Katie wiped her face with her tee-shirt. "You ARE going to talk to Daddy again, aren't you?" she pressed urgently. "Please, Dad. You have to somehow make him understand how you feel. How sorry you are. How much you still love him. _Please_."

Brian's eyes misted over at the mournful tone of his daughter's voice. His heart was breaking as he looked at both of the daughters he loved so deeply, their hearts bared open to his scrutiny. "You know I will," he told them softly. "I told you before, girls; I'm NOT giving up on him – on us. I think he needs a little time to think about what we've discussed, and I need a little time, too. He already knows I love him. I am NOT going to quit; I think you _both_ know me better than that by now." He reached over to gently wipe Kaylee's cheeks with his fingers as told them both, "Just hang in there. Don't give up hope, not yet." He reached over to wipe his other daughter's tears away as he felt the need to reiterate, "Just please – you have to promise me once more that you will not get involved again. Both your father and I know very well how you both feel, and we both love you for it. But now it's up to the two of us to straighten everything out, and I will do everything in my power to see that that happens…okay?"

Both girls nodded at him as he smiled and pulled them even tighter against him. He grunted before releasing them. Kissing one daughter on the forehead and then the other, he began to rise from the bed as he told them, "Now try and get some sleep, okay? We're going to have some company tomorrow."

Kaylee and Katie both frowned; was their father coming back, despite his injury? "Is Daddy coming back here to the house?" Kaylee asked.

Brian shook his head. "No, not yet. Michael's coming out to visit me. And Gus is arriving from Toronto tomorrow afternoon." He had completely forgotten about his son's visit that had been planned months before; in a way it was terrible timing with everything else going on, but in another way, it was a great opportunity for Kaylee to become reacquainted with the brother that she didn't even remember. It was yet one other part of this whole sordid mess that he regretted.

Katie's face broke out into a delighted smile, a stark contrast to the wetness still drying on her cheeks. "Gus will be here tomorrow?" She wasn't all that excited about Michael – she just looked at him as a friend of her father's, even though she knew they had grown up together and they had been best friends at one time – but Gus was special. He was her big brother, her staunch defender, and yes, her true friend, even though they were years apart in age. Brian nodded at her in confirmation as a thought struck her. "Didn't Daddy name him the night he was born? And didn't you meet for the first time that night?" She had always been fascinated with any information her father would give her regarding him. This had been one of the few pieces of information he had shared with her regarding their lives together, and she clung to each bit of revelation like a precious jewel.

Kaylee's mouth hung open in shock, her heavy heart temporarily pushed aside as she digested this incredible disclosure. Katie had filled her in with just the briefest of information on both her father's friend Michael as well as the brother she had never remembered meeting before, but he would be here tomorrow? And her Daddy had met her father the same night he had been born and had been responsible for naming him, too? "Is that true, Dad?" she asked him, her eyes round with curiosity. "Daddy never told me any of that."

Brian smiled in fond remembrance. That night had been one of the most exhilarating, as well as scariest nights he had ever endured. But it had also been the beginning of an amazing love story between him and Justin. Whether it would wind up being categorized under the 'happily ever after' section, though, remained to be seen.

"Yeah, it's true," he told her with a nod, his thoughts going back in time to that night. "It was one special night," he murmured before his eyes refocused on his daughter and he smiled, happy that at least for one brief period both girls were thinking about a more pleasant subject. "You will finally get the chance to see him again. He doesn't even know you're here, in fact, so it will be one, big surprise for him." He paused for a moment to divulge, "He's never forgotten you, you know. He asks about you all the time." _Shit. Yet one more reason to end this stupid, hurtful custody agreement now…_

"He does?" Kaylee asked him in wonder. "I can't wait to meet him!" It was almost like Christmas to her; not only had she obtained a sister she didn't know she had, but now she was going to get to meet the brother she never knew about, also. She frowned. "Would he even BE my brother, Dad?" she wondered. "He's not really related to me and Katie."

"Well, I'm your father, aren't I?" When Kaylee nodded, he arched an eyebrow at her as he firmly replied, "Well, then Gus is my son and you're my daughter, at least where it counts the most. So yes, he most definitely IS your brother where it's most important," he told her as he pointed to his heart, "right in here."

She nodded and Katie grinned over at him in complete agreement. She and Gus couldn't be any closer if they were blood related. "You'll like Gus," she told her sister. "He always stands up for me against Dad."

Brian finally had something to laugh at as he warned his daughter, "Now don't go telling her that, or I'll have a heck of a time controlling the three of you tomorrow. I'll definitely be outnumbered here." He let out a breath to release some tension as he stood up. His glance fell upon Katie's sketch on the bed and he reached down to pick it up, admiring her clean lines and detail. He smiled; she truly WAS Justin's daughter. "You're getting better all the time, Chiquitita," he told her as she beamed at the praise. "This is great. Of course, it would HAVE to be looking at the stunningly handsome subject matter."

"Daaad," she whined good-naturedly as he grinned down at her. "You're so full of yourself sometimes."

He laughed. "Only when I'm all dressed up in one of my power suits," he told her with a smile. "Now time for bed. I have it on good authority that Michael's bringing out some of your grandmother's lemon bars with him for breakfast tomorrow."

Katie smiled in delight; despite her normal penchant for eating healthy foods, she always made an exception for her Grandma Deb's lemon bars from the diner. "They're the best," she told Kaylee with a nod as Brian lifted the lightweight, horse-motif comforter from the bottom of the bed and waited until the two girls had lain down before he brought it up to cover them up to their shoulders. Two identical pairs of short-haired, blue-eyed faces peered up at him as his heart warmed at the sight. This was what it should have been like all this time – the precious time and opportunity for making memories that he and Justin had squandered. He let out a deep breath. Hopefully, hopefully soon, they could start making up for some of that lost time.

He smiled tenderly down at them as he leaned down to give each of them a kiss; in turn their arms wound around their father's neck as they hugged him back. As he stood back up, his emotions threatened to overwhelm him as he wished them good night.

"Good night, Dad," they both said in unison.

Brian grinned; even now, even when they weren't trying, it was hard not for them not to act as one. "Good night, girls." His face sobered into something warmer as he whispered, "Sweet dreams."

He turned to go, the wish he longed to express still the most difficult one of all for him to verbalize.

"Dad?"

Brian turned around just as he got to their door. "Yeah, Princess?" he asked Kaylee.

"I love you," was the simple reply, but those three little words, spoken so softly, held the key to Brian's heart.

"I love you, too, Dad," Katie called after her. "Even if you ARE conceited sometimes."

Brian smiled at her teasing, standing there for a few seconds before he found the courage to say, "Me, too." Closing the door quietly behind him, he leaned against it for a few seconds and took a deep breath. It was going to be a long, sleepless night.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Pittsburgh<em>

Jennifer unlocked the door to her condo and walked in, flipping on the light switch located to the side of the door and bathing the living room in a soft glow from the recessed lighting built into the far wall over the stark, white bookshelves. They were lined with a combination of photographs, trinkets of occasional vacation trips, leisure reading books and real estate law volumes, all very important parts of her life since she and Craig had divorced and she had made a life for herself. She noticed that the only photo missing in her collection was one she longed for most of all - a recent one of her two beloved granddaughters and their fathers together again, happy. She sighed, not sure if that would ever materialize or not. She turned to offer her son a hand, only to be firmly rebuffed.

"I can do it, Mom," Justin told her somewhat curtly as he hopped in on one foot, feeling like some perverse image of the Easter Bunny, but unwilling to let his mother help him. A stop at the urgent care clinic on the way home had proven that Justin had merely bruised the ankle, not broken or sprained it. He would need to avoid walking on it at least overnight, and then, depending upon how painful it was to bear weight on it, he could slowly build up to walking on it again. The nurse on staff tonight had issued him a set of metal crutches and had run through the proper use of walking with them; however, Justin was determined to only use them as a last resort. After being assaulted several years ago and being incapacitated for weeks, the last thing he wanted was to be reminded of any disability.

He hopped over to the nearby corduroy-brown couch and fell on top of it, being careful not to bump his injured leg on the ground as he did so. Huffing in discomfort, he placed his hands on top of his head and restlessly brushed his hair away from his eyes before he looked up wearily at his mother who hadn't moved from her place near the door. The ride home had been a tense one; Justin had been given a rather strong painkiller at the clinic and had spent most of the time with his head leaning against the car's passenger window; a light rain had begun, one of those nuisance, misty ones that served to match his gloomy mood, so he had elected to gaze out the window and avoid his mother's guilty stare. She had wisely decided not to engage him in polite conversation on the return ride home; if she had, she would have gotten an angry mouthful from him. Now, however, as the sedative effect of the prescription painkiller sank in, his anger had been diffused into something more akin to weariness.

"I'll go make up the spare bedroom," she finally said as she began to walk toward the hallway to retrieve some bedding.

"Don't bother," he quietly gritted out as she passed. "I'll just sleep on the couch."

"Wouldn't you be more com…"

"No," he told her sharply, tired of everything. "I'm staying here. Just bring me a pillow and a blanket," he told her, adding a perfunctory "please" to his request as an afterthought under his breath. He was still so extremely annoyed with her for once more interfering despite his wishes that he was afraid to say too much for fear he would explode at her.

Fortunately, she detected the angry tone in his voice and wisely chose to merely nod and let it go as she walked into the hallway's linen closet to retrieve the bedding. As she handed it to her son a few minutes later, she opened her mouth to speak, only to have Justin shake his head.

"I'm really tired, Mom," he told her tersely. "I'm not in the mood to discuss anything right now. Good night."

She bit her lip nervously for a moment before nodding, knowing her son would no doubt have a lot more to say to her later but realizing he was in no condition to do it now. "I'll just go get you some bottled water and put your medicine next to you if you need it, then."

A few minutes later, Justin was finally able to manage swinging his injured ankle around to gingerly lay it on the couch as he reclined lengthwise and tried to force himself to sleep, but his mind was racing with everything that had happened today – every moment with Brian rewound itself in his head; every touch, every word, every glance, his voice, his smell…his kiss. _Damn him and his body's reaction to him_. Even now, it was as strong as it ever was, maybe even deeper than before. Was it the time apart that had made it so much more intense, so vibrant? Add that to everyone else pushing them back together and he knew sleep would be elusive if not impossible tonight. Sighing as the second pain pill slowly began to take effect, against his will and his own good judgment, he finally managed to drift off into a restless sleep, his dreams concentrated on one man – a man he reckoned would linger in his mind and in his heart for all eternity.

* * *

><p><em>Liberty Diner – 9:30 a.m. the next day<em>

"Michael! What you are doing here, Honey?" Debbie beamed from behind the diner's counter as Michael came walking up to greet her.

He leaned over the counter to give her a hug and kiss before sliding himself onto one of the vinyl-clad stools. "Hey, Maw," he greeted her with an indulgent smile. "I need a dozen lemon bars to go."

"You got it," she said boisterously, thrilled to see her son looking more like his old self. She was noticing that more and more lately. She smiled at him as he gave her a return smile, but she didn't move toward the domed, glass display holding the diner's favorite dessert just yet.

"What?" he asked her in amusement, noticing her stare of curiosity. He knew that look by now, and what it meant; his mother's lips weren't moving (a rarity, for sure), but she was still definitely asking a question anyway.

Debbie leaned down to place her elbows on the counter and stare into her son's eyes; her own both piercing and inquisitive. "What's going on with you, Michael Novotny?" she asked him without any further preamble.

"I told you," he answered her a little uneasily. "I just came in to pick up some lemon bars. If you _must_ know, Brian called me last night and invited me out to Britin to see him."

Debbie's brows lifted in surprise. "He did?" Now it was _her _turn to look a little uncomfortable. Did Brian tell Michael what was going on out there? Did he know about the two twins staying with him and about Justin being back in town? How she longed to see Justin again; when the two girls had come into the diner yesterday, she had been absolutely thrilled to see both of her granddaughters at last and help them get in touch with Emmett for his assistance with their dinner last night, but she had been extremely disappointed not to see their father with them. She was determined to rectify that soon, however; there was no way she was going to let Justin come back into town and not see him again. And she had to admit – she was dying to know what had happened last night. She had tried to call Jennifer, but her call had gone directly into voicemail.

"What did he want?" she asked him as she occupied herself with pouring him a cup of coffee, trying to sound nonchalant. Unlike her normal M.O., she had remained secretive about what was going on with Brian and Justin; her desire to see the two of them back together again as a family had trumped her normal tendency to blurt out everything that was going on.

Michael shrugged. "Who knows with Brian? Until he called last night, I hadn't heard from him in weeks. He said something weird, though, about needing 'rescuing.' If I didn't know better, I'd say he was strung out on E last night or drunk. But he didn't sound spaced out to me." What did he know, however? Since he had gotten married to Ben and Brian and Justin had broken up a couple of years after the birth of their daughters, their relationship had changed from one of a close bond to something more like a wistful, bittersweet friendship. The days of Brian calling to confide in him, or the two of them commiserating over a drink at Woody's, were long gone.

Oh, it wasn't that Brian hadn't been there for him when Ben had died, and hadn't spent time with him trying to console him. He had attended the funeral as well as stood by him at the hospital while Ben had been fighting for his life, but once he had died and the shock over his death had subsided into a more dulled form of grief, Brian had been forced to return to his life as a single father and CEO of a multi-million dollar advertising company, and Michael had thrown himself back into his comic shop. They had slowly drifted apart then, only talking to each other occasionally and meeting even less than that. So his friend's mysterious call late last night had come as something of a surprise, but he was still curious enough, and still cared for his former best friend enough, to find out what he needed.

Debbie nodded, wondering if it had to do with Justin and the girls. How could she ask him, though, and not give away her own part in what was going on? "Hmm," she said noncommittally. "That is kind of odd, even for him. He didn't give you any idea what he wanted at all?"

Michael shook his head as he took a gulp of his black coffee. "No, not really; he just asked if I could come out this morning to see him. He _did _say he'd grill out for lunch if I could stay that long; obviously he's not coming into Kinnetik, then."

Debbie silently digested that information. Was it possible that Justin was out there, too, and that _both_ of them would be there, along with the girls? Perhaps this was promising news, then. "I guess you're right," she said as she placed the coffee carafe down on the nearby burner.

As she turned back around, it suddenly occurred to her that she hadn't asked her son about something else; surely his more sunny change in personality lately didn't have to do with Brian, did it? "Michael?"

"Yeah, Maw?"

"I've noticed you seem a lot happier lately. Why is that?"

She noticed her son actually fidgeting on the counter stool and averting his eyes as she waited for a reply, and now she KNEW she was right – there WAS something going on.

"Michael…I asked you a question."

"Why?" he countered with a question of his own, wondering how much he should tell her. He knew once he disclosed the real reason, there was no turning back. "Did you like me better the other way?" He knew until recently he had let Ben's death drag him down into the depths of despair, and it had only been a short while ago that he had found a motivation to pull himself back out.

"Ow!" he said as she whacked him affectionately on the side of his head. "Maw!"

"That's for being a smartass," she scolded him. "Of course I didn't, you little asshole!" she told him as she stared into his eyes. "I just want to know what caused the change in you, that's all. What aren't you telling me, Michael?"

Michael sighed. "All right," he decided, knowing it was inevitable anyway. "If you must know, I've…met someone."

He covered his ears just before his mother screeched in delighted astonishment. "Michael! You've _met_ someone? Why didn't you tell me? Who is he? Where did you meet? What's his name? What kind of work does he do?"

_Yes…That is why he hadn't brought it up yet. Fuck_. Michael breathed in a deep breath and let it out before he spoke up, knowing this was going to take a little while. His mother wouldn't let him leave now without knowing everything about his new friend, including his birthdate, favorite color, rock band, food, and complete family history, no doubt, if he knew all that. "His name is Derek Donatello. I met him a few weeks ago when he came into the shop to discuss the plans for my expansion. He's the construction foreman for the job, and when I found out that he's a big comic book fan and that he was gay, well, one thing led to another and…"

"And you hit it off!" Debbie completed for him, beaming in delight over this unexpected news. "That's great, Honey!" she told him as she patted him on the back in congratulations. She cracked her gum before she asked, "So have you fucked yet? Is he an Italian Stallion?"

"Maw!" Michael protested, his face turning red as several other diners nearby turned their heads to look at them in amusement; everyone he saw there was familiar to him, though, so nothing that his mother said would really shock anyone – not anymore. "That's personal," he grumbled.

She smiled even brighter as she blew a bubble with her gum before popping it and concluded, "So you _have_! Way to go, Michael! I'm so happy for you, Honey! I mean, I loved Ben and all, you know that, but you've been so unhappy up until now…"

"Yeah, I know, Maw," Michael told her as he cut her off before she got too carried away and said anything more that was embarrassing. "I know what you mean," he told her softly as he patted her arm. "Just…don't scare him away, okay? He's a really nice guy and we're just getting to know each other."

She placed her hands on her hips as she said, "Now why would you say that? I just want to get to know him better, too."

Michael sighed. "You will," he hastened to promise her. He knew there would be no way to avoid a grilling from her, even if his mother had to walk down to his shop and check out Derek herself. "Just let me break him in gently," he teased her, only half-kidding.

She huffed in indignation. "Well, all right; but I expect him for Sunday dinner."

"Maw!" Michael protested. "That's too soon. He's not ready yet for a third-degree interrogation."

Debbie's eyes flashed. "Michael Novotny! It's just _dinner_! Nothing more. He's a construction foreman, isn't he? Then I'm sure he can handle me just fine. Now promise me – I won't take no for an answer. I need to make sure this man is good enough for my baby."

Michael rolled his eyes. "Maw, _your baby_ is over forty years old!" He sighed. "Okay, okay…I'll bring him by for dinner Sunday. But promise me! Promise me that you will NOT pick apart every aspect of his life in the first thirty minutes."

Debbie held up in her hand and symbolically crossed her heart. "Fag's Honor," she told him with a grin. "I'll wait until at least an hour is passed," she told him with a guffaw.

"Thanks," Michael said warily. "I think. Now I have to go," he told her as he prepared to leave.

"Order up!" Debbie heard the short-order cook, Bernie, yelling as the obligatory ding of the counter bell sounded nearby.

"Hang on, I'll be right back, Honey, don't go just yet," she beseeched her son as she scurried over to pick up someone's order, silently dying to know more about her son's new friend before he left as well as exactly what was going on out at Britin. After Michael was gone, she just had to find a way to contact Jennifer.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Outside the Diner<em>

"Mom, quit looking at me like I'm some damn china doll!" Justin entreated as his mother flashed him yet another worried look from her place behind the driver's seat. He sighed in exasperation. "Would you please just let me out of the car here? I can manage to walk into the diner all by myself; I'm a big boy now, and the ankle is much better. Please…Just go on to your office and let me be for a while. I'll be fine."

The two of them had spent the past hour rehashing his mother's part in the twins' latest scheme, resulting in yet another promise from her that she would not interfere or participate in any more of her granddaughters' plans, no matter how much she might want her son and Brian back together. This time at least Justin was fairly confident that he finally got his point across and she did, indeed, intend to adhere to her promise. Only time would tell how sincere she was, though; but he had been adamant to her that he had to fight his battles himself, and he hoped she finally understood that. That didn't mean, though, that as his mother she wouldn't still try to coddle him. "Mom…"

She nodded. "All right," she told him as she cast a concerned glance his way. "I'll be back to pick you up around noon after I'm done with the closing, then."

He nodded at her as he slowly succeeded in swinging his body around and lowering his legs to the ground. At least with the bandage securely wrapped around his ankle and the pain medication, he could finally walk on it again, albeit it was still slow going. The leg no longer throbbed when he tried to put weight on it – it was down to more of a dull ache now, tolerable but still not pleasant. He gritted his teeth and pursed his lips together as he turned to close the car door and began to lumber toward the diner.

He didn't really know why he was drawn to going into the diner of all places – God knows there were way too many memories in there and he was already close to drowning in enough of them already – but it was almost like a magnet pulling him inside and when he had awakened this morning, all he knew was that he had to get out of his mother's place and just get his mind off what had happened last night.

He debated briefly as he stood there whether or not it was wise to even enter, but the place had been such an important part of his life for so long and in so many ways that he didn't think he could resist even if he wanted to. The place looked pretty much the way it had before – the same old bench outside, the same rainbow-colored banners near the front door, the same tacky posters promoting the latest gay events around the neighborhood; even the patrons coming in and out looked the same, except for perhaps a little more contemporary dress. Taking a deep breath to steel himself, he pulled the door to open it and stepped inside, quickly finding himself transported back in time as he looked around the bustling interior and a multitude of memories assailed him.

He could still see himself standing behind the long counter, wearing one of those slightly drab, white aprons with his red, white, and blue "Justin" name tag on it, a half-filled glass carafe in his hand as he waited to pour coffee for some drugged-out drama queen who had been up all night long partying at one of the clubs and now needed to wake up sufficiently to go into work on no sleep.

He gazed over at the familiar, old vinyl booths, remembering how many times the gang had grouped around them, sometimes overflowing out into the aisle - Michael and Ben on one side, he and Brian on the other with maybe Ted, Emmett, and the girls in the next booth and Gus in his high chair on the end with a half-eaten, mushy animal cracker in his chubby little hand as he held it out to him like a prized possession. They had discussed so many things here – important things, yes, from time to time, like the whole Stockwell fiasco and Proposition 14, but also crazy, everyday things like who they had laid the night before, what their latest asshole boss had done at work to them, how they were going to find a new roommate, or what the next big event was going to be at Babylon. It was here most of all where he had forged so many memories and had felt loved and accepted; perhaps that was why he felt the strong pull today to return to where it all began.

As he slid into one of the nearest booths and sighed in relief as he was finally able to get off his aching foot, he thought about how long that seemed now, even though the diner pretty much looked the same. Just what did he expect, though? It WAS a long time ago – both in chronology as well as maturity. So much had happened since then. Once more he found his thoughts drifting back to Brian. Was it really possible to go back, even if he wanted to? Was it possible to start all over again with someone that you still loved, even though their lives would never really be the same again? He sighed. Things still weren't any simpler really than they had been before, except now he knew the decision mainly rested with him, not Brian. Brian had made that abundantly clear last night. COULD he forgive him, though? Could he let it all go and try to make a fresh start with him, even if it meant releasing the bitterness and pain he had been carrying around for so long? He honestly didn't know. But the reason that Brian couldn't seem to supply for him as to why he had done what he did still lay like a dull, heavy stone in the bottom of his heart.

He was so absorbed in his thoughts that he failed to notice someone familiar sitting with his back to him at the diner's counter until he heard a woman's raspy voice and his head jerked around in instant realization. He experienced a distinct sense of déjà vu as he stared over at a dark-haired man sitting at the counter facing a redheaded waitress. The woman's face was older and more lined than the last time he had seen her, but he recognized the two people speaking to each other instantly and his heart leapt to his throat in reaction.

"Well, just don't let him feed you any bullshit," Debbie was saying to her son about Brian as she hugged him briefly before bestowing a departing, red lipsticked kiss on his cheek. She took a napkin and wiped at his face to try and clear off the mark before she smiled back at him. "And I want to see this Derek guy at dinner Sunday! Promise me!" she commanded him.

Michael rolled his eyes – he should have known that was coming the moment he mentioned him. He shook his head but smiled at her; he still had to love her despite her pushiness. He knew that was his mother's way of letting him know that she loved him – she didn't know any other role to play besides Mother Hen no matter how old he might be. "Okay, okay," he told her with an indulgent smile as he turned to go with the box clutched in his hand. "We'll be there."

Justin couldn't hear Michael's part of the conversation – he wasn't being as loud as his mother – but he obviously had to have ordered some lemon bars to go, because he noticed Debbie had walked over to the glass cake display plate and raised the lid to pluck out what looked like a dozen bars and lay them in a white, Styrofoam square container before she replaced the lid and carried the box back over to him. He couldn't help watching them as he noticed Michael smiled and presumably thanked his mother as he handed her a bill. A few seconds later, she gave him a wave as he turned and proceeded toward the doorway. Justin knew it was juvenile, but he quickly snatched up his menu and hid his face as he slid further into the corner, successfully avoiding Michael detecting his presence. He didn't know why he had felt the need to hide from Michael – they had left on good terms, at least considering how close he and Brian had always been – but he just did not feel like being in the mood to discuss Brian with his former best friend. He had heard from his mother that he and Brian had somewhat grown apart over the past few years, especially in light of Ben's death, but still, he did not relish the idea of rehashing old times with his ex-partner's former best friend at the moment. The situation was complicated enough as it is.

As Michael passed by him oblivious to his presence, he realized he had an even bigger problem to surpass – Michael's _mother_. What the hell was he thinking coming into the diner and not expecting Debbie to be here? She apparently still ruled the roost here. He should have known she wouldn't have really slowed down much since he had left. He would have assumed after all these years that she would have either finally retired at last or at least greatly reduced the number of hours she worked. Apparently, he had been wrong on both counts. A stealthy glance her way verified that while she appeared older, just like everyone else, she still had a fiery sparkle in her eye, a spring in her step, and that commanding voice that got everyone's notice. He really did want to see her, but was he ready for all the questions that would ensue as well? Whether he felt prepared or not, something told him he was about to find out.

* * *

><p><p>

Chapter End Notes:

_Well, I was planning on posting ONE more chapter of this before moving onto "Tame the Wild Stallion," but as usual I got way too winded and when I got to 16,000 words I decided to break it up into two smaller chapters. I almost have the next part of this written, though, so I will finish it and get it posted before moving back to the wilds of Kentucky. We're getting pretty close to the end here, I think - maybe two, three more chapters? Hope you continue to enjoy it.:) Thanks for reading - and thanks to my beta, boriqua522.:)  
><em>


	21. Footprints on the Heart

_Brian comes to a better understanding of his previous actions thanks to Michael. Justin encounters several old friends on his journey toward possible reconciliation. A shocking twist will change everything._

* * *

><p>It seemed that his dilemma was solved FOR him as Debbie walked out from behind the counter and made a bee line right for him. As she neared his booth, he slowly lifted his eyes to gaze into the woman who had taken him under her wing so long ago and had never let him go - not really, anyway. He smiled fondly at her, not a full-blown sunshine smile, but a genuinely affectionate one just the same.<p>

"Sunshine?" she whispered with uncharacteristic softness, her eyes beginning to form tears of happiness as she laid her hand against her breast, much like she had done so long ago. "It is really you?"

Justin nodded as he stared into her surprised face. When Brian had kept calling him that inane nickname before, he had been perturbed by it because it had almost sounded like a taunt; now as Debbie said it, however, he thought it sounded like the most wonderful melodic sound in the world and brought back a lot of good memories of how she had taken care of him so many times before. "Hi, Deb," he said to her softly. "Yeah, it's me," he told her, even though it was totally unnecessary.

He waited for her to erupt into a loud, screaming burst of excitement, but to his astonishment, she was almost subdued. "Justin...You...You look so wonderful, Honey!" she raved as she gave him the biggest smile of delight, even though she did notice what appeared to be tired lines surrounding his eyes. "Stand up and give me a hug right now!"

Justin smiled as he shook his head. He hastily explained as her face fell in disappointment, "I would, Deb, but I hurt my ankle last night and it still hurts to walk on it. It's nothing major," he told as he noticed her look of concern. "Just banged it up a bit - it'll be fine soon."

Her smile returned as she nodded and walked over to lean down. "Well, then, my hug will just have to come to you," she decided as she leaned over and wrapped Justin tightly in her arms. Justin could smell Debbie's old familiar cologne - a mixture of some type of rose and sandalwood, she had told him a long time ago - and felt the coarseness of her bright red wig as she rubbed against his cheek and clamped her arms around him like a vise; it had been a long time, but it felt so good. "Oh, I've missed you so much!" she told him against his neck.

Justin pulled back just enough to gaze into her kindly face as he whispered back sincerely, "I've missed you, too, Deb."

She smiled back at him affectionately before letting him go to stand back up. "Kiki!" she called out. "I'm taking my break now, okay?" she shouted over to the other waitress, who nodded in acknowledgment. The breakfast crowd had finally thinned out quite dramatically, providing Debbie with the perfect time to catch up with her young friend.

"Justin," she murmured as she slid across the booth and stared over at him. "You don't look much older than the last time I saw you, you little shit," she muttered in amazement as Justin laughed. Her face clouded over, though, and her eyes narrowed as she studied him intently; now that the initial shock had worn off and she had time to soak in the fact that Justin, indeed, was sitting across from her, the hurt she had been feeling all this time began to bubble up to the surface.

Her voice was strained as she asked the question that Justin had dreaded but also expected. "Why, Sunshine?" She asked him bluntly. "Why did you desert all of us when it happened? Do you know how much that fucking hurt? Do you realize how long it's been?"

Justin bit his lip and swallowed hard. How many times had he asked that same question to himself? Did he really have an answer to it? Perhaps just for a moment he thought he could understand Brian's point of view as he pondered the answer to her inquiry. He had struggled with that issue for so long, ever since he and Brian had broken up. "Deb..."

"I don't understand, Justin," she interrupted him, her slightly wrinkled lips pursed tightly together and her eyes tinged with sadness. The words began to flow out of her now like an unyielding avalanche. "I don't understand how you could just run off with one of my granddaughters and not come back here to see me. Phone calls weren't enough. If it hadn't been for your mother - God bless her - I wouldn't have known how Kaylee was really doing or seen her again until she turned eighteen. _Eighteen_, Justin! How could you DO that to me? To all your friends? To your family? Because, damn it, that's how I thought of YOU; like you were family. I still do. Don't you know you're like a son to me?" she told him, her voice breaking as she leaned forward and stared into his eyes. "And before you say Kaylee isn't my blood, I don't give a fuck. She is as much my granddaughter as JR is. So don't even try to use that as an excuse."

Justin squirmed in his seat in reaction to her heated gaze, feeling his own face warming in shame.

"Well?" She prodded him, not backing down. Of course, he would not have expected her to anyway, not from this woman. Debbie was one of the most honest - and candid - people he knew. He also knew, then, that if he could pass muster with her with an explanation, he could do it with anyone.

He sighed and rubbed his hand over his mouth. "Deb..." This time thankfully she didn't interrupt him, because he knew he was not going to come across as particularly glib at the moment; he was still struggling to process what he was going to say. "I don't know if even I can understand why I did what I did. When Brian and I broke up, we were so concerned with taking care of the girls that it was the only thing on my mind. And once Kaylee and I moved to Chicago, I don't know; I guess I thought it was best to break things off with everyone except my mom and Daphne. Get a fresh start. Besides, Brian knew you a lot longer than I did before we met." He knew he was sounding ridiculous - the words sounded that way to him, so he could only imagine how Debbie thought about them - but he plodded on nonetheless.

"I thought it was for the best that we not come back here and open up old wounds," he told her lamely. He mentally prepared for his friend's rebuttal, and he wasn't disappointed.

"That is the biggest bullshit I have ever heard come out of your mouth, Justin!" she told her young friend, pointing one red-lacquered fingernail at him. "After everything I did for you, after everything I watched you go through, after I fucking took you into my own home - and my heart," she said, her eyes brimming now with tears and her voice breaking, "you thought it was best to stay away from me and everyone else here that had grown to love you? Love and family are not based on a time clock; Justin. I loved you - I DO love you - just as much as I ever did Brian. I'm really surprised at you, Sunshine. I thought I knew you better than that." She turned her head toward the counter, not to check on the time she had left on her break, but to avoid letting Justin see how much this had all upset her. When he had left, a piece of her heart had left with him. She didn't think she knew just how big a piece had been missing until she had laid eyes on him just now. Talking with him on the phone conversing in idle, meaningless chit chat had never been enough for her.

Justin's eyes filled with tears, also, tears of regret and remorse. "I'm...I'm sorry, Deb," he whispered. "Really. I didn't think about all the consequences of what I did back then. I was trying to do what was best for Kaylee - and Katie, too." He swallowed hard before continuing. "I knew that Brian loved our daughters just as much as I did. That was never a question. I really thought back then that it was the best solution. God, you don't think that I didn't miss Katie every fucking day of my life until I finally saw her again? And that I didn't miss everyone else here, too?" He angrily wiped away some tears from his eyes as he told her, "I know now what a stupid, stupid decision that was back then! How much time that has been wasted not being with both my daughters! I realize that now, Debbie! I realize how incredibly selfish it was to keep them apart - and keep them from you. Don't you think I know that now?"

He rubbed the back of his neck with his hand as he told her, "Yes, I made a big mistake; a horrible mistake! And I'm sorry about that - so fucking sorry! But I can't go back and change it now. I can't." He sighed. "The only thing I can do now is ensure that both girls see each other as much as possible," he whispered. "And that you get to stay in touch with both of them as well." He stared into her face, which seemed to have softened since his words poured out of him. "That's why I'm back here. To get the custody arrangement changed so I can rectify what I did. It won't take away the pain and hurt that I caused you," he told her, his voice breaking now. "But I can make sure that it doesn't continue." He reached over to grasp her hand, feeling it trembling beneath his touch; he could only hope it wasn't due to her being furious with him as he implored, "Please, Deb. This has been so hard on me, being back here again. Can you forgive me for what I did? Please? I can't stand the thought that you might be disappointed in me."

Debbie sighed as she looked into the tearful, blue eyes. _Shit_. She never could stay angry with her Sunshine, not matter _what_ he had done. "I still don't appreciate what you put me through and how you handled this situation," she told him, knowing she was starting to waver now. She placed her other hand on top of his and squeezed it as she told him softly, "I never stopped loving you, though, Kiddo. I could never have done that. You're still a little shit for doing what you did, though; and if you EVER run off and never come back here again, I will never speak to YOU again, do you understand me? And don't you EVER try and keep me away from that precious granddaughter of mine anymore - you got it?" She cocked her left brow upward in an exact replica of what Brian used to do - still did, actually - as Justin found a way to smile back at her in relief, his heart feeling just a little lighter now.

"Yes, Ma'am," he told her politely. "Yes to both questions."

She quirked the side of her mouth up slightly before she finally nodded. "Good." She sighed, grateful to have cleared the air between them. Oh, how she had missed Justin and her granddaughter! Now, however, there was still a lot of work left to be done. She removed her hands from Justin's grasp and leaned back in her seat to study him. "So - what exactly IS going on now between you and Brian?"

Justin sighed this time, feeling decidedly weary over the entire situation. "Well, like I already said, Brian and I have both agreed to work toward revising the custody agreement. We both want Kaylee and Katie to see each other as much as possible. So hopefully you'll be able to see both of them a lot more in the near future. We both are in complete agreement with that."

Debbie's eyes bored into his. "Cut through the bullshit, Sunshine; that's great news, but you know that's not what I'm asking. Now answer my _real _question," she said a little more softly, noticing the troubled look in his eyes.

"Deb!"

Debbie groaned over the inopportune interruption. "Hold on, Kikki! I'm coming!" she shouted back at her co-worker, dismayed that her break time was apparently up. She felt like she was just now making headway - and had come to the most important issue; what exactly was happening between two of her 'boys.' "Justin?"

Justin averted his eyes downward. "That's a little more complicated," he told her. "A LOT more complicated, actually. Maybe it should wait until you have more time."

"I'm all ears; I'll MAKE the time," she avowed as she reached over and gently placed her hand under his chin to lift his face and look into his eyes. "Justin?" She couldn't help tenderly caressing his cheek in reassurance before she dropped her hand to the table and waited for his response.

He let out a sorrowful breath. "We...we've talked about what happened. About what needs to happen before we could, you know..."

"Reconcile?" she asked hopefully.

He shrugged. "I guess that's what you would call it. But before you go getting your hopes up," he hastened to add, "we have a lot of hurdles to overcome before we could even approach that topic."

"Like what?" she pressed him.

"Deb!"

Debbie sighed heavily in disgust. "Don't get your tits in a fucking knot!" Debbie shouted back at Kiki. The place now was fairly deserted. "I'll make it up; this is important, okay?" Kiki huffed in irritation, but finally nodded as she turned to begin wiping down the diner's counter.

Justin licked his lips nervously, the past several days' events flooding back to him in excruciating detail. "Well, the biggest issue is why he did what he did back then." He swallowed hard. "It still hurts, Deb. Even now; and I've never gotten a good explanation as to why exactly he cheated on me." He turned his head to stare over at one of his paintings that hung on the diner's wall, not even realizing it was still there until now. The thing had to be at least twelve years old by now, but he thought he could remember it being one of Debbie's favorites at the time. He had a sneaking suspicion that somewhere along the line she had covertly purchased it on the diner's behalf, just because she didn't want to part with it, but at the moment that was the least important thing on his mind.

He turned back to look at her. "I...I never thought he would ever break a promise to me, especially one as important as that. And it just wasn't me he was fucking with," he said with an ironic snort. "It was me and _our daughters_."

"I'm sure that hurt like hell," she told him sympathetically, knowing how deeply Justin felt these sort of things. Jennifer had filled her in on the main details about what had happened back then, enough to know that it must have hurt Justin deeply when Brian had betrayed such a trust in him. "But, Justin...that was so long ago! How long are you going to hold that heavy burden in your heart? It always costs a lot more to hate than to forgive. You think I didn't hate whatever fucker tried to kill Michael - and you - and DID kill so many others at Babylon? You don't think I didn't want to see that person rot in hell for what he did? And the people who infected both Ben and Vic, shortening their lives; you don't think that I don't hurt over all that and want to hate whoever infected them? Of course I do," she admitted. "But I've learned that I don't want all that hurt and hate to have that sort of control over me and overwhelm the good parts that I DO remember." She smiled softly at him, feeling that old, familiar heart-swell in her chest as she told him, "I know how much you loved each other, and I have a good feeling that the bond you shared is still there. You do still love him...don't you?"

She really didn't need a verbal answer to her question, though - it was written all over her young friend's face. Justin silently nodded, though, in verification as she nodded back at him. "Yeah...I suspected as much. And I have a good feeling that he feels the same way. I can see it in his eyes every time he looks at Katie. I can see it in the way that he's changed since you left."

Justin furrowed his brow. "What do you mean...Changed?"

She shrugged. "I can tell," she insisted. "He doesn't come into the diner looking wasted from being out too late at Babylon or at one of the other clubs. He doesn't make a point of bragging to the boys about some hot trick he brought home or his latest conquest. In fact, from what Emmett and Ted tell me, they hardly see him around any of the old haunts at all anymore. He's more apt to come in here with Katie to get breakfast on the weekend than to walk in alone. And when he does, he looks all rested up and polished, not like some walking zombie who's been out all night prowling around." She smiled. "He's a good father, Sunshine; a loving father. He makes sure Katie comes to see me and spend time with me at least a couple weekends a month. And when he drops her off in the mornings, he's usually on his way into Kinnetik, not taking advantage of some extra private time to go out looking for a place to get his dick sucked."

Justin still wasn't totally convinced. After all, this was Brian they were talking about; could he have changed that much since then? "How can you be so sure?" he asked her, wanting to believe that but still doubtful.

"I just know," she told her firmly. "Like you pointed out, I've known him a long time. He's changed a lot, Justin, since you two broke up and since he started having to take care of Katie. Surely you've seen how he is with her?"

Justin nodded with a wistful smile. "Yeah," he told her. "I know he loves her - and Kaylee - a lot. He's great with them. That's not the problem."

She nodded, glancing over toward the front of the diner and knowing now that she really did have to return to work before Kiki blew a fuse; she could tell her friend and co-worker was getting highly agitated by the way she was trying to scrub the countertop down to its support braces. "I have to go," she told him regretfully. "But please, Justin - think about what I said. Find a way to let it go somehow. If you don't, trust me. You will regret it for the rest of your life, and you've wasted too much precious time already." She reluctantly slid over to the side of the booth's seat and stood up. "One more thing. Don't forget - Brian wasn't the _only_ one who's broken a promise along the way...Has he? And believe me, he's been just as hurt by them as you are now."

Justin's mouth opened to protest, but he shut it; the truth was, she was right. How she knew that exactly, he didn't know. But he couldn't deny it. The road of broken promises between him and Brian was definitely a two-way street.

Justin mutely nodded as she leaned down to give him a parting kiss on the cheek. "And bring Kaylee back in with you soon, okay? Promise me you will NOT be going anywhere without telling me first; NO sneaking off back to Chicago without letting me know." She paused for a moment to pull her pencil out from behind her ear and retrieve her order pad before she asked, "Any chance you'll stay here instead?"

"Deb..." Justin grinned up at her; he couldn't blame her for trying. He shook his head regretfully. "I have a life back in Chicago; I can't just pick up and go like that."

"Can't you?" she challenged him. "You can if you want to badly enough, Sunshine." She clucked her tongue as she held her finger up as if it were a gun going off before, smiling, she walked away and returned at last to Kiki's side. Soon she was busy taking orders from a new group of four sitting at the back of the diner and Justin was once more alone with his thoughts.

Justin played with his silverware, his intention of buying breakfast promptly forgotten as he pondered Debbie's words of wisdom. He had to admit - righteous indignation, bitterness, and hurt made for a very cold threesome in his bed. How important WAS it that he continue to adhere to his 'principles' and punish Brian for what he had done? Despite his feeling that Brian had been sincere in his admission that even HE didn't quite know why he had done what he did, he still craved an explanation, a good reason, for why he had broken the most important promise of all to him. It was amazing to him that even now, he could remember their confrontation clearly, as well the tremendous hurt he had felt when he had seen Brian coming out of his office bathroom with that client's son. He knew - he _instantly_ knew - what had happened, and Brian had made no attempt to deny it. It was written all over his face.

He knew that Brian had immediately felt guilty about what he had done without him saying a word. But he had waited - had anticipated - some reasonable explanation to spring from his lips as to why he had done it. And to his utmost disappointment, it had never come. All that had escaped from Brian's lips back then was a rebuttal as to how HE had constantly broken promises to HIM - the 'no kiss rule,' the cheating with Ethan, the real purpose of the whole Pink Posse thing. While he hadn't exactly been dishonest with him about his exploits with Cody, he hadn't exactly been completely truthful with him, either. He had never told him, for instance, just how dangerous those nights had been or how he had confronted Chris Hobbs with that gun. And he had never told him about Kip, either. So both of them hadn't always been completely truthful with each other, just like Debbie had said. Why, then, did he hold this particular transgression of Brian's up to a higher standard? Shouldn't ALL their lies and half-truths come out in the open if they were to make a new start with one another? He wondered perhaps what else Brian might be hiding from him or not telling him. He certainly had his little secrets that to this day he had never divulged. Was it fair to expect Brian to be completely candid and honest with him if he couldn't do the same?

He let out a confused breath. Why was this so hard, anyway? Why was it so hard to just let go, to forget it, to forgive him, to just concentrate on their enduring love for each other? If Brian could just tell him, tell him _why_...Why he hadn't been good enough for him. Was THAT the real issue? That somehow he felt like he had been a disappointment to him? That he had been inferior to him? That he wasn't what he wanted or needed? Was THAT the main problem and not the fact that Brian had cheated on him? He put his head in his hands and sighed; he was so confused. If only he knew what to do...

"Sweetie?"

Justin's breathing stopped temporarily at the sound of yet another familiar voice. Justin slowly raised his head to look up and despite his trepidation he couldn't help smiling at the man standing near his booth.

"Oh, my God!" Emmett shouted out in joy as he clapped his hands. "It IS you! Justin...!" He knew his old friend was back in town, but he had expected him to be back out at Britin - he couldn't believe his luck that here Justin was instead, right in the diner.

"Em! How are you? I'd get up," he explained a little self-consciously with a wistful smile, figuring his friend was probably wondering why he hadn't stood up to greet him, "but I had a small accident last night and hurt my ankle."

Em's brow furrowed in concern as he leaned down to give Justin a brief kiss on the cheek; he slid into the seat across from him that had been previously occupied by Debbie as he asked, "What happened?" He was worried that whatever had occurred, it might have somehow put a damper on what he had helped arrange for Justin and Brian last night at Britin. He had barely gotten out of there just as Justin and Jennifer had arrived, and he was dying to know what had happened. Perhaps now he would get a chance to find out. Did Justin hurt himself before or _after _his and Brian's intimate little dinner?

"I tripped and fell down some steps," Justin supplied as Emmett's eyes widened in surprise. "Didn't sprain or break the ankle, but I banged it up pretty badly. It still aches but it's better than last night. I went to an urgent care clinic and they fixed it up with a bandage and gave me some pain pills, so at least I can walk on it now." He grinned wryly. "They gave me crutches, too, but that didn't go over very well. Not very fashionable," he quipped.

Emmett nodded silently, wondering how much he should pry. Apparently Justin didn't realize his part in their dinner last night. He was dying to know what had happened, but he didn't feel too comfortable just blurting that question out. Instead, he chose to try and build up to it. "It's been way too long, Baby! When did you get back into town, and how long are you staying? I've missed you so much! It's just hasn't been the same since you've been gone." The two of them had spoken occasionally on the phone, always steering clear of what both really wanted to say and concentrating instead on more 'safe' topics such as Justin's career and his own, ongoing love-life woes. Now, though, face to face, the issue of Justin's and Brian's relationship would be more difficult for both of them to skirt around.

Justin smiled at his friend. "I've missed you, too, Em." He looked around the room, catching Debbie's eye as he added wistfully, "I've missed all of this." Inherent in those words was a lot more than just missing Pittsburgh and its environs; he had missed the feeling of camaraderie that he had found here, the feeling of belonging, and the feeling of _home_. Chicago was a vibrant, contemporary, thriving city full of culture and excitement, but his heart had never quite left here - and he knew it never would. He inhaled a calming breath as he turned back to see his friend staring at him. "What?" he asked softly, knowing, though, what Em wasn't saying with words.

"And Brian? And Katie? I assume you've seen them?"

Justin nodded, his jaw set. "Yeah...I've seen them."

"Deb! Coffee, please?" Em called over to their friend; a few seconds later, she came walking over to pour a cup for both men, giving Emmett a questioning look as she left with their orders. She didn't have to tell HIM that she was wondering what was going on as much as he was.

"So what happened, Baby?" he asked his friend.

"Well, I actually first saw them in Chicago."

Emmett was strangely quiet for a while; he played with his coffee spoon for a few seconds until he finally uttered a nonchalant, "Oh?"

Justin's right eyebrow arched up. "Em?" He knew it had been a long time since he had seen his friend in person, but he knew a guilty look when he saw one. "Emmett?" he repeated a little louder this time.

"Sweetie...I have a confession to make."

* * *

><p>Fifteen minutes later, Justin's coffee was tepid and his mouth was hanging open in astonishment. Not that he shouldn't have realized that Emmett's touch was obvious in everything he saw downstairs last night, but he was beginning to wonder if <em>everyone<em> in Pittsburgh was involved with scheming to get him and Brian back together. At this point, though, the anger he would have normally felt at discovering yet another person conspiring behind his back had dissolved into more of a resigned frustration. He let out a heavy sigh. "Shit, Em! I'm beginning to wonder if it was such a good idea to come back here at all."

"Now you don't mean that, Baby," Em hastened to reassure him. "You're just confused, that's all. Surely you don't think it was a bad idea to see Katie again?"

"No!" Justin was quick to answer. He smiled. "That's been by far the best part, getting to see my daughter again. Believe me, if I could go back and change that part of our separation, I would do it in a heartbeat." He sighed. "I just don't know if I'm ready to get back into a relationship with Brian again, that's all."

Em gazed over at him sympathetically. "He is a complicated man, isn't he? But I really think he still loves you, Baby - and you love him...don't you?"

Justin nodded his head; he couldn't deny it. "God help me, but I do, Em. I never stopped."

Emmett leaned over the booth to look Justin intently in the eyes. "Then do what it takes to make things right, Sweetie! The kind of love the two of you had - still have - doesn't just come along all that often, maybe only once in a lifetime! Hell, look at me and Drew. We've been together and apart now, what? Two, three times? But something always draws us back together eventually, just like you and Brian. You can't fight it; call it Barbra channeling herself through me, but it's your destiny, your fate that you be together. Go with your heart, Baby; the heart never lies."

"I wish it was that easy," Justin murmured. "My relationship with Brian has always been...," he struggled for the word until he came up with "...complicated."

"Well, I'd rather have complicated than boring, and bland," Em teased him, evoking a small smile out of Justin at last. "Vanilla's never exciting unless you mix in a little bit of hot fudge sauce with it," he told Justin with a grin. "And Brian is anything but boring...although he's not quite as footloose and fancy free now."

Justin's face dissolved from an amused smile into more of a thoughtful one as he asked, "What do you mean, _he's not quite as footloose and fancy free now?_"

Em looked distinctly uncomfortable, just like he always did when he was discussing Brian; somehow he always thought the man would show up out of the blue and peek over his shoulder, overhearing everything he said. He seemed to have a knack for that. He looked around to make sure no one, including Brian OR Debbie, was around before he told his friend, "It's just that none of us see Brian around the typical spots much anymore, and when we do, he's always gone almost before the place even opens."

Justin digested that bit of information. As hard as he found that to believe in a way, it actually jived with what Debbie had told him earlier. "He is?"

Emmett nodded. "He pretty much has handed over management of Babylon to Kelly - remember him? The big, beefy bodyguard who worked part time behind the bar when someone called in sick?" Justin nodded - it was hard to forget Kelly. Always wore some kind of green shirt befitting his name and heritage, and was big as an ox; no one ever argued with him when he was around. "Well, seems our little bouncer was pretty smart. He was going to school during the day to get his MBA. He eventually worked his way into helping Brian out with managing the place and now he pretty much handles it all the time. From what Teddy tells me and from what I've seen with my own eyes, Brian only goes into the club about once or twice a month, mainly to just make his presence known and check up on how everything's going. He very rarely goes there now. And Woody's? I only see him in there occasionally, having a drink or shooting pool."

"Yeah, he still gets hit on when he goes out," he continued, making Justin feel inexplicably jealous over the fact, "But the days of him using a revolving door with tricks are long gone apparently." He snorted. "I would never say this to his face, but I think the Stud of Liberty Avenue has become a - would you believe it? - family man, at least when it comes to Katie. He's always whipping out a new photo of her now to show us - instead of whipping out his cock for some trick to suck it off." Emmett shook his head in amazement. "I never thought I would see the day..."

Justin was stunned. Oh, he knew Brian loved Katie without a doubt and was a loving father to her - it hadn't taken long at all for him to realize that just by observing them, and his mother had told him numerous times how much Brian showed support for their daughter by showing up at her activities. From what she had told him, he had actually taken off work on several occasions to attend her horse shows, soccer games, and even a father-daughter dance last year, yet another event that he had regretted not being able to attend. But it was still hard to imagine Brian more interested in showing off a new photo of Katie than his own body to attract attention. But what did he really know about Brian's life now? All he had to go on were his mother's observations and his own, possibly jaded suspicions.

Their conversation was interrupted by Debbie bringing their orders over, but the information Emmett had disclosed to him reverberated in his mind, along with Debbie's heartfelt advice, would would linger for a long time to come.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time - Britin<br>_

Brian glanced down at his watch as he heard a car door outside. He smiled. "Right on time, Mikey," he murmured as he walked over to the door and opened it. As he looked over at his friend, the two men stood there a little awkwardly. Before they wouldn't have thought twice about greeting each other with a hug and a kiss. Now, the intervening years - and tragedy - had molded them into something more like bittersweet friends, not close confidantes. But to Brian, this man was still the only one who, after Justin, knew him well enough to help him sort out the reasoning behind one of the worst decisions he had ever made.

"Mikey," he murmured as he flashed him a self-deprecating smile. "And you brought treats."

Michael stood there with the Styrofoam box of lemon bars in his hand as he stared into the familiar hazel eyes, wondering why - after all this time - Brian had phoned him and asked him to come out for a visit. He had never thought he would be standing there in front of his former best friend feeling this uncomfortable. The only other time he could recall feeling this way was right before the bombing when Brian had shown up at his and Ben's house, drunk as a skunk and looking for Justin. Their encounter had quickly escalated into a shouting match as Brian had accused him of 'tainting' his partner with his Pollyanna ideas of house and hearth, only to have Michael explain that it had nothing to do with him and everything to do with Brian. It had taken quite a while after that before they were back on track, culminating in his being asked to be Brian's best man at the wedding that never was, but ever since then their relationship had remained somewhat strained and had never really fully recovered to its previous state. They remained good friends, caring friends, but Michael suspected they would never quite get back to the brotherly type of friendship they had once had. Brian's call, therefore, came as a big surprise, and as he stood there he had to admit he was inordinately curious as to the reason why.

He nodded at Brian's statement. "I told you I'd be bringing some of Maw's lemon bars," he replied softly as Brian took the proffered box from his hand. There was a brief moment of awkward tension before Michael stretched out his hand and waited for a response. After a few seconds, Brian reached to grasp the proffered hand and clasp it warmly before he pulled his friend into a hug. This time, though, while there was still a warmth and familiarity to the gesture, there was no greeting kiss like he would have normally received.

Brian pulled back from their embrace as they stared into each other's eyes, both quietly assessing the progress of age - a slow transformation that neither man could prevent. Michael noticed how tired his old friend looked; no doubt _something_ was bothering him. "Well, it's been quite a while," he finally responded.

Brian nodded. "Yeah." He paused, still finding it hard to express emotions such as love or gratitude to someone else, even though oddly he normally didn't have a problem expressing it with this man. The biggest difference, though, was that it had never the same sort of significance that it had with Justin; that was why it was so hard for him to say certain things to his ex-partner but not to Michael.

Brian held out his hand toward the interior of the house. "Well, come on in," he invited as Michael nodded and walked inside ahead of him. It had been some time since he had been back at Britin; the last time he could remember being there was for Katie's 9th birthday party. And he had thought at the time the only reason why he had gotten invited was because he had been staying temporarily with his mother while the inside of his house was being painted. It would have been rather awkward to invite his mother and not him, so he had felt like it was more out of a sense of courtesy. Now, as he walked down the hallway, he once more was amazed at how large the house was for just Brian and his daughter. He imagined that even when Justin and Kaylee had been here, there had to be occasions when everyone could be in the house at the same time and not see each other for hours.

"I made some coffee," Brian was telling him as he caught up to his side and overtook him. "I thought we could eat breakfast out on the patio," he told Michael, who nodded in agreement. "I assume your mother told you about what's happened?"

Michael frowned. "What are you talking about, Brian?" he asked as his friend led him toward the back of the house. "I saw her this morning when I picked up the lemon bars, but she didn't say anything to me about something going on. What does SHE know that I don't?" He hadn't quite expected the hurt to rear up in his response, but to his own surprise it did. His mother knew what was going on, but HE didn't? It DID hurt that he and Brian weren't as close as they used to be; but it had been years since he would have considered them inseparable - before their lives had taken divergent turns, Justin had left and Ben had died. He found it ironic in a way that Brian now found himself in the same type of fatherly role that he had taken on when Jenny Rebecca had been born. But despite sharing that similarity, they had never managed to get back to the closeness they once shared. In a way, he did miss it; but lives changed, people changed, and you had to deal with it and move on or get left behind. Both of them had been forced to change just like everyone else; that didn't mean that he didn't mourn it in a way, however.

Brian swung the door to the backyard patio open as he turned to face his friend. He was unexpectedly solemn as he told him simply, "Well, I think the answer to that will be obvious very soon." He opened his mouth to explain further, but was interrupted by his daughter's voice nearby.

"Kaylee, that's him," Katie pointed him out to her sister from their place at the patio table. "Daddy's friend." Her eyes sparkled as she spied the Styrofoam container. "Ooh...and I think I see our breakfast with him!"

Michael's mouth hung open as he looked over to see _two_ identical girls staring back at him; only their clothing was different. Katie? With _Kaylee_? This was certainly a surprise. He had been under the impression when Justin had left with her that the two girls were not allowed to even know about each other until they reached adulthood; now they were sitting together here at Britin as if it were the most natural thing in the world. What had happened since then to change that? Did that also mean that someone _else_ was back in town? And was he here - at Britin? He was beginning to understand the reason for Brian's request for help as Katie sprang up from her place at the table and rushed over to their side. She peered up at Michael to ask hopefully, "Are these what I think they are?"

Michael managed to close his mouth from the shock of seeing both girls together as he nodded. "I think they just might be," he told her with a smile as she grinned back at him. He handed the box to her as she nodded and turned to head back to her sister's side as Brian spoke up.

"Katie..."

"Oh...Yeah," she replied as she turned around briefly to eye their visitor sheepishly. "Thanks, Michael," she told him as he nodded at her; he watched as she took the treasured lemon bars over to her and her sister's place at the table and flipped the lid open to snare one of them. She didn't need to encourage her sister very much to do the same as Kaylee reached in and snagged one for herself to put it on her casual breakfast plate. As she took a bite of the sticky confection, her eyes widened in pleasure and a distinct "mmm" came out of her lips as the two girls flashed identical grins at each other.

Michael shook his head in amazement as he watched the two twins. "I'm assuming that's the answer to my question?"

"That's a BIG part of it," Brian confirmed as he motioned for Michael to join him at a second, round patio table. He reached for the coffee carafe warmer to pour him and Michael a couple mugs of coffee, pushing the black version over to his friend as he heaped a couple teaspoons into his own. Taking a sip, he looked over at his two daughters congenially eating side by side, their heads bent conspiratorially toward each other as they spoke together quietly. Hoping they had taken his admonition earlier to heart and weren't planning any more outlandish ideas to spring on him and Justin, he lowered his own voice to tell Michael, "That...and the fact that Justin's back in town." His eyes bored into Michael's with deadly seriousness as he confessed, "I want him back, Mikey. I want him and our family back together again, and I need your help to accomplish that."

Michael nodded; he couldn't say he was totally surprised by the fact that Brian was still in love with Justin, even after all this time. From the moment that Justin had wondered into their lives, Brian had never been the same. Oh, he had gone kicking and screaming into their relationship - had even denied and acted out in response to it for a long time - but ultimately his protestations and vehement conviction that he didn't 'do' romance, love, or relationships had been eventually shot to hell. And when he had agreed to raise Justin's and Daphne's twins as his own daughters - and, God forbid, had actually settled down into what could be called a 'domestic' situation with Justin here at Britin - Michael knew Brian was irretrievably and deeply in love with both Justin and their little family. He glanced over at Kaylee and Katie and silently decided he couldn't blame him. They were both beautiful girls. And his mother doted on Katie and was undoubtedly ecstatic about the fact that the entire family unit was together - at least in the same city. He had no doubt that she had to know - after all, this was his _mother _they were talking about. She had been uncharacteristically silent about that fact earlier at the diner, however. Did she know why Brian was requesting he come here today? If so, she had done a great job of masking it. Was he the ONLY one who didn't know what was going on?

"Where IS Justin? He's not here at Britin?" he asked Brian; he thought he saw a flash of pain pass through his friend's face at the mention of his ex-partner's name, but he couldn't be sure. He had gotten somewhat rusty now interpreting the _Brian Kinney Operation Manual _accurately.

"He was," Brian told him, still keeping his voice down so as not to be overheard by his daughters. They had been involved enough; it was time to propel them out of the situation and try and resolve it on their own. "He was out here last night with Jennifer for dinner." He recalled the events of last night in his mind before he explained, "He fell on the steps leading down to the basement and hurt his ankle. It didn't appear to be anything overly serious, but Jennifer was supposed to take him to the urgent care center last night to have it checked out, and I offered to watch the girls for a few days so he could get some rest." _And some time away from me_, he couldn't help thinking ruefully.

"Wow," Michael murmured at that surprising revelation. "How long has it been? You hadn't seen him since the breakup, had you?"

Brian shook his head. "No," he confirmed, swallowing hard at the knowledge. How did all those years slip away from them? And now they couldn't be recaptured; they couldn't go back - they could only move on and hope for happier years ahead.

Michael nodded. "I didn't think so. Did you know he was coming here with Kaylee?"

Brian looked over at him skeptically. "Are you trying to tell me that your mother didn't tell you any of this?"

"No," Michael protested. "I swear! Not even this morning when I picked up the lemon bars!" He glanced over at the two girls to make sure they weren't overhearing. "No," he repeated, his voice lowered this time. "I had no idea Justin or Kaylee was back here. What happened, Brian? I thought they weren't _allowed_ contact with Katie until she turned eighteen."

"Shh," Brian whispered in admonition, still worried that the girls would hear them. He raised his voice to call over to his daughters, noticing they were both polishing off their second lemon bar. "Katie, why don't you go ahead and feed the horses? There're some apples in the bottom crisper drawer of the fridge if you want to take a couple out to them." Katie loved being around the horses so much that typically she was the one to perform a lot of the maintenance duties with them, including feeding them and grooming them. Her reward was getting to ride them on a frequent basis, and she had become quite the horsewoman as a result.

He watched as her face lit up at the thought; she never turned down an opportunity to visit with her beloved pets. "Come on, Kaylee!" she told her sister as she stood up and pulled the other girl to her feet. The last thing she wanted to do was hang around and listen to some dry adult conversation between their father and Michael; this would be much more exciting.

"I don't know," Kaylee told her, hedging as she just stood there practically glued to her spot. The only other time she had visited the stables since her return to Britin had been the day that her father had realized who she was; she could still remember how large and intimidating they had seemed to her, despite how comfortable her sister appeared to be around them. After all, though, Katie had grown up with them; they were a far departure from her cats at home.

"Aw, come on, Kaylee!" Katie chided her as she began to gently drag her toward the door leading into the kitchen. "They're just big babies, I'll show you! Let's get some apples to feed them; they'll be eating out of your hands - for real! As soon as you give them an apple, they'll be your best friend. You just have to get used to them, that's all."

"They really are gentle," Brian told her with a tender smile. "Go on - the more you're around them, the more you'll find out that they really are very tame. Maybe the two of you can take them out for a ride. It's a great day to do that." The day promised to be one with low humidity and in the upper 70's with a light breeze; just perfect for a leisurely ride around the gently-rolling hills of the estate.

Kaylee finally nodded as she followed her sister to the back door and followed her inside. She still wasn't convinced that she would ever be completely comfortable around them, much less actually get on the back of one of them, but both her father and her sister didn't seem to have any issue with them, so she was willing to give it a try. She did want to appear to be some big sissy or coward in front of her more confident sister or her father.

A few minutes later after securing a couple of red delicious apples for the animals, both girls headed toward the path that would lead them to the stables, Michael and Brian electing to stay behind at their patio table to talk.

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen Minutes Later<em>

Michael shook his head. "I had no idea," he murmured after Brian had explained how the twins had been reunited, thanks in large part to Jennifer. Something told him that his own mother had a lot to do with it, also, but to hear how Brian had come face-to-face with his other daughter as well as see Justin again after so long had to be a big adjustment for his friend, and it had no doubt brought back a lot of memories, good and bad. "You know Maw has kept in touch with Justin by phone, though. She told me that much at least. She's filled me in on his career and talks about Kaylee's activities all the time. I've even seen photos of her that she keeps in her wallet, thanks to Justin's mom. Although she swore to me that they never discussed the situation between the two of you. He always purposely sidestepped that issue. She said he didn't want to talk about it, and he made that clear from the beginning."

Brian had to smile at that statement. "Well, obviously he knew if he told your mother all the details, everyone else in the Pitts would know by the next day, too."

Michael nodded with a smile. "Yeah. My mom may be getting older, but she's still sharp as a tack with details. And it's still one of her favorite hobbies," he said with a grin. He sobered at the troubled look on his friend's face. He and Brian might not be as close as they once were, but that still didn't mean he didn't care about him - or he was unable to recognize his friend's distress. "So why am I here, Brian? I'm assuming it has something to do with Justin in addition to the girls."

Brian ran his hand through his hair, rubbing the back of his neck and feeling the tension there. "Yeah," he told him as he lifted his gaze to stare over at the man he had known for so long. In a way, it was kind of like a cycle of life - they had confided in each other numerous times as teenage, angst-ridden boys, detailing all their hopes and dreams as only two gay boys could do as Brian served as the reassuring influence to his more gawky and hesitant friend. Brian had matured into a confident, assertive man - someone who knew what and who he wanted and successfully went after it. Somewhere along the line, though, he had found himself turning more and more to Michael during the anxious times: the family struggles, issues with his son, insecurities over Justin (although he would deny that's what it was to his dying breath; for all outward appearances, Brian was NEVER unsure of himself). Brian had become the person needing assurance from Michael then, rather than the other way around. Then they had drifted apart again. Now here he was once more - looking across the table at the man who was probably his only chance of winning Justin back again, of deciphering exactly what had possessed him to do what he had done so long ago that still to this day had such a critical bearing on his life.

"I need you to help me understand what I did."

Michael shook his head in confusion. "Did what, Brian?"

"Why...why I would risk everything I had, Michael. Why I would risk everything that meant the most to me for one meaningless, stupid fuck that meant so little and destroyed so much." Even now as he said it the whole thing was so preposterous that he would have even contemplated it at the time. What the hell had he been thinking? Had it been worth it? Hell no - it had _never _been 'worth it.' At the time, though, even he couldn't fathom what the consequences would be - and how long-lasting they would become. Nor could he really voice to himself - much less to anyone else - why he had done it. He wasn't so hard up (okay, maybe a poor choice of words!) that he had to resort to fucking the potential client's son just to get an account. If he hadn't gotten that one, there would have been another one come along that was just as lucrative. Was his ego or pride worth more than his love for his partner and their children?

Michael nodded. Brian had told him what had happened right after it had occurred, down to the destroyed look on Justin's face and the picnic basket he had thrown on the floor as he had arrived at Kinnetik just in time to see him and this other man emerging from Brian's private bathroom after their hasty fuck, both men still exhibiting the tell-tale signs of their endeavor from the crumpled appearance of their clothing to the sweat beaded on their foreheads. It had been the one time that Brian hadn't bothered to groom himself back into order like he normally did, thinking with it being lunch time that no one would be around and feeling pressured to move onto another project that was taking up way too much time and attention and was due to be completed by that afternoon. That one time he had neglected to be careful, though, and hadn't thought it would be a problem, he had destroyed everything that he and Justin had created.

"Justin still hasn't let that go?" Michael asked him softly. Of course he hadn't, though; if he had he was convinced both of these stubborn men would have been reunited as a family a long time ago. The fact that they hadn't, though, was both ludicrous in a way but also so typical of two such proud men. He knew only too well now, though, how fleeting life could be and if HE had been involved in such an upsetting experience, he still would have found a way to work through it well before now. Perhaps he could honor Ben's memory in a way, however, by trying to help resolve this situation now.

"No," Brian confirmed, his jaw set. "I told him last night that I was tired of apologizing and feeling like shit over what had happened, and the ball was now in his court. But he still won't let it go, even now - not until one thing happens. That's where YOU come in."

"I'll help you any way I can," Michael told him sincerely to Brian's relief. "But what can I do?"

"Be what you've been for me in the past," he implored. "Be my unpaid fucking psychiatrist and help me understand myself so I can explain it to him." He stared in Michael's eyes, allowing his friend to see the pain hidden there as he whispered uncharacteristically, "Please, Mikey. This is the most important campaign of persuasion I'll ever undertake. I can feel it - this is going to be my one and only chance to make things right. I meant what I told Justin last night - I'm _tired_ of feeling guilty all the time about what happened. And he DOES need to let it go. But I know - I just know - he can't do that until I can explain it to him; until I can fucking explain it to _myself_."

Michael nodded in understanding, allowing himself to go back in time to that period. That time when Brian had shown up at his doorstep when Ben had been at the university teaching. That day when Brian had once more shed tears that he normally didn't allow anyone to see over his and Justin's inability to work things out. Over the fact that Justin was going to petition for a formal separation of their assets as partners. Over the realization that if something wasn't done, the life he and Justin had carved out for themselves would be irretrievably severed.

"Do you remember what happened?" Brian whispered, allowing the pain to engulf him once more as he recalled the pale, ashen look on Justin's face over the realization of what he had done. "I'll never forget that afternoon," he told him as his eyes clouded over in memory. "Even if I wanted to." He blinked to refocus as he looked over into his friend's eyes.

"Yes, I remember, "Michael told him. "I remember you telling me you were trying to woo some big name client who was too old-fashioned to appreciate the edginess of your campaign; what was it?" he said, thinking back to that time when Brian had shown up on his front porch reeking of way too much Beam after having ingested poppers, a deadly combination. But at the time it was almost like Brian was trying to kill himself all over again, so he imagined he really didn't care. That wasn't exactly true, though; he knew Brian loved Justin deeply as well as his children. He was just in so much pain at the time he didn't realize what the consequences might be. He only knew his world was falling apart.

"Oh, yeah," he said as the details began to fill in. "It was some type of medical supply corporation; Ted told me at the time that the CEO was hopelessly out of date when it came to introducing internet access to his customers, and you needed to work on his son, instead, to try and get him on board since the younger one was more in touch with technology. Only your plan to 'persuade' him backfired - the son didn't go along with it after all and Justin showed up at exactly the wrong time to bring you some lunch."

Brian let out a ragged breath, not really wanting to rehash it all but knowing he had to. "Yeah," he told his friend, nodding. "But why, Michael? Why would I have even done that? I hadn't been with another guy since Justin and I had the kids. Why then?"

"You honestly don't remember what set it off now?"

Brian shook his head.

"The day before it happened, I persuaded you to go out to Woody's with me for a drink after I closed up the comic shop," he told him. "Justin and Ben were both out of town for the weekend; I think Justin for some art exhibition in Philadelphia, maybe? I'm not sure now, actually, but I think that was the city. It was a Sunday - and both of your girls were staying with Maw that weekend; you were due to pick them up later that night after you picked up Justin at the airport. I remember you always complained about how she spoiled the girls rotten whenever they were with her, but Maw never took vacations back then - she considered the time when she could be with them to BE her vacation. Ben, I think, was at some kind of seminar in Cleveland - some consortium on gay culture in contemporary fictional works. I remember him saying that he was amazed they were having such a thing - he was so excited about it! Anyway, I can remember us sitting at one of the tables at Woody, just catching up, and..."

Brian frowned, trying to remember the details that Michael was describing. He had been to Woody's so many times over the years that this one didn't really seem any different than the others. Why would it?

"And what, Michael? We used to go there all the time."

Michael nodded. "Yeah...But that was before the girls were born - and you were considered _domesticated_."

Brian narrowed his brows in anger. He never did like the sound of that word. "What the fuck are you talking about, Michael? I'm not some fucking pet cat or something."

"You don't remember that night, Brian? What those idiots next to us said in so loud a stage whisper they could be heard across the fucking street?" He shook his head. "They were a couple of dickheads, but it set off a chain reaction. It was like a freight train waiting to wreck; I could see it coming. I just didn't know at the time how it would play out."

Brian rolled his eyes in frustration. "Michael, just fucking spit it out! What are you talking about?"

"The two guys at the table closest to us saw you take out a copy of a photo you carried in your wallet; it was a smaller version of the professional portrait that Justin had given you as a present for Christmas a few months before that, remember?"

Brian reached inside his jeans' pocket to retrieve his well-worn, leather wallet and pulled out a faded, slightly torn picture. He stared at it for a few seconds as he gently rubbed his fingers over it before he turned to show it to Michael. "You mean this one?" he asked softly.

Michael nodded; he should have known somehow that Brian would still have it. It showed Justin in a sitting pose, one child on each knee as they all stared at the camera. Brian had been so proud of that picture back then - his eyes had practically glowed with happiness as well as pride as he had shown it to him.

"You were showing it to me and commenting that you had a larger version of it back home over the fireplace in your study, and how you thought it was the best picture that had ever been taken of the three of them together, and how you thought it was the best present you had ever been given - except for when the girls had actually been born. I don't know if you were being so mellow then because you had had a few drinks, or if you were just in this sort of melancholy mood because you were separated from Justin and the girls."

Brian opened his mouth to protest that he would _never_ be that maudlin, but Michael shook his head as if to say he wasn't fooling him for a second and he decided to stay silent.

"...And then Maw had called you while we were there to ask you to pick up some milk for the girls because she had run out," he continued without missing so much as a beat. "You had her on speakerphone because your phone was sitting on the table, and before you could change the setting everyone nearby could overhear what she was saying. The assholes at the table next to us were already drunk out of their minds by then anyway, but they started making comments about how the 'great Brian Kinney had finally been neutered by his boy toy and how he had turned into some prissy little housewife. How you had traded in your briefcase for a diaper bag and how you had to stop at the grocery to buy milk on the way home now instead of Beam. They just went on and on, Brian, until you actually turned around and punched one of them in the face to get them to shut up!"

Slowly the details began to coalesce. The punching of the asshole who had been most vocal, the snarkiness of the two men who had kept taunting him with insulting, smart-ass remarks about being turned into a wimpy little faggot. To his complete mortification, too, somehow - he still didn't know how - somehow the pricks had learned about his prostate cancer and how they had heard that normally when a guy got that, the doctors had to remove a ball to keep it from spreading. So when the one guy had made a comment about him being castrated, it had all been too much - he had reared up on his 6'2" frame and had coldcocked the guy where he sat, causing the man to tumble from his chair and onto the floor in a bloody heap. After he had gotten done with them, they certainly didn't have any justification for calling him a housefrau _then_, although the other man had managed to escape with merely a kick to his groin as he stumbled out of the bar.

"Shit."

Michael smirked. "I take it that means you're beginning to remember."

"Yeah...But I guess I shoved it to the back of my mind after what happened right after that."

Michael leaned forward across the table. "Don't you get it? It's as clear as the nose on your face. That's exactly why you did what you did! You saw that as a challenge to your masculinity, and you fought back the only way you knew how; by finding the first meaningless guy and fucking him, just to show that you could. Only you didn't realize at the time how much it would backfire and what it would cost you." He peered intently into his friend's eyes, noticing the faraway look that signified he was going back in time to relive what had happened. "In other words, you did it because you were afraid."

Brian blinked as he turned to stare into his friend's eyes; his own flashed with both incredulity as well as anger as he spit out, "Afraid? That's bullshit, Michael! I wasn't..._Afraid_." He snorted in contempt. "I don't think you know me as well as you think you do. I was NOT afraid."

"Oh, yes, you were," Michael instantly challenged him, refusing to back down. "That's exactly what the problem was, Brian. You've always been afraid of change. Does the little scarfing incident ring a bell? Why do you think you tried to kill yourself? Because your birthday meant that you were growing older and you didn't like it; you _feared _what might happen, that you might not look as hot as you always used to, and that it reminded you of your mortality. And why do you think Brandon pissed you off so much when he came into the club? Because he reminded you of a younger version of yourself, and you were afraid of being replaced as top dog."

"You're full of it, Mikey," Brian told him with deadly quiet as he played with the handle of his coffee mug, but inside the whispers of truth were beginning to surface.

"No, I'm not, and you know it," he told him firmly, beginning to quickly reacquaint himself with Brian's denial tactics. "As much as you loved Justin and the girls, you were afraid of changing from a sought-after club boy into a family man. And when those assholes expressed your biggest fears aloud, you reacted in the only way you normally did - with an upfront, fuck-you sort of rebuttal. _That's _why you did what you did, Brian, I'm convinced of it."

Brian opened his mouth to issue another protest, but one look at the determined, certain look in Michael's eyes and he closed it. His brow furrowed as he gave it serious thought. WAS Michael right? Was that the reason for his actions that day?

"Think about it, Brian. You know I'm right. It's the only thing that makes sense to me."

Finally, Brian lifted his gaze from the table to stare into his friend's face, seeing both compassion as well as sympathy there. "I was wrong about something," he finally admitted at last as the pieces began to fall into place.

"Wrong about what?" Michael asked him, wondering if he regretted asking him to come out to see him. God knows he had wondered if he was doing the right thing himself.

"Before you got here, I wasn't sure if you would really be able to help me. I thought since we weren't as close now that maybe this would be a waste of time." He took a deep breath and thrust his tongue into his cheek as the old, boyish-looking Brian emerged for just a moment. "I was wrong about that." As Michael smiled back at him fondly, relieved that he had been able to help, Brian softly added, "Thank you, Mikey."

Michael's heart leapt at the old familiar nickname. "You're welcome. Now the question is...What are you going to do about it?"

Brian stared out toward the pathway that his daughters had just taken toward the stables. There was so much at stake now. "I'm going to get my family back, that's what I'm going to do."

* * *

><p><em>Same Time at the Stables...<em>

"Just stay there," Katie instructed her sister as she dragged a small, wooden mounting block over to Ceres' side. "It'll be fun, you'll see."

Kaylee eyed the large beast beside her ominously. How had she let herself be talked into this? One minute she had been feeding an apple to the horse, the next minute she found herself actually agreeing to try and ride him. Was she out of her mind?

"We'll just stay around the stables," Katie assured her, noticing her look of hesitation. "That way you can get used to riding him first. And then once you're more comfortable we can take them back up into the woods where all the trails are."

"I don't know..." Kaylee didn't want to look like a big chicken, but the horse was so big. His dark brown eyes looked almost like they were the size of dinner plates to her as Ceres' head slowly swung around so he could look at her. His head reached out to nuzzle her hand with his lips and she jumped at the unexpected, ticklish sensation. She couldn't help giggling despite her fear.

"He's looking for another apple," Katie told her. She scooted the block closer to the horse's body and grabbed the reins. "Okay," she began. "Step up onto the block." She handed the reins to her sister as she told her, "Hold onto these with your left hand. You can grab onto his mane, too, if that makes you feel safer." Her sister nodded, figuring she needed all the help she could get, as she reached out and fisted a large swath of coarse horsehair in her hand, along with the well-worn, leather reins.

Kaylee nodded her approval. "Now keep the reins and the hair in your hand and put your weight on your right foot." Katie let out a tense breath, his heart pounding in trepidation, as she did what her sister advised.

"Good. Now here goes - hold on tight while you put your left foot into the stirrup. You're going to swing your right leg up and over his hind quarters. Don't worry - he knows what to do. You'll be fine," she reassured her. "Just don't kick him when you get on," she added as Kaylee stood there, biting her lip fretfully, unaware that she was perfectly mimicking one of her own father's habits when he was anxious as well.

She let out another tense breath before she steeled herself. It was now or never. Glancing at her sister to build up her courage, she nodded as she stepped into the metal stirrup and swung her right leg up over the horse's back, in awe of how wide his girth was. Holding onto the horse's hair as well as the reins for dear life, she tottered briefly as she sat up on the saddle and her heart began to pound in fear.

"Put both your feet in the stirrups to steady yourself, Kaylee," Katie commanded. "Hurry up! Keep holding on!"

Kaylee nodded as she hurriedly placed her feet into the stirrups; her prior experience in both gymnastics as well as cheerleading helped her find her balance on top of the horse as she finally settled more comfortably into the saddle, feeling the corded muscles of the animal underneath her as he shifted slightly from side to side, impatient to get moving. Sitting up a little shakily on top of Ceres, she let out a breath of relief as she glanced down at her sister, who was grinning from ear-to-ear.

"You did it, Kaylee! You did it! I knew you could do it! You look great up there!"

Kaylee flashed her a tentative smile, still getting used to being so high up. "It feels strange," she told her sister. She had never been on the back of an animal before.

Katie grinned. "You'll get used to it." Retrieving a yellow nylon rope from the ground, Katie walked over to attach it to a snap ring mounted on the horse's halter as she told her, "I'm going to walk you around with him for a while so you can get used to the feel and to using the reins, okay? Don't worry - you'll be used to it in no time; after all, you ARE my sister," she said proudly.

Kaylee nodded. "Okay," she said warily. "Just take it slow, though."

Katie nodded back at her with a smile. "You'll be fine. Now hold on."

* * *

><p><em>Thirty Minutes Later - Back at the House<em>

Michael stood next to the patio table, getting ready to leave. He and Brian had spent the past half an hour catching up on what had happened in their lives, Michael even discussing Derek. He hadn't meant to really get so in-depth about the new man in his life, but once he and Brian had gotten past their initial awkwardness around each other, their camaraderie and easy-going relationship from before had quickly reasserted itself and they had spent the past several minutes in a more relaxed setting. It still wasn't the devil-may-care, no-holds-barred types of conversations they might have engaged in before, but it signified the possible return of a more cordial, closer relationship similar to what they had experienced in the past.

"Well, I'd better get going," Michael said softly as he glanced down at his watch, noticing it was mid-afternoon already; he had politely declined Brian's invitation for a grill-out, realizing he had to get back to town. "Derek usually fills me in on what's going on at the end of the day with the construction. It won't be long now until it's finished; you'll have to come and see it once he's done with it." He smiled in anticipation over both seeing his new friend again as well as how great the shop will look once it's ready. "Wait till you see it, Brian! It'll have these lighted display cases so I can stock more collectibles, and more shelves along the top, not to mention the extra room! I'm thinking of holding comic book signings for new artists in the extra space, because there's room for a small sitting area now." His entire face glowed with happiness.

Brian smiled indulgently at his friend. "You're so pathetic, Mikey," he told him affectionately as he grasped Michael's shoulders. He gazed with amusement into the brown-haired man's eyes before he leaned over and gave him a soft, brief kiss on the lips. "Thanks," he repeated sincerely as he pulled back and let go of him. "I mean that."

Michael smiled in pleasure that he could help him. Despite the sometimes tumultuous relationship he had had before with Justin, he still wished them both the best. He knew that only Justin had made his former best friend happy before, and he knew that only Justin could bring that happiness back to him. Ultimately, too, only Justin could determine if the four of them would finally be reunited as a family. He knew all too well how much happiness that could bring someone, and for just a brief moment he allowed himself to mourn over what used to be in his own life. Perhaps, though, somewhere in the future that feeling might just return for him, too. In the meantime, he would rejoice in the family that he DID have and look forward to what was to come. "You're welcome," he told Brian. "I hope it works out. For all of you." Brian nodded his gratitude as he chided, "And this time let's not take so long before we see each other again. The comic shop should be open soon and I expect you there for the grand reopening."

Brian grinned but nodded. "I'll be there. And maybe I'll bring Captain Astro with me. Even if HE is supposed to be dead."

Michael smiled back at him as turned to go. "He's not dead as long as he's here in my heart," he teased back as Brian rolled his eyes. He reached out his hand to grasp Brian's in a firm handshake before he dropped it and added sincerely, "Good Luck."

"Thanks. I think I'm going to need it." Both of them knew just how stubborn Justin could be, but Brian could be very persistent when he was pursuing a goal, and he wasn't planning on being defeated this time. Now he felt like he had the added assurance that he could finally explain to Justin his motivations behind his previous actions, thanks in large part to his friend, and perhaps that would be just enough to turn the tide in his favor.

Michael nodded. "I'll walk myself out," he told his friend; turning to leave, he had just reached the back doors when Brian's cellphone began to ring.

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen Minutes Earlier Near the Stables...<em>

"You're doing great, Kaylee!" Katie praised her sister as they both rode side by side now. Kaylee had proven to be a quick study and was now slowly swaying side to side on top of Ceres, her body moving in perfect synchronization with the horse's gait. Despite her earlier fears, she appeared to be a natural-born horsewoman, so much so that Katie had only needed to spend approximately ten minutes leading her and Ceres around the pasture next to the stables before she gained enough confidence to ride on her own without the lead. Katie had led them back toward the stable long enough for her to quickly mount Eton, and after a few more minutes of practice, they were slowly ambling along one of the dirt trails that led to the back of the grassy area. If Kaylee continued to do as well as she was doing presently, they could perhaps even take one of the more demanding trails that led up into the woods tomorrow. But for now, Katie decided it was best that they stay out in the open areas, void of any obstacles, until her sister gained a little more confidence.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time - Back at the Liberty Diner<em>

Debbie glanced up at the sound of the overhead bell atop the diner's door and her face broke out into a beaming smile that rivaled Justin's; after all, one of her favorite people in the world had just walked in. Catching the young man's eye, she received a smile in return as Gus came walking up to her side and gave her a tight, vise-like hug. Instead of her normal, ebullient greeting, though, she kept herself uncharacteristically quiet as she heard him whisper, "Is he still here?"

She pulled back to look into his expressive, brown eyes as she nodded. With a tilt of her head, she indicated Justin sitting in a far booth, his back to them as he talked to Emmett. "Over there," she whispered back. "I found out from your grandmother Jen that he's waiting for her to pick him up. But I have a feeling something's going to make her run late," he said with a grin as Gus nodded back at her in understanding.

Debbie had known about Gus's visit for months now - it was a grandmother's right to know about these things - but she had hesitated before calling him on the phone a little while ago to tell him that there was _another_ visitor - or should she say, visitors - in town. She just couldn't resist telling him, though, that not only was Justin back in town, but also his long-lost sister. There were two reasons for her once more choosing to intervene - one, she didn't want Gus being blindsided by either revelation, and two, she had a feeling that this boy, young man, actually, since he was now almost an adult - would be able to perhaps get through to Justin when no one else could. So against what she knew would be Justin's wishes, she had slipped out back a while ago, just long enough to call her grandson and tell him what was going on and to find out if he could possibly make a pit stop at the diner before traveling onto Britin.

After he got over his initial shock, he had agreed to call his father and make up some sort of excuse as to why he needed to stay in town for a while and to ask if he could just spend the night with his Grandma Debbie before Brian came to pick him up tomorrow at the diner. To his relief, it had worked like a charm, and now he felt his heart hammering in his chest as he looked over to see a familiar, blond head peeking over the top of one of the booths, Emmett engaged in a serious conversation with him. It had been so long since he had either spoken to or seen Justin, the man he had once regarded as another father to him, and the sight of him filled him with a mixture of both anticipation as well as anger. He had a lot to talk about with this man, almost a decade's worth.

"I wonder how you know that?" Gus teased back as Debbie patted him affectionately on the cheek. He reckoned that no matter HOW old he got, his grandmother would still respond in pretty much the same way, but he had to admit it really didn't bother him. He actually felt lucky to be a part of such an extended family. One particular part of his 'extended family,' though, was about to get one hell of a surprise. They had a lot to hash out, and this was his big chance to do just that.

"Good Luck, Baby," Debbie whispered as Gus nodded. Turning around, he slowly approached the two men engaged in an animated conversation, both so focused on what each one was saying that they didn't even notice his arrival at first. As he got to within a few feet of their booth, however, his movement must have caught Emmett's attention, however, as Emmett turned his head to look up at him, and the flamboyant man's face broke out into a smile. "Why, if it isn't Brian Kinney, Jr.," he teased, referring to how much Gus looked like his dad now. Once he had reached puberty, the boy had shot up like a weed seemingly overnight, now standing almost as tall as his father did. He had the same thatch of brown hair tinged with a hint of auburn and the same, slightly chiseled build. Even his long-fingered hands and large feet were replicas of Brian's. And as he curled his lip under almost shyly at the attention, it was as if a younger, teenaged version of Brian was standing there.

Justin's heart leapt to his throat at both the mention of Brian's name as well as the 'junior part.' What did Emmett mean? Could it be...? He whipped his head around to stare into a face he would have recognized anywhere. The boy standing in front of him was years older than the last time he had seen him - just before the girls had moved to Toronto. But there was no mistaking who it was just the same.

"G...Gus?" he whispered in shocked recognition. "My God - is it really you?" So many memories instantly rose to his mind: babysitting him when Brian was unavailable, using colored pencils on the floor to draw a 'masterpiece' together, feeding him baby food that Gus promptly spit out onto the loft's hardwood floor in disgust to the consternation of his father, making silly faces at him to get him to stop crying, softly singing to him at the Munchers' house as Mel and Brian had one more of their catfights over the best way to take care of 'their' child in the other room, pushing him on the swing sets at the local playground, attending a Pirates game with him and Brian as he got older, helping him to ride his first two-wheeled bicycle. So many instances where the two of them had bonded together. Which made his decision to break off cleanly from any more contact with him all the more bittersweet and difficult, even though the physical distance of their separation had helped to minimize the sting somewhat. That hadn't made it easy, though, especially knowing he was forcing that same separation between Gus and one of his sisters that he had had to endure himself. That had been the hardest thing of all, but at the time he really thought it was the only way.

Gus's lips drew into a tight line as he stared into Justin's face. It was an older face, but still quite a handsome one. His own memories bubbled up inside of him of how kind Justin had always been to him and how much he had meant to him, and he found himself trying hard not to surrender to all the good times he had shared with this man. "Yeah, it's me," he told Justin as he stared into the shocked face.

Justin's lips broke out into a delighted smile, despite the circumstances. "I don't believe it," he murmured as he scrutinized the boy who was now pretty much a man. "Wow...Em's right; you look so much like Brian now! It's amazing!"

Gus wanted to tell him that he had no way of knowing that since he had never bothered to come and see him, and to ask how he would know for sure that he looked like his father since he hadn't even seen him in so long, either, but he bit back his response as Justin urged him, "Join us."

Em scooted over to give Gus room as the lanky teenager slid in beside him and peered over at his father's ex-partner, the man who had won his father's heart and then broken it afterward. He had never heard the entire story - all the details - but he knew enough to know that when his father and Justin had separated and each had taken one daughter with them, his father had never been the same again. And while it might be wrong to hold Justin one hundred percent responsible for it, he couldn't help resenting what he had done to him.

Justin shook his head in amazement; it was like one, big (not so happy) family reunion today. He had expected to run into Debbie at the diner eventually, but not both Em and Gus, especially, and not all in the same day. "How have you been?" he asked Gus softly. "Do you live here now?"

Gus shook his head, his body language stiff and somewhat stilted as he answered, "No, just came in to visit Dad." He nodded over toward Debbie as he explained, "Grandma called and said you were here and asked me if I wanted to come in and see you."

Justin nodded, sighing mentally. Was there no end to the good-intentioned but unwelcome matchmakers around here? Emmett had already confessed his part in arranging his and Brian's romantic dinner last night, the one that had turned into a disaster, and now Debbie had called Gus to come and see him, too? _Shit_. He couldn't win. "I wish I could say I'm surprised by that, but I'm not," he told Gus dryly. He smiled over at Gus, noticing the boy didn't return the gesture as he told him, "Well, I'm actually glad that she did, though. I've been wanting to see you, Gus; I've never stopped thinking about you..."

"Bullshit," the boy spat out in response as both Em and Justin eyes widened in shock at his brusqueness. "If that's the case you could have done that a long time ago."

Em glanced over at Justin, feeling sympathy for him over the caustic tone of the boy's voice as he noticed Gus's and Justin's eyes boring into each in a silent battle of wills. Feeling decidedly like a third wheel and thinking they needed some time alone, Em said, "Uh...If you will excuse me, Boys, I have to get to my job. If you wouldn't mind?" he asked Gus as he made a motion with his hand that he wanted to scoot out of the seat.

Gus nodded silently as he rose back to his feet and allowed Em to get out. As Gus slid back into the side opposite Justin, Emmett flashed a reassuring smile over to his friend as he said, "Sweetie, I hope you decide to stay here, but if you don't," he said as he hurriedly reached for a clean napkin on a nearby table and wrote down his new cell number, "call me before you go, okay?"

Justin nodded as Em leaned down to give him a peck on the cheek. "Hang in there," he whispered in encouragement, knowing that he might need the morale boost. Justin nodded back at him with a grateful smile before, in a flash of gold and dark purple, Emmett quickly walked toward the cashier to pay his bill and soon disappeared out the door.

Justin eyed the young man staring back at him defiantly, his arms crossed over his chest. He could tell Gus was upset by the way his darkened eyes were looking at him; he really didn't have to verbally express it. "You're mad at me."

"You're very perceptive," was the sarcastic reply.

"Why?"

Gus snorted. "You really have to ask that, Justin? You've kept me from seeing Kaylee for years now and haven't done anything to keep in touch with me. That's been bad enough. But the worst part? You broke Dad's heart when you and Kaylee left, do you know that? You broke it and stomped on it. Do you know what that did to him, Justin? How it hurt him? The only good part is that Katie didn't know she even had another sister until recently. I didn't have that luxury; Dad told me about Kaylee a long time ago."

"How do you what know Katie does or doesn't know?" Justin asked him, his heart thumping at the accusatory, hurt tone in Gus's voice.

"Katie and I keep in touch - unlike you. SHE told me all about it recently."

Justin blew out a tense breath between his lips, feeling like a pariah in the eyes of a boy he had adored and still cared a great deal about. "Gus...I don't think your father told you the whole story; you were pretty young when all this happened."

Gus snorted. "Maybe. But I'm not now. So why don't you tell me _your_ version of it."

Justin sighed. Why was everyone insisting on being judge, jury and executioner regarding his and Brian's relationship? "Okay," he agreed wearily just as his cellphone began to ring.

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen Minutes Earlier...<em>

"How does it feel?" Katie asked her sister as she looked over and smiled at her astride Ceres. Her sister's demeanor had gradually changed from one of intense fear to a more relaxed one as she and Ceres slowly ambled around the pasture area behind the stables. "I don't know what you were worried about," she chided her sister. "I think you have a natural talent for riding."

Kaylee held on tightly to the reins, still not convinced she wasn't making a mistake agreeing to this. But she had to admit - it felt kind of powerful to sit so high up on top of such a majestic animal. It gave her a whole new perspective on the world around her. From her position, she could see for miles around the low-lying hills and it was quite picturesque. She could see why Katie enjoyed drawing scenes around Britin - with the green hills, multitude of wildflowers supplying a burst of color in all directions, and the occasional horse, cow, or sheep grazing peacefully in the pastures surrounding the property, it was quite lovely. Perhaps not the fast pace that SHE was used to back home, but she was slowly coming to appreciate a less hurried lifestyle here with her sister.

She turned to smile over at Katie who was riding her own horse close by. "It's still kind of scary," she couldn't help admitting. "But it's kind of nice; it's relaxing." She frowned as the horse stepped over a large lump of dirt in the path and jostled her slightly. "Why do I feel like my butt is going to be sore tomorrow morning, though?"

Katie laughed. "It will be," she told her as Kaylee looked over at her in dismay. "Just like after you've ridden a bicycle after not using it for a while. You're using muscles you probably don't normally use. But it'll get better the more you do it."

Kaylee nodded as she swayed back and forth atop the horse, letting the horse's natural movements guide her. "How far are we going? You know Dad doesn't even know we took them out."

Katie grinned. "I know - won't he and Daddy be surprised when they find out that you've actually been riding a horse? They'll be so amazed!"

Kaylee beamed back at her proudly. Feeling a little more emboldened, she held onto the reins with her left hand as she leaned down to stroke Cere's neck fondly with her other. "I guess you're not so bad after all," she murmured to the animal with a smile before she straightened up and sat back down more securely on the saddle.

"One more lap around and then we'd better take them back," Katie told her sister as they slowly continued to trod around the fenced-in perimeter of the grassy pasture.

Kaylee nodded as she congenially rode side-by-side with Katie, just savoring the quiet and solitude of Britin's grounds. It was a welcome respite from the somewhat tense and troubling times they had been enduring lately with the situation regarding their fathers, and it gave her a sense of peace she desperately craved. It also filled her with hope that perhaps somehow everything would still work out between all of them. It _had_ to - she couldn't imagine any other outcome. "It's beautiful out here, Katie," she told her sister as she smiled over at her. "I'm glad you talked me into doing this; I'm having fun."

"Me, too," Katie replied warmly. No sooner had she gotten the sentiment out of her mouth, however, when a loud noise interrupted the stillness; it was miles away, a dynamite detonation from a construction crew blasting away at a solid sheet of bedrock to create a new passage for the expressway, but it was enough to spook Kaylee's horse, who whinnied in fright and reared up unexpectedly on his hind legs in a state of panic. His front legs pawed the air in circles as if he were on the ground as Kaylee's heart pounded in terror. She grabbed tightly onto the reins, feeling her body being shaken around like a rag doll.

"Kaylee!" Katie shrieked in fear. "Hold on!" she shouted as she quickly dismounted from Eton and Kaylee screamed. Her eyes wide with horror, she watched as her sister lost her hold on the reins and was thrown from the horse; Ceres promptly galloped away toward the stables, trying to find somewhere to hide from the blast as Kaylee's body lay crumpled and still on the ground.

"Kaylee!" Katie screamed at her sister as she rushed to her side and knelt down. "Kaylee, can you hear me?" She reached down to brush her sister's hair away from her forehead, hoping to rouse her when she touched her, but she remained deathly quiet. "Kaylee, please," she keened to her almost in a prayer as she rocked back and forth on the ground. "Say something. Wake up!" Her eyes filled with tears of alarm; she shook her sister by the shoulder urgently, but Kaylee didn't move. "Oh, my God," she cried out as she looked around for anyone, anything to help her. "Somebody help me!" she screamed. "Kaylee!"

Pursing her lips together to try and stem the tears that began to flow, she quickly stood up, her hands shaking violently, as she reached inside her pocket while she kept her eyes trained on her sister's unmoving body, locating her phone and punching in her father's one-digit, pre-programmed number. "Hurry up, hurry up..." she pleaded as it started to ring. "Please..."

* * *

><p><em>AN: thank you as always to my beta, boriqua522.:)_


	22. Kaylee's Accident

_Kaylee's accident causes both men to reassess their priorities; Justin rushes to the hospital with an unexpected companion by his side._

* * *

><p>Brian watched Michael walk toward the sliding glass doors just as his cellphone rang. Flipping it open, he noticed with a little concern that it was his daughter's number; why was she calling from the stables when they were so close by? "Katie..." was all he managed to get out before he heard his daughter's cry on the other end.<p>

"Dad! Dad!" she sobbed out in terror.

"Katie? What's wrong?" Brian called out in concern as his blood ran cold at the tone of her voice; that was so unlike his normally confident daughter. Michael, sensing the worry in his friend's voice, turned around to look at him. "Katie, what's going on?"

"Dad! Help me!" she hiccupped out. "Dad...Dad..."

"Katie, calm down and tell me what's going on! Where are you? At the stables?" He stood up and began to walk toward the back of the yard where the trail was that would take him back to the paddock area. "Katherine Marie, talk to me!"

"It's Kaylee!" she managed to blurt out.

"What about Kaylee?"

"Her...her horse," she sobbed. "She's had an accident. Dad...I'm so scared; she's not moving!"

"Oh, my God!" Brian glanced over at Michael long enough to shout out, "Michael, call 911! Kaylee's had an accident!" before he took off at a full run toward the stables, his phone still clutched in his hand. His heart threatened to stop as he approached the stables a few minutes later and looked over at the fenced-in pasture area, seeing Kaylee huddled lifeless on the ground with Katie kneeling down beside her as she rocked back and forth on her knees in abject fear.

"Katie!" Brian shouted at his daughter; she instantly rose from her place by her sister's side at the sound of her father's voice and rushed over to him as he swept her up into a brief, fierce hug, clinging to him desperately as her father's eyes never left his other daughter's too-still form. "What happened?" he asked as let go of her and hurried over to Kaylee to kneel down beside her.

"She... She was doing so well!" Katie insisted in between sobs from behind him. "She was up on top of Ceres riding him just fine. And then something spooked him and, and he reared up on his hind legs and she couldn't hold on! Oh, my God!" she cried out in remorse and guilt as she continued to look at her sister in horror. Why wasn't she moving yet?

Brian observed Kaylee's pale and sweaty face underneath the bright pink riding helmet she was still wearing. He wanted so badly to comfort her and take her in his arms, but he was afraid to touch her too much for fear he would injure her more, so he reached over to grasp her wrist; he let out the breath he had been holding as he felt a strong pulse reverberating underneath his touch. "Kaylee?" he whispered to her urgently as Katie knelt down him, placing her trembling hand on his shoulder for support. "Can you hear me, Honey? Wake up, it's your Dad. Please, Kaylee. Open your eyes and look at me!"

"Dad, what's wrong with her?" Katie whispered in a broken voice when there was no reaction. "Is... Is she...?" She couldn't even get the words out; her sister looked so lifeless, so vulnerable, so...

"No," Brian told her firmly, pressing his lips tightly together as he instantly understood her greatest fear. "She's just been knocked out. Here," he said, taking his daughter's hand and placing it underneath his, right over Kaylee's wrist. "Feel that - it's her pulse, Katie, and it's nice and steady. She's going to be just fine." _She HAS to be fine_, he prayed silently. _No God could be that cruel_...

Both his and Katie's hands jerked just then and they both gasped as they felt Kaylee's hand twitch underneath their touch. They both watched with anxious anticipation as Kaylee's eyelids flickered as they struggled to open.

"That's it, Princess!" Brian coached her urgently. "You can do it! Open your eyes and look at me, Kaylee!" he commanded in a stern, _don't argue with me_ type of voice. He hoped that tactic wouldn't fail him now as he watched her lashes flutter and then her eyes slowly pry themselves open just a bit. A frown appeared on her brow as she struggled to comprehend what had happened to her and why she was lying on her back; she only knew that she ached from head to toe and felt dizzy. Her lips moved for a few seconds before she was actually able to emit any sound from them. "D... Dad?" she whispered, her word barely audible.

"Shhh," Brian murmured soothingly as he took his other hand and gently laid it against her cheek, caressing her soft skin. "Don't try to talk; just lie there and take it easy. Everything's going to be okay." Hearing his daughter whimpering beneath him in pain made his heart fill with anguish as he looked around frantically; where was the damn ambulance? He wondered just how long it would take for them to get there out in the middle of nowhere and he cursed his decision to buy a house located in such a secluded area. Would they even know how to get here? He had never had any use for any type of emergency equipment at Britin before; why hadn't he thought of that possibility when the girls had been born?

Katie walked around Kaylee to kneel down and grasp her sister's other hand, taking relief and comfort in the warmness of it, but still scared over her sister obviously being in distress; she had hit both her shoulder as well as her head when she had fallen and the look on her face and the tears trickling down her cheeks clearly showed that she was in a lot of pain. "Kaylee," she whispered as her own eyes filled with tears of fear. "Please be okay. Help is coming." All of a sudden, for once in her life, Katie didn't feel very sure of herself and it scared her to death. This was not a practical joke or a bad dream; this was all too sickeningly real.

A sudden thought occurred to her as she finally heard the sound of a siren that slowly became louder and louder. "Daddy," she breathed out forlornly as she lifted her gaze to look over at her father. "We need to find him."

Brian swallowed hard as the ambulance's siren began to pick up in volume. He was grateful that Michael was here at the moment; there was no way he could leave Kaylee and he knew that his friend would make sure the emergency personnel were back at the stable area as soon as possible. _Justin. Shit, Katie was right; he had to find him and let him know what had happened! _In all the horror over what was transpiring, he hadn't even thought about that, but now that Katie had mentioned him his oversight made him dread Justin's reaction. He HAD to find him and let him know what was going on, however, no matter how awkward it might be.

"Don't worry," he told his daughter as he glanced down at his other little girl who was struggling to remain awake. "I'll find him and get word to him, Katie. But first we have to get your sister to the hospital so they can take care of her." Still grasping Kaylee's hand, he reached over to stroke his other daughter's cheek reassuringly, lovingly wiping away some of the moistness from her skin. "Hang in there with me, Chiquitita; we're all going to be just fine." His voice didn't betray the vast fear that he felt, however; the only thing that kept him from being totally freaked out over his daughter's accident was the fact that she was at least semi-conscious, but even that was little consolation. _Come on, come on, _he silently pleaded as the siren continued to get louder and louder; the ambulance _had_ to be in the driveway by now! What was taking so fucking long?

He was about to consider asking Katie to go in search of them when out of the corner of his eye he spied two uniformed paramedics hurrying over with medical gear and a portable stretch gurney and what appeared to be a hard, plastic board of some kind. Michael was following along right behind them as he locked concerned gazes with his friend before Brian turned his attention back to the medical personnel fast approaching them.

The older of the two men, who was tall with dark hair and a lanky build and appeared to be in his late 40's, strode up ahead of the other man as he knelt down and politely but curtly asked, "What happened?" Brian continued to hold onto his daughter's hand as the man gently took hold of Kaylee's wrist and began to feel for her pulse.

"She was riding a horse with my other daughter and it bolted on her and threw her to the ground," Brian supplied as the man nodded; the other paramedic, a shorter and bulkier man in his 30's with dark blond hair and light stubble on his face, knelt down next to Kaylee as he placed the spinal board down parallel to her. He deftly snapped open his medical gear case and took out a cervical collar as Brian swallowed hard over the implications. Up until now, he had been so concerned with his daughter even surviving such a violent fall and how it might have impacted her head that he hadn't even considered whether or not she might have any spinal injuries. He refused to even think about that as he watched the one paramedic carefully unsnap the chin strap on her helmet and gingerly remove it from her head to lay it next to her on the ground, being careful to hold her neck in a stable position to avoid any further injury.

The first man with the dark hair nodded as he obtained a reading of her pulse and asked Brian, "What's your daughter's name?"

Brian felt like there was a knife slicing through his throat as he croaked out, "Kaylee; her name's Kaylee." He glanced up as Michael walked over and knelt down beside him to silently place his hand on his shoulder and give it a comforting squeeze.

"Kaylee, my name is Daniel," the dark-haired paramedic informed her in a soft voice. "Can you hear me? If you can, blink your eyes at me twice." Kaylee, her eyes now clouded over with pain, managed somehow to understand as she did as she was asked.

Daniel nodded. "That's good. Don't try to talk, Kaylee. My co-worker, Mark, and I are going to move you onto a board and put a cervical collar around your neck to help keep your body straight and prevent further injury. And we're going to put an oxygen mask over your mouth to help you breathe for a while. We'll move you on the count of three, okay? Blink your eyes again if you understand me."

Brian's heart leapt to his throat as she did as she was told once more. _That's my girl_, he thought silently with pride as Daniel counted up to three and the two of them quickly transferred her to the spinal board lying next to her before placing the cervical collar around her neck. Mark expertly attached some canvas straps and buckled them around her body to hold her in place, attaching an oxygen cuff to her finger as they gently but firmly lifted the gurney up.

Never taking his hand from Kaylee's, Brian and Katie stood up along with them as the two men began to walk with Kaylee toward the front of the house and the waiting ambulance. As they started to move, Brian glanced over to Michael who was following a few steps behind him. "Michael?"

"Yeah?"

"I need you to do me a favor." He knew he should do it himself, but he also knew there was no way he was leaving either daughter.

"Anything," his friend told him sincerely, his heart going out to him over the look of anguish and fear in Brian's face. He had only seen that look once before; in a Pittsburgh hospital as Brian's long-legged body had sat slumped in an impossibly hard, plastic chair, smears of blood on his neck and a white and crimson scarf draped loosely over his shoulders, his face smudged with the tears that fell from his eyes as he sat there in stunned silence, waiting to see if the man that he had fallen in love with would live or die. Back then he had felt helpless to alleviate Brian's misery; if he could help to diminish that fear now, though, he would do whatever Brian asked of him.

"I need you to call Justin and tell him what happened and where we're taking Kaylee." He looked over at Daniel, who informed him they were going to Mountain View Hospital about ten miles away in the larger city of Wheeling, W.V.

Michael nodded in understanding. "I'll take care of it," he assured him, even though he figured it might be somewhat awkward to be talking with Justin again after all this time. "Do you have his cell number?" he asked. Brian nodded and rattled it off by memory, Michael not stopping to question how he knew it so readily. "Go," he urged him. "I'll handle it, don't worry."

Brian smiled at him gratefully as they reached the front of the house. "I wish it was that easy," he told him, knowing he would not stop worrying until he knew his daughter was going to be all right; he would have to deal with Justin's reaction later. Would he blame him for what had happened? Would he consider him careless for not watching Kaylee more closely? He didn't really have to time to even contemplate that at the moment, though; the most important thing was taking care of his daughter; _both_ daughters. Because while one was in need of urgent physical attention, the other desperately needed some emotional reassurance of her own. Reaching over to pull Katie against him, he placed his arm around her shoulder as they walked side-by-side next to the gurney, coming to a stop only when Daniel and Mark pulled up behind the already open back door of the ambulance.

Brian let go of both daughters only long enough to climb up alongside Kaylee's gurney as he reached down to pull Katie up to sit beside him. There was no way he was going to leave her alone or even with Michael, not now. "Let's go," he impatiently urged Mark who was standing at the back of the ambulance, preparing to close the door and hop into the driver's seat.

Mark nodded to him, Daniel sitting opposite Brian and Katie to monitor the little girl's condition as he quickly slammed the door shut and moved to do as he was requested.

A few minutes later, the siren began to wail once more as the ambulance hurried as fast as it was able to down the curved driveway and made a right turn onto the street to head toward the hospital.

* * *

><p><em>*Flashback*<em>

_Justin blew out a tense breath between his lips, feeling like a pariah in the eyes of a boy he had adored and still cared a great deal about. "Gus...I don't think your father told you the whole story; you were pretty young when all this happened."_

_Gus snorted. "Maybe. But I'm not now. So why don't you tell me your version of it."  
><em>

_Justin sighed. Why was everyone insisting on being judge, jury and executioner regarding his and Brian's relationship? "Okay," he agreed wearily just as his cellphone began to ring.  
><em>

* * *

><p><em>Liberty Diner - Same Time<em>

Justin glanced down at the number in aggravation over being interrupted, not recognizing it but discerning that it was a local Pittsburgh call. He hesitated for a moment, not wanting to have anything intrude upon his and Gus's conversation before he heard the boy sitting across from him mutter sarcastically, "Go ahead; what's a few more minutes?"

Justin let out a frustrated breath as he swiped his finger across the display to answer the call and bring it up to his ear. "Hello?"

"Justin?" was the tense but familiar voice; even now, even after all this time, Justin knew immediately who it was. _What a coincidence_, he thought dryly.

"It's been a long time, Michael. Brian put you up to calling me?" he accused his caller as he glanced over at Gus, who was idly picking away at his white, paper napkin; from the set of the young man's jaw, though, Justin knew his mind was whirling with more accusations he wanted to hurl at him in defense of his father. "This isn't a good time."

He could hear Michael huff impatiently as he advised him urgently, "Just listen to me! Yes, he did ask me to call you. Kaylee's been hurt."

Justin's eyes grew large as saucers and his face paled; that was the last thing he expected to hear. "What do you mean, _hurt_?" He was already scooting out of the vinyl booth's seat as he asked, "What happened? Where is she?"

Gus frowned at the startled and fearful tone of Justin's voice as he listened intently to as much of the conversation as he could. Was it Justin's mother? Or one of his sisters?

"She fell off one of the horses at Britin," Michael told him as Justin gasped in stunned shock. "They're on their way to Mountain View Hospital in Wheeling. Brian is with her and Katie in the ambulance, but he wanted me to call you and let you know what's going on."

Justin reached inside his jeans pocket to drag out his wallet and hastily pull out a twenty-dollar bill, slapping it down onto the laminate surface as he whispered, "How bad is it?" He noticed Gus hurrying to slide out of the booth as he stood beside him, his own face creased with worry.

"Not sure yet," was the cryptic reply. "They put her on one of those stabilizing boards and placed a cervical collar around her neck. She was wearing a riding helmet when it happened, though, and she was semi-conscious when the paramedics were working on her."

"Semi-conscious?" _Oh, my God, oh, my God, oh, my God..._ He began to hyperventilate in fear as he began to walk as rapidly as he could toward the front door, although in his present state it was more like a hobble; hell, he didn't even know how he was going to get the hospital, but he didn't care - he would find a way even if he had to take a taxi. "I'm leaving right now," he told Michael. He paused for a second before he added almost as an afterthought, "Thank you for calling me," before he quickly ended the call. He managed to hastily explain, "Kaylee's been in an accident" to Gus before he turned to start limping away, knowing they would have to continue their awkward, long overdue discussion at a later time.

"I'll drive you," Gus impetuously offered quietly from behind him to his surprise. He didn't have time to question the young man's offer or motives as he nodded gratefully instead and the two of them rushed out of the diner, leaving a puzzled Debbie calling after them in their wake.

* * *

><p><em>Mountain View Hospital - Wheeling, WV - Consultation Room Near the ER<br>_

"Why can't I see my damn daughter?" Brian shouted, enraged, his face red with fury as he pushed up against the chest of the E.R. doctor in the closed space. "Fuck your rules; she needs me!"

The doctor's heart pounded in trepidation, but he held firm as he grasped Brian by the shoulders and pushed back away from him to create a little more distance. "I'm sorry, Sir, but you are unable to produce documentation to prove that you are the father of record and you admitted you do not have legal custody or a POA to make decisions for her. I will need either the biological mother or the father to do that."

"You son of a bitch..."

"Brian!" Michael shouted in alarm as he moved to restrain his friend physically from behind when Brian's hand curled into a fist and he cocked it backward menacingly. "Do you want to be kicked out of here? Kaylee needs you; _Katie _needs you! Think about what you're doing!" Michael had taken off in his car right after the ambulance had left, phoning Justin on the way so he could arrive shortly after the emergency crew and Brian arrived. He knew that he and Brian weren't as close as they had been before, but he still knew his friend would need him right now. He just hadn't realized how much.

Brian glanced over at his other daughter. Katie was sitting in a wood and dark-blue, vinyl-padded chair several feet away, her hands wrapped around her bent knees in a defensive sort of posture as she looked over at him fearfully, her eyes brimming with tears of anxiety. The instant Brian looked over at the scared expression on her face, his fury diminished as he strove to calm down, knowing Michael was right. As angry as he was, he knew it would be worse if he was barred from setting foot inside the hospital altogether. He just felt so damned helpless at the moment, and it was a feeling he had a hard time dealing with. He took a deep breath and shrugged off Michael's hands on his upper arms as he stood there defiantly with his hands on his hips and advised the doctor, "Her biological mother gave up her parental custody rights to her biological father and me when she was born! Are you just going to sit there and do nothing until he's able to show up?" Just the word _father_ left a bitter taste in his mouth; Kaylee had TWO fathers, damn it; legal papers notwithstanding.

The doctor, a man by the last name of Saunders as indicated by the I.D. tag he had pinned to his white jacket's pocket, bristled with insult as he explained, "Of course not, Mr. Kinney! Your daughter has already been taken down to Radiology to get some cranial and spinal images done to determine the extent of her internal injuries and to help rule out a concussion. And by law we are permitted to perform emergency surgery if we cannot obtain consent from an authorized party and it would jeopardize a patient's life. So I can assure you that your daughter will be well taken care of until he arrives, and we will do whatever it takes to keep her stable in the meantime."

Brian harrumphed, finding it highly ironic how the doctor was barring him from making any medical decisions, but was still calling Kaylee _his daughter_. He was also cursing himself for him and Justin never thinking to make each other the legal guardian of the other girl in case of any medical crises or have a POA on record for each daughter. How were they supposed to know, though, that it would even be needed? The girls weren't supposed to be reunited until they were adults. He supposed that was another reason why they never should have agreed to do this in the first place.

He turned to look at Katie, who looked visibly upset by the whole confrontation. "Look at her, damn it! That is MY daughter, her sister! Are you going to stand there in front of her and tell HER that I can't see Kaylee? Huh? Are you going to let my child - yes, damn it, she's still my child no matter what you say! - are you going to let my child go through this alone? Don't you understand how frightened she must be right now? For once in your goddamn life, Doctor, show some compassion and bend your fucking rules just a little!" Brian normally was careful not to use such extreme profanity in front of either girl, but he couldn't help it; sometimes you had to do what you had to do to get your point across, and apparently this doctor needed an extra push. He only hoped it would be sufficient to get him what he had to have. There was no way he was going to let Kaylee spend time in the ER by herself. He stared the doctor down defiantly as he added, "Trust me, _Doctor_, I'm going to hold you personally accountable if something happens to my little girl. I want to see her."

Saunders let out a tense breath as he started to capitulate just a bit. "She's not in her room right now, Mr. Kinney; it will take several minutes for the x-rays and CAT scan to be done. As soon as she's finished someone will let you know her status." He stated calmly, "At this hospital, only immediate family members are normally allowed to visit a patient in the ER."

Michael prepared to forcibly hold Brian back again as he watched a vein pop out on his friend's neck and his eyes flash in fury. "Don't even try to fucking tell me that I can't see my own daughter," he interrupted him with deadly calm, "Or you'll wind up in the ER yourself."

The doctor swallowed the lump in his throat; he was used to family members becoming agitated over their loved ones being in the emergency room, but this man was in a class by himself. He reminded him of a grizzly bear defending one of his cubs, and he knew if he refused to allow this man to see his newest patient he would most likely at least attempt to do exactly what he was threatening to do. This man, even though he wasn't the little girl's legal father, obviously loved her deeply just the same, and he knew that with children especially it was important that they be with their families to reassure them and help them to recover faster.

"I don't take kindly to threats, Mr. Kinney," the doctor told him brusquely. "Normally that sort of statement would be more than enough cause to throw you out of here." He paused for a moment before he conceded, "But I know how upset you are about your daughter being injured, so I will choose to overlook that last statement."

Making a highly unorthodox decision and hoping he didn't wind up being called out on it later, he told Brian, "As soon as she returns to her room, I'll allow you to visit her. But _only_ you," he cautioned him as he glanced over at the exact duplicate of the patient, feeling decidedly sorry for her. He could only imagine what she was going through at the moment. He peered sympathetically at Kaylee as he told her, "I'm afraid you'll have to remain out here for the time being. Minors under the age of 13 are not permitted inside the ER treatment rooms." He held his hands up as Brian appeared about to erupt again. "I don't make the rules, Mr. Kinney; it's the best that I can do; take it or leave it."

Brian sighed heavily in frustration as the doctor turned to go. "Just make sure that I'm informed as soon as my daughter comes back to the ER," he warned him. The doctor nodded in acknowledgment, making his escape as quickly as he could as he walked briskly toward the door; within seconds he was gone, leaving the trio alone in the quiet stillness of the consult room.

In relief Michael leaned against one of the stark, cream-colored walls displaying some nondescript, obligatory landscaped paintings that looked like they were done by a 'starving artist' as Brian walked over to Katie and reached his hand down to her. She only hesitated a second before she took his hand in hers and allowed herself to be pulled up into his embrace, laying her cheek against his stomach as she slid her hands around her father's waist and he held her tight, seeking to reassure and comfort his beloved and frightened daughter. He longed to be with Kaylee, also, to make sure she was aware that he was there watching over her, and it infuriated him that he couldn't do so yet. But he also knew Katie needed the same type of reassurance that his other little girl would as he felt her slender body trembling by his side.

He glanced over at Michael who was eyeing him compassionately as he cooed to her, "Shhh; everything's going to be fine, Chiquitita; you'll see. She'll be good as new in no time." He heard Katie sniffling against him and it broke his heart to sense her anguish. As if he could read her mind, he gently told her, "It wasn't your fault, Katie."

Katie pulled back to look up into his eyes to wail, "Yes, it was! If I hadn't asked Kaylee to go riding with me, it never would have happened! _I_ should be me in there, not Kaylee! I'm the reason she's hurt."

Brian pulled her against him tighter and placed his hand on her head, inhaling the sweet, innocent scent of her as he murmured, "No, no, Katie, it was NOT your fault! You had no way of knowing what would happen. I won't allow you to blame yourself, you hear me? Kaylee loves you just as much as I do; she wouldn't want you to feel that way." He placed just enough space between them to take one hand and reach down to gently cup her chin to raise her bright, tear-filled eyes up to meet his. "She's going to be just fine, Katherine Marie. Are you listening to me? I won't let anything happen to her, to any of us."

"Promise?" she pressed.

_God help me if I'm wrong, _Brian thought, but he didn't have the heart to tell her otherwise as he nodded with a tender smile at her.

Katie nodded before she managed to hiccup out in a soft lament, "Daddy. We need Daddy here, too. Where is he?"

Brian swallowed hard at the mention of Justin. "I know," he murmured as he pulled her against him while he fretted over seeing his ex-partner again. "Michael called him; he'll be here soon." How would Justin react to all this, though? He knew from what Michael had told him that he had called Justin just as soon as the ambulance had pulled out, and that Justin had sounded scared to death to hear that Kaylee had been injured. In all the excitement over Kaylee being tended to, though, he hadn't even given thought to calling Justin himself after Michael had to explain exactly what was going one; he had been too busy worrying about how their daughter was doing. And once they had been ushered into this consult room, he had found out that he didn't even get cell phone reception in this area of the hospital, so it was just as well. Was he being truthful with himself, though? Even if he could have called Justin, would he have? _Or are you just too afraid of what his reaction will be, Kinney? _ No, he decided firmly. That wasn't it. For right now Kaylee had to be his priority - and Katie; he wasn't going to leave either one of them. Besides, until the doctor returned and Kaylee was brought back from Radiology, he really didn't know anything else to tell him anyway. At that moment, however, he found himself torn between desperately needing his ex-partner there and dreading what his reaction would be. He couldn't afford to dwell on that, though; ever since Justin and he had met again, everything that had happened afterward had by necessity been totally unscripted and spontaneous. This would have to be the same, then - he would deal with whatever reaction Justin had to this accident as well as all the ramifications of it when it happened; that was all he _could_ do.

"Brian?"

Brian lifted his gaze and arched one eyebrow questioningly as he heard Michael softly call out his name, continuing to hold onto his daughter while he lightly rocked her back and forth.

"I'm going to go some coffee; you want some? Katie, you want something to drink, too?" He felt decidedly helpless just standing there, almost feeling like he was intruding on some distinctly private moment. Just like most visitors outside the family loop, though, he thought he could at least serve as part moral support, part errand boy as they all waited to see how Kaylee was doing.

Brian gave him a soft smile of gratitude. "Yeah, some of the shit they call coffee around here sounds good. Katie?" he asked his daughter, her head still cradled against him as he continued to hold her tight.

"Just some bottled water," she mumbled out as Michael nodded and turned to go.

"I'll be right back," he told them as he quietly left, leaving father and daughter alone for the moment. Brian loosened his hold on his daughter just enough to guide her over to a loveseat against the far wall that matched the four chairs in the room. He hugged her to his side as they sat down together and he heard her sigh mournfully.

"You okay?" he asked her softly she laid her head against him.

"I... I just wish they'd bring Kaylee back so we could find out what's going on," she told him. "And I want Daddy here. How much longer?"

Brian figured Justin had to be getting closer to the hospital. "He should be here any time," he reassured her as he reached down to clasp her smaller hand in his. _Hurry, Sunshine... Hurry._

* * *

><p>Chapter End Notes:<p>

_This is only one part of my update - I decided to post the first section until I could get the remainder done. Also, I am by no means a medical expert, so please allow me a little literary license in this chapter if the procedure is not 100% plausible or likely.  
><em>

_ Hope you're still with me out there.:) Thanks for reading. The next part will be up in the next few days. Thanks to boriqua522 for being my beta on this story, also.  
><em>


	23. For Our Daughter

_Justin and Gus arrive at the hospital as Kaylee's condition is assessed; Justin discovers a secret that Brian unexpectedly reveals to him._

* * *

><p><em>Between Pittsburgh and Wheeling...Thirty Minutes Earlier<br>_

Justin cast his eyes out the window as the scenery went rushing by on the rather isolated highway road, his thoughts swirling with all sorts of questions about what had happened to his daughter and how she was doing. Michael had told him very little, and his attempts to phone Brian had resulted in him being sent directly into his voicemail. Where was Katie during all this, also? Had she been with Kaylee when it had happened? If so, he could only imagine how terrified she must be at the moment; probably as frightened as he was. If anything happened to either one of his girls, he just wouldn't want to live without them. The intensity in which he loved both of them almost scared him in a way; before they were born, he hadn't given much thought to being a father except for the occasional pangs he felt whenever he had watched Gus or Jenny; once his little girls had come along, though, and they had promptly stared up at him with those sparkling, blue eyes and had crooked a chubby little finger around his, he had fallen deeply and hopelessly in love, and over the years it had just become stronger and stronger. Now he couldn't imagine life without either one of them.

The thought of Gus caused him to turn his head to stare over at the boy who had somehow almost in the blink of an eye turned into a young man; he was pretty much the same age that he had been when he himself had first met Brian and fallen irretrievably under his spell. He looked so much like Brian now, even more than when he had last seen him so long ago: same shade of chestnut-colored hair, same strong, chiseled face, even the slightly crooked nose, even though he always thought Brian had gotten that from a fist fight somewhere along the way. Even the long fingers tightly gripping the steering wheel reminded him of his ex-partner, so much so that it was almost painful to look at him. What made it even more awkward was the tight purse of his lips as he drove them resolutely toward their destination.

"What?"

He was startled out of his reverie when Gus abruptly turned his head to look over at him, almost like he could see right through him and know what he was thinking. "Nothing," he mumbled in embarrassment over being caught studying him as he looked away out the side window.

Gus sighed. He didn't like being angry with Justin; deep down he still loved the man, even though he thought he had been absolutely shitty in his treatment of his father. "I'm still waiting for an answer to my questions earlier," he stated flatly as he returned his eyes to the road, deciding two could play that game. Hell, he knew Justin was worried, but he was, too; he hadn't even gotten to meet Kaylee yet, and she could very well be lying severely injured in a hospital bed now. Neither of them knew the extent of her injuries, but being thrown from a horse was an extremely serious situation. And if she had hit her head...

Just that possibility made him think back to when Justin had been hit in the head with that baseball bat a long time ago, and how it had affected his Dad so dramatically. A few years ago, he had questioned his mother at length about that time in his father's life, wanting to know everything about his and Justin's life together, and she had told him in great detail about how his father had virtually gone off the deep end when Justin had been hurt; how he had sunk into such a tailspin that he almost didn't come back out in one piece. How he had muted his pain with booze, drugs, and an endless sea of unnamed tricks for months until Justin had reentered his life and given him back his sanity and a purpose to his life. She had told him how that episode had changed his father's life forever, had changed BOTH their lives. Apparently forever wasn't as long as it was cracked up to be, though.

"Gus... This is really not a good time..." Justin finally replied as he turned his attention back to his companion.

Gus's eyes flashed. "When IS it a good time, Justin? You've had ten years to justify what you did. Ten years to explain to me what happened! Well, it seems we have plenty of fucking time right now on the way to the hospital for me to meet the sister I haven't met since she was born! I'm all ears, so let's hear it."

Justin sighed; feeling like the tension inside the car could be cut with a knife. The hostility was almost rolling off the young man in waves as he silently recalled the countless days that he had colored with him at the diner or pushed him on the swings or played with him on the floor at Mel and Lindsay's house with his train set; hell, he had even changed the boy's diaper more times than he could remember and had fed him more pureed bananas than Brian probably had when the two women had asked him to babysit. Could he possibly count on their prior bond now, though, to help Gus understand exactly what had happened to break him and Brian up? And how did he do that without making Gus's father, the man his son adored, look like a jackass? Because that was not his intention; yes, he was still hurt over what had happened, and he felt that he should be truthful about it, but he never wanted to destroy Brian's bond with his son, either.

"Okay," he finally responded softly as Gus glanced over at him somewhat in surprise that he was agreeing to talk about it. "You're right; I'm worried enough about Kaylee as it is. Maybe talking about something else would help me take my mind off it." He snorted ironically. "Although I'm not sure talking about this is exactly going to lighten the mood." He paused for a moment before saying, "But you're old enough to understand what I'm about to say and you deserve the truth - the whole, unvarnished truth, good or bad. What exactly did your father tell you happened back then, Gus?"

Gus took a breath and let it out, keeping his eyes on the road as he replied, "He said the two of you had a misunderstanding when you came to Kinnetik one day and when he tried to explain about what happened you wouldn't listen to him. He said you just packed up your bags and moved out, and then a week later you filed the custody papers to keep Kaylee with you and Katie with my father. And right after that you just up and moved to Chicago like it was nothing." He swallowed as he felt tears beginning to form in his eyes; it was all so painful even now.

Justin shook his head in disbelief, trying hard not to let his anger boil over. "That's all he said about it? That we had a _misunderstanding_? Are you shitting me? He didn't explain what the so-called 'misunderstanding' was all about?"

Gus shifted his attention from the road back over to Justin as he explained a little hesitantly, "Well, he said that you saw him with another man coming out of his private bathroom and immediately jumped to conclusions about what had happened without giving him a chance to explain. He told me he was the son of a potential new client and you took one look at the two of them and just ran out."

"Oh, my God!" Justin cried out in astonishment. "That's what he told you? Shit! Gus, believe me; I knew your father like the back of my hand back then, and when he and that, that _guy_ came out of the bathroom right after each other and I saw the guilty look on his face, there was no question in my mind what had happened! Do I have to spell it out to you?"

"No, I understand exactly what you THINK you saw happened!" Gus retorted stiffly, his face contorted in righteous anger in defense of his father. "Did you even give him a chance to explain, Justin? Or did you have so little faith in him that you just made a hasty judgment and wouldn't allow him to even try?"

Justin huffed out an angry breath. "I can't believe this," he muttered as he shook his head. He inhaled deeply in an attempt to calm himself down; he was already upset over Kaylee being hurt, but getting angry at Gus and yelling at him wasn't going to help anything. "Gus, your father and I DID talk when he came back home. And your father admitted that I saw exactly what I thought I saw - him and this man coming out of his bathroom after... _Okay, he said he was going to be honest with him_... after he fucked him in an attempt to help persuade him to get his father, a very influential and powerful businessman, to sign on with Kinnetik. He admitted it, Gus! Ask him yourself! But you know what? That isn't what hurt the most. Your father had made mistakes before; hell, so had I. I wasn't a saint, either, when it came to keeping promises, although we had gotten much better over time about trusting each other and having faith in our love for each other by the time this happened."

He took another deep breath, the pain of that period still fresh even now, even after all this time. "No, Gus," he said sorrowfully as he lowered his voice, making Gus have to strain to hear what he was saying now as he peered over at him. "What hurt the most was that we were a family then, and your father had promised to be faithful to me. He had not only promised in words, but in deeds." He found himself a little embarrassed as he explained, "A few months before that happened, your father and I had decided to make the ultimate commitment to each other. We had decided to remove all barriers between us when we were...intimate." Justin could feel his face flush; he never thought he would have to have this type of conversation with his ex-partner's son, and it was quite awkward but necessary just the same for him to completely understand the gravity of what Brian had done.

Gus eyed Justin intently. "You mean...?"

"I mean that it wasn't just your father being your father and slipping back into his old ways that hurt me so much; it was your father breaking the greatest promise that he had ever made to me. To know that we had committed to each other in the most intimate way that the two of us could, only to have that thrown back in my face in such a flagrant manner..." He closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the headrest, wishing it still didn't hurt as much as it did. But it did, almost like it had just happened. Why couldn't he just let it go, damn it? He still loved Brian, that hadn't changed.

"Justin?" The voice now was softer and less accusatory, almost sympathetic as Justin opened his eyes and turned his head to look over at Brian's lookalike son.

"Yes?

"I guess that must have hurt. Kind of like when you left him for that violin player."

_Ouch_. Justin winced; he didn't think Gus was intending to hurt him more, but that hit a little too close to home. It still wasn't quite the same, though... was it? "Yeah, I guess it was," he had to concede. "But that was different, Gus. Your father gave me the choice of who I wanted to be with at the time, and he couldn't give me what I thought I needed back then." He thought fleetingly about telling Gus how his father had almost _pushed_ him into Ethan's arms by making sure he saw him fucking that Rage lookalike in Babylon's backroom, but ultimately he chose not to bring it up. It wouldn't change anything.

"Like what?" Gus asked curiously as he looked over at Justin who he thought appeared decidedly uncomfortable. "You wound up going back to my Dad eventually, so you must not have found what you thought you were looking for."

That was a good question; what HAD he been seeking? Romance, undivided attention, appreciation? Flowery words that sounded good but in reality didn't mean a damn thing if they weren't backed up with action? He sighed. "I... At the time I thought I needed reassurance that I wasn't just a convenience, that... That I meant something important to someone, someone who had the same hopes and goals that I did. At the time it seemed like your father and I were heading in different directions."

Gus eyed him thoughtfully as he pondered that information, switching his attention back and forth from the road to Justin as they drove deeper and deeper into the rural roads of West Virginia toward the hospital. "But you didn't find what you were looking for, and you wound up hurting Dad in the process when you left him."

"Yes," Justin admitted. "But at the time I didn't realize just how much it _had_ hurt him. He _let_ me go, Gus. If... If he had fought for me, if he had only told me how he really felt about me back then, I never would have left."

"Then why did you return to him?"

Justin bit his lip pensively for a moment before he stated simply, "Because I never stopped loving him. I tried, believe me," he admitted. "I tried to move on past him, even after Ethan was unfaithful to me. But I couldn't get him out of my mind. And eventually I decided that while your father might not be the most verbal person when it came to expressing his feelings," he said with a sort of ironic snort over how much of an understatement that was, "when it comes to _showing_ someone how much he loves and cares about them, he's a master at it." Once you knew the Brian Kinney Operating Manual, actually, it became quite easy to tell how Brian was feeling; you could see it in his eyes and in the way he moved, even, and in his touch, as well as in the countless quiet things that he did behind the scenes for the people he cared about. As he thought back over the past few weeks, though, why hadn't he remembered that? Every time he had seen Brian with the girls, it was so obvious how much he loved them and missed being in both their lives. And he didn't even _need_ the operating manual to know that Brian still loved _him_; the man had just come out and told him so.

Gus nodded. "And you still love him now, even after what happened that day."

Justin peered over at him unflinchingly. "Yes, God help me, but I do," he verified, one side of his mouth quirked up wryly. "I never stopped loving him, just like back then," he added softly. "No, actually, that's not true," he corrected himself as Gus looked at him in surprise. He admitted, "I probably love him even more now."

Gus digested all that information; so his father hadn't been completely upfront with him about what had happened. That was disappointing in a way; all this time he had been blaming Justin for the breakup, when it had been his father who had mainly caused it. What a tangled mess! Justin still could have tried to stay and work things out with his father and find a way to forgive him, but he was just now beginning to understand a little more clearly what had happened, and while it didn't take all the hurt away regarding Justin and his sister's abrupt departure from his life, it at least helped to explain it.

"He still loves you, too, you know," Gus replied as he looked back over at Justin. He sighed. "Can't you two work this out somehow, Justin? Hasn't it been long enough? Has it been worth all this hurt for you and Dad? For me? For Kaylee and Katie? What is it going to take to get you back together? Isn't that what all of us want? What _you_ want? Be honest with me."

Justin felt the prickling of tears at the back of his eyes over the mournful tone of Gus's voice. He knew Gus was right - it was time to clear this up once and for all. It was time to make a decision. Either he was going to have to find a way to forgive Brian and forge a new life with him and the girls, or he needed to make a clean break with him once and for all. He would never hold Kaylee hostage from him - God, he didn't even know how she was at the moment but he refused to believe she wouldn't be all right - but if he couldn't reconcile with Brian, either, he needed to make that clear to him and go back to the life he had created for himself in Chicago. First, though, he had to make sure his little girl was going to be okay; that was uppermost in his mind.

"I... I do still love him, Gus. I... I miss him like hell, and yes, I do want us to find a way to be together again," he found himself saying. "All of us... As a family." He let out a deep breath. "First I have to make sure that your sister is okay, though. Until I'm sure that she is, I can't think about anything else."

Gus nodded, feeling a burning need to ask one more question. "Did you think of me?"

Justin frowned at the unexpected query. "What?"

"I said... Did you think of me all this time while you were gone?" He turned his head to peer out the driver's side window, feeling decidedly young again, almost like he was that uncertain, little kindergarten boy once more. "Dad wasn't the only one who got hurt when you left, you know," he confessed.

Justin tamped down the lump in his throat. "Yes, I know," he whispered back. "I thought of you all the time." He paused for a short moment before he asked, "You do believe me, don't you?" It was important to him that he did; in all the pain and confusion that had ensued, he had neglected to fully consider just how much one little boy might have been hurt due to his and Brian's separation. How could he have not realized that?

Gus pondered that; Justin sounded sincere and he wanted to believe him... "Maybe," he finally replied truthfully. He turned to stare over at Justin as he added, "But it still hurt not hearing from you all this time. I was young when you left, Justin, but that didn't mean that I didn't remember you or miss you when you were gone. And when you took Kaylee with you..." He swallowed hard as tears began to form in his eyes. He took a deep breath to compose him a little more before he continued. "When you AND Kaylee left and I never saw either one of you again, the older I got, the more I resented it. I felt like she was more important to you than either Katie or I was, and that hurt. A lot."

Justin's eyes also filled with tears of regret. It seems his entire day had been full of guilt and 'what-could-have-beens' from the moment he had awakened. "I never really gave much thought to that, Gus," he told him honestly. "I mean, I never stopped thinking about you and Katie," he insisted hastily before Gus got the wrong impression. "I never once stopped loving either one of you." He paused again to swallow as he told him, "I was so caught up into making sure that Kaylee was taken care of, and trying to establish a whole new life for me and her, and the pain was still so raw from my breakup with your father that I didn't consider the ramifications of what I was doing to you. And as far as Katie goes, the legal agreement that Brian and I signed stipulated that I was to have no contact with her until she was an adult and Brian was to do the same with Kaylee. In hindsight it was the worst fucking decision either of us could make, but at the time I don't think either one of us was thinking clearly at all. Now I know we never should have done that. If it hadn't been for my mother intervening to have the girls finally meet, who knows how long this would have gone on?" He shook his head and let out a soft snort. "At first I really resented what she had done, but now I see that she was the only one thinking clearly about the whole thing." He quickly filled Gus in on all the details that Katie hadn't told him about regarding their reunion at Camp Pineland and how Brian had brought Kaylee back up to Chicago to bring her home, only to have the entire plan backfire afterward, forcing him to return to Britin with Brian and the girls until their ruse could be straightened out.

Gus had to grin at his Grandma Jen's ingenuity as well as his sisters' cleverness. "I seemed to have rubbed off on both my sisters," he murmured with a soft smile. "I had a hell of a time persuading my moms to let me get a license as soon as I turned sixteen, but I finally persuaded them that the benefits far outweighed the risks by joining every type of club I could think of that would require that they shuttle me back and forth between them. Worked like a charm. Just the thought of keeping up that busy a schedule made them decide that my getting a learner's license was for the best, and now here I am."

Justin couldn't help returning his smile as a thought occurred to him. "Very clever of you indeed," he agreed, "But how were you able to rent this car? Don't you have to be at least twenty-one to do that?"

"Twenty-five, actually," Gus informed him. "This old jalopy? It belongs to Grandma Debbie; actually it used to be her brother Vic's. She told me where to find a spare key for it and I took a shuttle from the airport to pick it up at her place. Very accommodating of her, wasn't it?"

"Very convenient," Justin agreed dryly, shaking his head a little. Was there no limit to what lengths Debbie would go to in an attempt to try and reunite him and Brian again? Pitting Gus against him was dirty pool, indeed, but it seemed to be having the desired effect; he was feeling decidedly ashamed and guilty over how he had held Brian at arm's length for so long. He didn't stop to dwell on all the years he and Brian had wasted while he wallowed in self-pity, nor concentrated on how much the two girls had missed by not being together or with their other father. If he did, he wasn't sure that he would be in the right frame of mind to deal with Kaylee's injury, and that was uppermost in his heart at the moment.

There was silence for several seconds before Justin spoke again. "Gus?"

Gus glanced over at Justin as he eased the car off the exit ramp and onto the highway leading toward the hospital. "Yeah?"

"I hope you know that if I could all this all over again, I would change a lot of things."

Gus noticed the sign for the hospital coming up; in just a few short minutes, he knew he and Justin would be immersed in Kaylee's condition and he suspected it would be some time before they could discuss this again. He gave his older friend a nod finally and a slight smile as he slowed down to make the turn into the emergency room parking area. "Yeah," he told him softly. "I think I do. I really do."

* * *

><p>Michael emerged from the elevator car that had brought him down the two flights from the cafeteria to the ER on the ground floor; carrying a rigid, cardboard beverage tray, he almost dropped it as he glanced over and observed Justin rushing into the hospital through the ER entrance doors with Gus directly on his heels. Unlike Justin, Michael had run into Gus on occasion when he had come to visit, normally not so much in Brian's company as his mother's. Gus and his mother had maintained a cordial relationship over the years, despite the troubles that his father and Justin had experienced, so by virtue of that ongoing relationship and his frequent trips into the diner, it was natural that he, too, would encounter Gus on a fairly frequent basis. What <em>did<em> surprise him, though, was seeing him and Justin together.

Justin looked frantically around the busy ER waiting room, hoping to catch sight of Brian or Katie, until Gus tugged on his sleeve and nodded his head toward the bank of elevators off to the right down a short hallway and he spotted Michael at about the same time that he did.

"Michael!" Justin called out urgently as Michael rushed over to him. "How is she? Where's Brian? Is Katie with them?" There were so many questions he needed answers to that they came out in a virtual torrent now.

"Hey, Justin, Gus," Michael told them a little breathlessly as he sidestepped a couple of people wanting to get on the elevator so he could talk to the pair. "They've got her in Radiology right now, doing some x-rays and a CT scan to check her out. She should be coming back down soon." He paused to look directly at Justin as he told him, "I'm glad you're here. They wouldn't do any further treatment of her until you got here, unless it was a life or death sort of thing."

Justin's mouth gaped open as he grabbed his sleeve. _Life or death? Was it that serious?_ "What the fuck, Michael? What are you talking about? How bad off is she?"

"Calm down," Michael told him quietly as he tried not to jostle any of the liquid out of the two coffee cups, knowing Justin had a right to be worked up but needing time to explain. "I didn't say she was that injured; the doctor just told Brian that as a noncustodial parent he didn't have the right to make any of those choices; only you did, so I'm glad you're here. I'm sure Brian will be relieved, too. He's been worried sick about her."

"Where is she, Michael?" Gus asked urgently, a little perturbed over his obtuseness in light of the urgency of the situation. "And where're Dad and Katie?"

"That's what I'm trying to tell you!" he answered him. "Come on," he told them gruffly. "They're in a consult room waiting down the hall."

Justin could barely contain his patience as Michael trudged down the garishly-lit hallway toward a series of rooms on either side at the end, finding it difficult to keep up but managing it nonetheless; he simply gritted his teeth and ignored the shooting pain flaring up in his ankle. As Michael neared the last one on the right, he nodded his head toward it. "In there," he told them as Justin quickly dodged around him and yanked the door open.

From their position sitting next to each other on the loveseat, Katie and Brian looked up a little startled as the door was suddenly flung open. Brian's heart leapt at the sight of his ex-lover as he rose to his feet to greet him.

"Daddy!" Katie cried out as she, too, jumped to her feet in relief next to her father. "I'm so glad you're here!" Her eyes widened as she noticed who was hurrying in behind him. "Gus!" she exclaimed. "Oh, my God! You, too?"

Gus came rushing over to sweep his sister up into a tight embrace as Katie allowed her tears to flow freely now; this was more than she had hoped for. Having both fathers as well as her brother there suddenly made everything much better; it was as if God were telling her that Kaylee really would be okay. Surely He wouldn't let something happen to her with all this love surrounding her, would He?

Justin hurried up to Brian as fast as he could, deliberately ignoring the achiness still emanating from his ankle as he noticed how haggard and drawn he looked; his ex-partner's normal, flawlessly smooth bronzed face was presently creased with worry lines and there were crow's feet around his eyes, which were bleary with exhaustion. "I came as fast as I could," he said a little breathlessly. "How is she?"

At that moment, Brian wanted nothing more to sweep Justin into his arms and hold him, although he wasn't sure if it was for Justin's benefit or his own. The look on his ex-lover's face mirrored his own concern as he said, "They've got her up in Radiology right now to do some tests; as soon as she's back down here they promised me they'd let me know. Justin, I wanted to be with her, but they fucking wouldn't let me," he practically spat out in disgust, still angry over his previous encounter with the ER doctor.

Justin almost didn't realize it as he instinctively reached out to grab Brian's wrist just like he used to do when he was trying to get him to focus on something. "They wouldn't let you stay with her at all?"

Brian's lips drew into a tight line as he told him, "No. I had to practically threaten the doctor just to let me see her when she gets back down here to her room. He said only you could do that, at least until I got him to _listen to reason_."

Justin couldn't help the slight, knowing smile that spread across his lips as he nodded. "I know how _persuasive_ you can be." He sobered as he said, "You mean because of the custody agreement?" Brian nodded. "That is so fucked!" Justin growled in disgust. "You are no less a parent to her than I am!"

Brian's heart swelled at that statement; despite their problems, it was good to receive validation about his place in Kaylee's life. He only hoped when he got finished explaining what happened that Justin would still feel the same way. He was very concerned that Justin would be quick to place blame on him for what had happened to their daughter.

Michael quietly placed the tray of beverages down on a small, wooden, square table in between a couple of the chairs and sat down, not wanting to place himself in the middle of this unorthodox family reunion. It was surreal in a way watching Brian and Justin together again after all this time, but he wasn't fooled. They may have problems at the moment, but when the need warranted it, they were still on the same side and there could be no mistaking the looks they were giving each other whether they realized it or not.

Katie pulled back from her brother's embrace as Gus looked over at his father; wordlessly he walked the few steps over to his dad and hugged him tightly as Justin watched in amazement. Except for the fact that Gus was a lot older - and a lot taller - it was almost like seeing an instant replay of countless times before when Gus was much younger and Brian would greet him when he would come for a visit.

"Hey, Sonny Boy," Brian murmured as they broke apart. He glanced over at Justin. "I'm glad you're here, but I never expected to see the two of you walking in together." He lifted an eyebrow at his son in silent question.

"Grandma Debbie called and told me Justin was back in the Pitts," he told him, "and that he was at the diner. She strongly _suggested_ I come and talk to him. I was there when he got Michael's call about Kaylee."

Brian pressed his tongue into his cheek in amusement. "I'm sure she did," he said dryly as Justin huffed slightly. "I would have loved to have heard that conversation."

"We can talk about it later," Justin cut him off. In fact, he had every intention of discussing it with Brian. The two of them still had a lot to hash out, but now was not the time. "But I'm more concerned with our daughter at the moment. What exactly happened to her, Brian? All I heard was that she had been in some accident with one of the horses. How did she even get ON a horse? She was scared to death of them."

Brian looked over at Katie as he shuffled his feet nervously, watching his daughter's face pale with regret. He knew exactly what she was thinking and he had to put the kibosh on that immediately; if anyone was to blame, it was him. "I asked Michael to come out to Britin for a visit, and while he was there the girls decided to walk down to the stables so Katie could feed Eton and Ceres and groom them." _That wasn't all they were going to do, Kinney; spit it out, damn it._

"Okay... But that still doesn't explain how Kaylee wound up on top of a horse."

Brian was about to admit he had actually suggested the two girls think about taking the horses out for a ride - figuring deception at this point wasn't a very good idea. But he was prevented from doing so when their daughter spoke up all of a sudden.

"It was my fault, Daddy!" Katie wailed out as her tears flowed freely down her cheeks, giving Brian no chance to explain. "I talked her into trying to ride Ceres and she did it for ME! Daddy didn't know anything about it! I'm the one to blame!"

_Shit. _Brian's heart broke at the anguish on his daughter's face and her outright lie regarding his culpability in the whole disaster. He was not going to let her take the blame for what had happened. "Katie, it was my..."

Justin gazed into his daughter's troubled, tear-stained face as she cried out vehemently, "No, Dad! It's true! If I hadn't pushed Kaylee into it she would have never gotten on the horse! She was doing so well until something spooked Ceres and she couldn't hold on any longer! Oh, my God, what have I done? If she isn't all right, I'll never forgive myself!"

Justin reached over to crush her against his chest as she blubbered and sniffled in distress, sliding his arms around her back comfortingly as she cried into his shirt and quickly dampened it with her tears. "Shhh," he murmured to her as he placed his hand on top of her head and tugged her closer, much like Brian had done before. "I don't want to hear you talking like that, Honey. No one is to blame for what happened. There's nothing to forgive, Katie." He lifted his gaze to stare into Brian's eyes as they locked onto his, so much being said in that one moment without any words passing between them. Something shifted in that second, something subtle but still pronounced before Justin placed his arm around Katie's body and his daughter slid her own arms around her father's waist to accept the comfort he was providing to her.

Finally after a few moments, he reluctantly let go of her, needing to go see Kaylee as he told her, "I don't want you to ever say anything like that again, Katie, do you hear me? Do you understand? I do not blame you for what happened, and I'm sure Kaylee doesn't either."

She nodded with another sniffle as Justin looked around for a tissue; Gus reached over and plucked out a few from a nearby box as he wordlessly handed them to Justin who took them and gently wiped the tears from her eyes and her cheeks. "Katie? Do you believe me?"

He handed her the last tissue and she blew her nose before looking up at him and nodding, still feeling scared about her sister but no longer feeling so heavy-laden with guilt. "I'm still worried about her, Daddy," she whispered as Justin nodded.

"So am I," he admitted. "But I know she's going to be okay; she has to be." He let out a tense breath as he gently turned her to face him and grasped her by the upper arms to tell her, "I'm going to go find out right now how she's doing, okay? Will you stay here with your brother and Michael while I go find the doctor?"

She nodded as Gus, too, indicated his agreement that he would watch over her.

"I'll stay here with them," Michael softly assured him. "Go."

Brian was hoping that only meant one thing, but he held his breath until Justin uttered the words he was hoping to hear. "Come with me."

Brian nodded as they gazed into each other's eyes and sought mutual comfort and reassurance from each other. He stood there uncertainly for a second longer until he tentatively reached out with his hand, his heart in his throat before Justin reached over and joined his hand with his, curling his fingers firmly around the larger one as Brian grasped his back tightly. It was such a familiar feeling that rushed through them at that moment as silently they walked toward the door together and disappeared a few seconds later, Brian slowing down to match Justin's more labored gait.

* * *

><p>A few minutes later the two men found themselves on the elevator alone, on their way up to the third floor where the Radiology Department was located. Neither had been content to wait for Kaylee to return to the ER, and now that Justin had arrived they were able to go up and be with their daughter together.<p>

Justin fumed as he leaned against the back of the elevator car and softly muttered to Brian, "I still can't believe they wouldn't let you be with her; that's the most asinine thing I've ever heard. She has to be scared out of her mind right now. What kind of fucked up policy is that?"

Brian shook his head. "I couldn't believe it, either." He gazed into Justin's eyes as he added, "We didn't think about something like this before, did we?"

Justin shook his head softly. "No," he conceded. "I guess I never thought it was necessary before."

Brian nodded at him. "Me, neither." He inhaled deeply as he looked over at his ex-partner; despite the seriousness of the situation, he couldn't help noticing how just being in such close quarters with Justin still affected him, and how much simply seeing him here made his heart flutter. There was so much they needed to say. "Justin..."

Justin shook his head to Brian's dismay. "Not now, Brian, please. I know we have a lot to talk about still, but I need to focus on our daughter right now. Okay?"

Brian let out a deep breath of disappointment between partly opened lips as he nodded; he understood - of course, Kaylee was most important to him as well. But his heart was aching to tell Justin that he couldn't just let him go this time; he _wouldn't_ let him go, not without a fight no matter what he had told him earlier about him being done with it all. Being here and realizing how fragile life was, he realized that their love was worth fighting for; he had to somehow make Justin understand that, too, and fully explain why he had done what he had so long ago. "Okay," he said softly. "But when this is all over, you and I are going to sit down and talk, Justin, _really _talk."

Justin nodded, relieved somewhat as the bell rang signaling arrival on the third floor so the two of them didn't have to revisit their previous conversation for now. Hobbling over to the doors as they swished open, he waited for Brian to exit before he joined him, both men searching the plaques on the wall to locate a sign for the Radiology Department.

Brian reached out to grasp Justin's elbow almost protectively as he told him, "This way," signaling toward the right. He looked into his ex-partner's eyes, noticing the pain on his beautiful but strained face as he whispered, "Ankle bothering you more?"

Justin was about to retort that he could take care of himself and to just forget it, but thought better of it. It hadn't been Brian's fault that he had fallen. "A little," he found himself admitting. "But I'll deal with it; let's go find our daughter."

Brian nodded, knowing better than to question Justin's ability to stay on his feet; and he sure as hell didn't dare suggest a wheelchair for his stubborn ex-partner, not unless he wanted to be thoroughly chewed out for it. Instead, without bothering to ask permission, he slid his arm around Justin's waist to partially support his weight against his body as he held his breath and waited for a snappy, indignant response. To his surprise as well as relief, Justin actually leaned into his side instead and slid his arm around Brian's waist to brace himself as together they slowly trod down the hallway.

A few minutes later, they reached the CT patient waiting room. They were about to enter when a hospital bed was wheeled out and Kaylee appeared lying on it, her short blond hair skewed in all different directions with a thin, white cotton blanket draped across most of her body to help keep her warm. To his great concern, Justin noted that she was wearing a cervical collar to help immobilize her neck as he was able to get his first look at her. He couldn't help the shudder that went through him; his mother had told him that they had had to place the exact same contraption on his own neck when Hobbs had assaulted him, even though he had no remembrance of it.

"Kaylee!" Justin cried out as the orderlies came wheeling the bed up to them. "Stop!" he commanded. "I'm her father." He glanced at Brian, not bothering to explain as he clarified, "We both are. Let me see her for a minute."

"Sir, we have orders to take her back down to the E.R..."

"I don't give a fuck about your orders!" Justin barked. "I said - Let me see my daughter."

Brian stood up to his full height and pasted his most impressive glower on both men, who decided that perhaps a minute or so wouldn't be a problem as they stepped a few feet back in acquiescence. Justin limped toward his daughter as Brian fell into step right behind him, both men standing side-by-side as they held onto the cold metal railing of the portable bed.

"Kaylee?" Justin whispered at the little girl lying so small and still beside him, her eyes were closed and her head was facing straight out directly in front of her. Her normally light-colored skin was even paler, almost bluish under the harsh glare of the overhead hospital track lights as he reached out to grasp his daughter's left hand that was lying on top of the blanket to give it a light squeeze. "Kaylee, it's Daddy. Can you hear me?" His heart stuck in his throat and his breath threatened to stop altogether until he noticed his daughter slowly open her eyes and shift them from side to side until they focused on him; with the cervical collar on she found that she couldn't move her neck very much.

"D... Daddy?" she managed to whisper out as her eyes began to brim with tears borne of both discomfort and fright. She had never been in a hospital before, and all the unfamiliar sights, smells, and sounds scared her.

Justin forced a reassuring smile on his lips. "Yeah, Sweetheart, it's me. Your Dad and I are both here now, and you have nothing to worry about, okay? We'll be with you every step of the way until you're out of here. Just keep holding my hand and don't let go." Justin could feel Brian take his other hand from behind him as he found himself clutching it tightly, finding that he needed the reassuring touch that only he could give him.

Kaylee nodded as she swallowed the lump in her throat, fixing her eyes on her father's loving face and holding on tightly to his hand as Justin nodded at the orderlies and they began to slowly wheel his daughter back toward the elevator. Brian let go of Justin's hand to grasp the metal bar of the bed beside him and peer down with a soft smile at Kaylee to let her know that both of her fathers were there with her and weren't going anywhere until she was better.

A few minutes later, the entourage arrived back down at the ER. As Kaylee was wheeled back into her room, a doctor wearing a white, mid-length jacket with a stethoscope draped across his neck walked briskly in with a metal clipboard, several papers attached to it. Dr. Saunders glanced up at the unfamiliar face in the room that was protectively grasping his patient's hand and instinctively knew that this was the missing, vital piece of the puzzle. "Are you Kaylee's father?" he asked as he walked up to him, the orderlies quietly leaving now that their duties were completed.

Justin bristled as he replied stiffly, "Brian and I are _both_ her fathers. And you are?"

The doctor pursed his lips tightly together; apparently Kinney wasn't the only unpleasant part of his patient's entourage. "I'm Dr. Saunders, your daughter's attending physician," he explained. "I just got the results of your daughter's tests back." He found two pairs of eyes staring intently at him as he advised, "I'm happy to say that there is no sign of any broken bones or any other lasting brain damage according to the CT scan and x-rays that were performed on her. In addition, I had a neurologist examine her earlier for any cognitive deficiencies and he concluded that her brain function appears to be normal. She no doubt suffered a slight concussion from the fall and will be quite bruised for several days. We'll admit her overnight for observation, but if nothing out of the ordinary is found by tomorrow morning, she can be discharged provided that someone can stay with her and ensure that she gets complete rest until she has fully recovered. And obviously any sports- or horseback riding - is completely out of the question until her family doctor clears her to presume her normal physical activities." He glanced down once more at the group of papers attached to the file before lifting his head to inquire of Justin, "There will be someone available to take care of her if I let her go home tomorrow?"

Justin nodded. "Yes, of course. Either Brian or I will be with her at all times." He turned to look at Brian for confirmation, who nodded in agreement.

The doctor nodded as he leaned over Kaylee's bed to examine her briefly, satisfied that her color seemed better and she was resting as well as possible. Kaylee blinked up at him silently as he advised the two fathers, "I'll have a nurse come and remove the cervical collar in a few minutes, so that should make her more comfortable and allow her to get some rest. If she experiences any extreme discomfort or pain, I will prescribe some Tylenol to be given to her as needed, but she cannot have a sedative. That will mask any effects from her injuries and we do not want that." He smiled politely down at his young patient as he told her, "Try to get some rest, Kaylee, okay?" He leaned back up to tell Justin, "They'll be someone in here soon to move her upstairs to a regular room." He peered over at his former adversary to say curtly, "Mr. Kinney," before he turned and briskly strode from the room.

Justin couldn't prevent an amused smile from escaping his lips as he told Brian dryly, "Being your normal charming self with the good doctor, I see."

Brian shrugged. "I did what I had to do. He was being an asshole about the whole thing. I was lucky to get him to let me come back to her room." He gazed down tenderly at Kaylee who was staring up at him with those incredible blue eyes that looked so much like her father's before he told Justin, "I wasn't going anywhere as long as she needed me."

Justin looked away to avoid the tears that threatened to fall, not wanting Brian to know how much this was affecting him. Somehow the righteous indignation he had been previously feeling over Brian allowing Kaylee to injure herself had quickly been replaced by something else that he refused to identify yet. He was supposed to still be angry with Brian... Wasn't he? He took a deep breath to compose himself before he turned back to look at his daughter, still holding tightly onto her hand. "How are you feeling, Sweetheart?"

"H... Hurts, Daddy," she managed to whisper out between breaths of pain. Her eyes were brimming with tears as she fought to hold back a sob.

Justin's heart broke at the sound of his little girl's voice. "I know, Baby," he told her softly. "I'll have the nurse bring you some medicine to help with the pain. You need to try and rest somehow. We'll be right here with you." He reached down to gently wipe the hair from her forehead. "Just keep on holding onto our hands and don't let go."

Kaylee nodded as she closed her eyes and tried to sleep, but the pain was still so intense it was extremely difficult. Justin's brow furrowed in concern over the obvious discomfort his daughter was feeling until he lifted his gaze to peer into Brian's eyes after a few minutes. The call button had been pressed at the first sign of their daughter's distress, and they had been told someone would be in 'shortly.' "What is taking that fucking nurse so long?" he snapped. "She's in a lot of pain here!"

Brian's own eyes stared at Kaylee in concern as he made an impromptu decision. "I'll go exert some more of my 'charm' to find the nurse and get it," he told Justin determinedly as one side of his lips turned upward into a half-smile. He leaned down to lightly kiss Kaylee on the cheek. "Be right back, Princess, don't you worry," he whispered to his daughter. He gently extricated his hand from Kaylee's as he turned and walked quickly but quietly out of the room, leaving Justin to stare after him thoughtfully.

Less than two minutes later, Brian returned followed by a slightly flustered, tall, blonde-haired female nurse who appeared to be in her mid-thirties. She was carrying a small tray with a white paper cup resting on it. Brian appeared to have a smug look on his face as he walked up and gently nudged Kaylee's shoulder with his hand. "Kaylee?" he whispered near her ear. "The nurse is here with some medicine to help you sleep better."

The nurse placed the small tray down on the narrow, portable hospital table as she reached for the remote. Speaking way louder than she needed to, she said, "Kaylee? I'm going to need to raise your bed up so you can sit up a little and take this medicine, okay?"

Justin winced at the loudness of her voice, wondering if she had been taking care of way too many geriatric patients as he continued to hold onto his daughter's hand. Kaylee's eyes sprung open, startled, as she looked around to get her bearings. Her face honing on in Justin's, she relaxed a little as she nodded slightly. The nurse pressed the remote control button on her call unit to slowly raise the bed up several inches; reaching over to snag the small cup and Kaylee's plastic drinking glass with a straw in it, she held the cup in front of her as she said, "This is acetaminophen for the pain. You need to swallow these."

Kaylee looked up to her Justin for reassurance as he nodded. "It's just Tylenol, Honey; see if you can take a sip of water and swallow them. It'll help you to feel better and get some rest." He took the drinking glass none too gently out of the nurse's grasp, not caring too much for her lack of bedside manner as he held it up with the straw near his daughter's mouth as she shakily accepted the medicine from the nurse and sucked on the straw just enough to take in sufficient water to swallow the two pills. With a sort of half-sigh, half-groan of success, her head fell back onto the pillow as if in exhaustion as she closed her eyes again.

"An orderly will be coming in shortly to take her upstairs to a room," the nurse told them coolly.

Justin exchanged disgusted looks with Brian over the nurse's seeming lack of compassion as he asked, "Do you know the room number?"

"They'll tell you when they come to get her," was the clipped reply. "Anything else?" she asked, not really exuding much care either way.

"Yeah," Justin growled, "How about a nurse that actually gives a damn?" He couldn't help it; whenever his daughter or anyone else he cared about was being treated badly, it got his hackles up.

The nurse actually had the decency to appear a little ashamed as she admitted, "It's been a hell of a day; two nurses called in sick today." She took a deep breath and let it out as she turned to go. Just as she left, she added softly, "I hope your daughter will be okay," before she turned and headed out the door.

"Too little, too late," Brian muttered as he watched the harried woman go, not satisfied with her reason for being so rude. He looked over at Justin with renewed respect. "You beat me to it, Sunshine," he murmured in appreciation. "She was being a real bitch to Kaylee."

Justin nodded, too caught up in his daughter's discomfort to truly acknowledge Brian's statement. "I just wish the pills would kick in," he murmured as he watched his daughter whimper softly and wriggle restlessly on the bed, clearly uncomfortable. He slowly caressed her hand as he looked at her creased face, clearly broadcasting her distress. "If I could take her place right now, I would..."

Brian's own face contorted in pain as a memory suddenly flashed through his head of a time so long ago when he had felt the same way; Justin, lying with a bloodied bandage wrapped around his forehead as he lay on a gurney, lifeless and still, waiting to be placed inside an ambulance in a cold, stark parking garage after one of the most wondrous nights of their lives - the night that Brian had discovered to his surprise that he was falling in love with him. As much as he hated the idea of Kaylee going through such pain, the thought of it being Justin lying there again was just too much for him to bear and he had to look away toward the pale yellow wall by the side of the bed to control his emotions.

"Brian?" Justin whispered in concern, noticing his ex-partner's reaction before he had a chance to avert his face away. "You okay?"

Brian swallowed hard before he turned back to face Justin. "Yeah," he breathed out a little raggedly. "I'm fine. It's just that..." _No, he wouldn't tell him; why should he now? He would just think I'm trying to take advantage of the situation_.

But Justin immediately caught the hesitation in his voice and like a tenacious bulldog wouldn't let it drop. "It's just that what?" he pressed.

"It's nothing," Brian mumbled self-consciously.

"Bullshit," Justin whispered as he stared into Brian's eyes. "What were you thinking just now?"

Brian sighed. "It's what you said just now, about taking her place. When you said that, I couldn't help thinking about... About..."

"The garage?" Justin pressed softly, not needing to elaborate more.

To his surprise, Brian shook his head as he lifted his gaze to look into Justin's eyes. "No, not exactly. I was thinking about _after_ you were taken to the hospital," he whispered, his mind taking him back to that awful time several years ago. "When you were lying there in that hospital bed, night after night, thrashing back and forth while you had nightmares about who knows what, and about how I would have given anything to have taken _your _place." His eyes took on a faraway look as he went back in time, not realizing what he was divulging in doing so as he stared off into space, the garish lights and beeping sounds of the hospital monitors fading away. "Every fucking night you tossed and turned in your sleep. The nurse said that I should go in and sit with you, to let you know that I was there, but I could never make myself do it." Brian lowered his eyes in embarrassment, realizing what he had just revealed. He had done such a superb job up until now of concealing that fact from Justin; he didn't really know why he had felt a need to, but he had. Now it was out in the open and he found himself feeling like Justin's eyes were boring into him even though he wasn't returning his gaze.

The effects of the pain pills seemed to be having some benefit as Kaylee slowly calmed down and closed her eyes, her face not quite so lined with discomfort now as Justin's eyes widened in shock at Brian's revelation. "You... You came to the hospital to see me? After I was hit?"

Brian bit his lip as he slowly turned his gaze upward to look into his ex-partner's astonished face. He knew it would be fruitless to dispute it, especially after all the trouble that had occurred with regard to another lack of trust and honestly. So instead he chose to be frank. "Yeah, as a matter of fact, I did," he told him simply. "Every fucking night until you were released."

Justin's mouth hung open agape in shock. No one had ever told him that. All this time he had thought that Brian hadn't given a shit after his assault and had stayed away because he couldn't do anything for him. He thought Brian had bowed to his mother's wishes all this time and had avoided him like the plague, when all along he had been coming to see him at the hospital every night? Why hadn't he or his mom told him that? It might have changed so many things if only he had known.

"Brian..." he began, but he was interrupted just then by two men in matching, light blue uniforms walking in with a sheet of paper, announcing they were there to move Kaylee up to a room on the fourth floor. Caught up in making sure they had all of Kaylee's belongings, his ex-partner hurriedly offered to go find Michael and Gus so they could be informed what was going on and follow them upstairs to a closer waiting room before Justin had a change to question him further. It was almost as if Brian were relieved to escape from his questioning stare, but as he headed out the door Justin made a silent vow to question him further about his astounding admission.

* * *

><p><em>As always, thanks for boriqua522 for being my beta.:)<em>


	24. The Mark of a Real Man

_Kaylee continues to recover from her injuries while Justin overhears Brian's innermost thoughts; Gus and Katie conspire to help bring the fathers closer together. Someone thought long gone reappears._

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><p><em>Fifteen Minutes Later…<em>

The hospital transport personnel had Kaylee transferred in record time to a regular room; a nurse came in shortly afterward by the name of Nichole to make sure she was as comfortable as possible and to attach the necessary oxygen monitor and IVs to her before, with a statement to Justin to buzz the nurse's station if she needed anything else, she quickly exited the room to tend to the next patient, leaving father and daughter alone for the first time in quite some time.

Justin clasped his daughter's hand, relieved that the cervical collar had been removed but thinking how small she looked in the hospital bed; swaddled with a white sheet and a thin, cotton blanket, she appeared even younger than she actually was. She stared up at him drowsily as he swallowed hard at the sight of her lying there. He knew she was supposed to recover fully, but the thought of what might have been made him realize how tenuous life could be – and how things could change in a heartbeat. Perhaps it also meant that it was time to reassess his priorities and decide where his and Kaylee's lives went from here – but any analysis of that would have to wait until at least his daughter was discharged and recovering.

"Can I get you anything, Honey?" he asked her softly as he slowly caressed her hand with his thumb in reassurance. He reached over with his other hand to tenderly wipe some sweaty bangs back from her forehead, almost instinctively using his action to search for any lumps or other bruises the doctor may have missed. To his relief, he didn't feel or see any as he withdrew his hand back.

"Thirsty," she rasped out as Justin nodded, reaching over to grab the plastic cup with water he had filled for her earlier. Raising the head of the bed up slightly with the remote, he held the cup for her as he watched her grab the straw and take a few sips before she nodded slightly to signify she was done.

"Get some rest, Kaylee," Justin murmured as he placed the cup back down onto the wheeled table nearby. "I'll be right here when you wake up."

"Where's Dad?" she managed to whisper out a little hoarsely as her eyelids fluttered in exhaustion tinged with pain; the medicine Brian had managed to procure for her earlier from the less-than-hospitable nurse seemed to be kicking in and alleviating her discomfort somewhat, however.

"He went to tell your brother and sister and Michael how you were doing and that you were being moved to a room," he explained to her soothingly. "He'll be right back. Now try to go to sleep, okay?"

"I wish my cats were here," she said as her eyes slowly closed and her face relaxed just a bit. "I miss them," she breathed out a little mournfully. Justin watched her thoughtfully for several seconds until he heard her breathing evening out, signifying that at last she was asleep, before he leaned back a little further in his chair beside the bed and sighed. Had it just been a short while ago that the two of them had been living a fairly 'normal' life in their condo? Sometimes it seemed like a lifetime ago.

He winced as he shifted his body in an attempt to get more comfortable and felt a jolt of pain shoot up his leg; his ankle seemed to have stiffened up from all the walking around he had done earlier and it was starting to throb now. He desperately wished he, too, had some sort of pain medicine to help ease the achiness he felt, but he wasn't about to leave his daughter to go find any. He would just have to deal with it.

He didn't realize he had lain his head sideways down against the cold metal side rail of the hospital bed and nodded off until he felt the familiar touch of his ex-partner's hand on his shoulder. Lifting his head somewhat sheepishly as he opened his eyes, he turned to stare up into Brian's concerned face.

"Katie and Gus?" he asked as he lifted his head, covering a yawn with his free hand as Brian reached over to pick up a lightweight chair and place it down beside Justin to sit beside him.

"They're right down the hall," he whispered as he looked over at their daughter, speaking softly so as not to disturb her. "Gus said he will stay with Katie for now in the waiting room so we can keep an eye on Kaylee."

Justin nodded, grateful that Gus was there, even though they had had some rather difficult conversations both in the diner and the car.

"How's she doing?" Brian asked as he continued to peer at their daughter intently.

"I think the pain medication has started to take effect now," he told Brian as he, too, stared down at her quiet form. To his relief, her color appeared closer to normal now and she seemed more at peace. "She fell asleep not too long after she was brought in here." He glanced around the room, noting it was Spartan but comfortable; another hospital bed, currently empty, sat against the far wall by the large window with a small side table separating the two and a combination chair/sleeper unit perched in the far corner. "I'm glad she was able to have a room to herself," he commented. "There're enough interruptions normally in a hospital without having another patient in here."

Brian nodded as he noticed a grimace appear on Justin's face and immediately ascertained the reason why. "Your ankle's still bothering you?"

As Justin nodded simply in confirmation, not feeling a need to lie, he watched with surprise as Brian reached inside his pocket and pulled out a medium-sized bottle of ibuprofen. "I walked next door to the drug store and picked these up," he explained. "I thought you might be needing some of them."

Justin stared at him in wonder, secretly touched by Brian's thoughtfulness. Not in any mood to question his motives at the moment and deciding to take the gesture at face value, he nodded as Brian opened the bottle and took out three caplets – the standard dosage he used to take when they lived together and his hand would start bothering him.

"Thanks," he told him softly as Brian handed him the pills; despite his focus on their daughter's condition, he couldn't help the old, familiar thrill from coursing through his body as their fingers brushed up against each other before Brian broke contact to reach over and pour him a cup of water. Downing the liquid and placing the cup back on the tray, he turned to stare back down at their daughter, his thoughts in a whirl. They weren't just concentrated on Kaylee, however; as much as he had professed earlier to not wanting to even think about his and Brian's future, he couldn't help intertwining the two together in his mind. Could there be one without the other? He wondered. _Would_ he want one without the other, despite what had happened and how much time had passed? And why did everything always have to be so complicated?

Brian stole a glance over at Justin, noticing how tired he looked. He, too, was exhausted, at least mentally; between his heart-to-heart with Michael, the accident, and having to face Justin again to explain what had happened to their daughter, it had been a hell of a day, not to mention the fact that he absolutely abhorred hospitals after what had happened that day so long ago to Justin. He knew, though, that neither of them would be leaving Kaylee's bedside tonight; at least HE wasn't planning on going anywhere. But Justin had the added issue of his own injury. While it hadn't been his fault directly, he still felt somewhat responsible for what had happened. "Justin?" he whispered as he turned to look at his ex-partner.

Justin turned his head to stare over at the hazel eyes he knew so well; even now, even after everything that had happened, Brian could make his heart lurch just by saying his name in a certain way, much like he was doing now. "Yes?" he answered softly as he continued to grasp Kaylee's hand.

"I'll stay here with Kaylee. Why don't you go get something to eat? You could even lie down on the other bed over there until your pain medicine kicks in. You need to get off that ankle. You know I won't leave her." As Justin partially opened his mouth to no doubt protest that he wasn't a fucking invalid – Brian could just hear him saying that already in his head – he took a chance and placed his fingers gently over his ex-partner's mouth, forcing himself not to recall memories of just how those lips had been used so many times in the past. "Don't argue," he urged. "You know you won't do Kaylee any good if you're dead on your feet, and you know she would be pissed at you for not taking care of yourself." He paused for just a second before adding the word, "please," knowing that Justin would pick up on the fact that he just said a word that was not normally in his vocabulary.

Justin tried not to concentrate on the feel of Brian's fingers on his mouth, but felt his body flush in reaction just the same. He pursed his lips together a little in irritation, not wanting to come across as weak right now, but he grudgingly had to admit that Brian had a point. He needed to be the best he could be if Kaylee was going to be discharged tomorrow. Of course, that brought up _another _question: just where would she be discharged TO? He had a good idea where Brian would suggest she go – _Britin_. Of course. She didn't HAVE to go back there, though; there was always his mother's condo or a hotel; hell, even Debbie would undoubtedly let them stay there if need be. In fact, she would probably be thrilled to death to hover over both of them like a mother hen. At the moment, though, he didn't want to think about that; the throbbing in his ankle was prohibiting him from thinking of much else.

As Brian withdrew his fingers, Justin reluctantly nodded, realizing the sense in what his ex-partner was saying. "Okay," he grudgingly agreed as he eyed the other bed nearby a little longingly. "Maybe I'll lie down over there for just a little while until the pain subsides." Even sitting down, the ankle continued to ache like crazy; perhaps elevating it on the unoccupied bed would help.

Brian nodded as Justin gently detached his hand from Kaylee's and stiffly stood up, biting back a groan at the pain that flared up in response. Brian reached over to help scoot the chair back enough for him to walk around it before he slid over to occupy Justin's previous place closer to the head of the bed and reached to hold Kaylee's hand much like Justin had done.

Justin stayed just long enough to make sure Kaylee hadn't noticed the temporary lack of touch before he shuffled slowly over toward the other bed and climbed up onto it to lie down on top of the blanket and sheet. The inexpensive foam pillow encased in plastic crunched softly under his head as he closed his eyes, intending to merely rest for a few minutes until the pain in his ankle subsided. Less than two minutes later, however, he was fast asleep.

* * *

><p>In the waiting room down the hall, Katie restlessly flipped through a <em>People<em> magazine, not bothering to stop and actually read any of the stories that she normally would find inordinately fascinating with all the latest gossip regarding some of her favorite celebrities. She was much too worried at the moment about her sister and her fathers, though, to be able to concentrate on any of the actual content.

"What do you think is going on in there?" she asked Gus who was sitting right next to her.

Once Gus had shown up with Justin and they had found out Kaylee was being transferred to a private room, Michael had quietly excused himself, telling them that if there was anything else he could do to just ask. He promised not to tell both grandmothers what had happened, at least not yet, knowing both Jen and especially his mother would blow everything out of proportion and come rushing over if they found out about Kaylee's accident. Now that they knew she would apparently be okay, he figured the newly-reunited family would need some privacy among themselves before the grandmothers swooped down to confront them. He had quietly left with the hope that some good would come out of what could have been a tragedy.

"I don't know," Gus answered her truthfully, his left arm draped across the back of Katie's chair and his long legs splayed out in front of him as he squirmed awkwardly in his seat. "I imagine they're just making sure she's going to be okay and is getting enough rest."

"But do you think they're talking?" she couldn't help asking hopefully as she glanced over to look at her brother who appeared somewhat uncomfortable in his rather cramped chair. One glance at her brother and there could be no question that he and their Dad were father and son; both had the same issues with finding furniture that would adequately handle their long, lanky bodies.

Gus sighed; he knew exactly what sort of 'talking' she was referring to. He turned his head to look over at his sister. "Just because they're in the same room together doesn't mean all their problems will just go away, Katydid, and all their issues will be resolved," he told her, using his pet name for her that had originated when she was around three years old and had developed a fascination with the large, green grasshoppers of the same name.

"I know," Katy protested a little stiffly, somewhat miffed that her big brother would think she could fall for such romantic notions and that she would naively believe that everything would now be hunky-dory just because both fathers had been brought together over their joint concern for her sister. Silently, though, she had to admit that was _exactly_ what she was hoping; that somehow her two fathers would bond over her sister's bedside and emerge with their arms around each other like they were back in love and nothing had happened. Well, actually, that wasn't exactly right; she already _knew_ they were in love. That wasn't the problem. _If only it were that easy..__._ She sighed in frustration, silently she thought, but it came out as a mournful sort of audible breath to her brother's ears.

Gus eyed her thoughtfully as Katie cast her eyes downward and set her magazine down on the empty seat beside her, knowing she couldn't possibly concentrate on it right now. "Did Dad ever tell you what happened to break them up?" he asked her unexpectedly as she raised her head to peer over at him. After what Justin had told him, he was beginning to question what the true version was regarding that day in his father's office, and he was curious just what his sister _did_ know.

"Not much," Katie admitted to his disappointment. "At least not to my face." She bit her lip before admitting, "But Kaylee and I did hear something they said up in Chicago when Dad came to get me."

Gus peered over at her curiously. "What?" he pressed her softly, seeing distress on her face; apparently whatever she and Kaylee had heard had been upsetting to them.

"We… we were supposed to be upstairs while I was getting ready to go back home with Dad," she began to explain. "But Kaylee and I stayed on the steps downstairs and listened to them while they were talking. They were arguing about Dad breaking a promise to Daddy. About how he had, had, fu…" She knew what the word meant, and while it was a bad word to say out loud, even if it hadn't been, she couldn't say it. Just the thought of their two fathers not being faithful to each other was too hard for her to understand and too painful. She let out a deep breath before she finished. "How he had been with someone else behind Daddy's back." Even now she found that fact hard to believe in light of how much they loved each other, STILL loved each other.

Gus nodded sympathetically. "I guess that must have really hurt to hear that," he told her gently. God knows how much it had hurt him when Justin had left back then; only now was he beginning to fully understand the reason why. The father that he had always kept on such a high pedestal was beginning to show just the slightest edges of tarnish now.

Katie's eyes filled with tears as she relived that moment; yes, it _had_ hurt. She would have never thought that their father would do that to their daddy. "How can people who love each other do that, Gus?" she asked, her voice slightly choked up. "If I loved someone, I wouldn't think about being with anyone else."

Gus reached over and grasped her smaller hand. "Sometimes I don't think love has anything to do with it, Katie," he told her softly, the drone of the television in the far corner the only other sound in the empty room besides their voices. He sighed. "You know Dad. Sometimes he does things and thinks about the ramifications later. I think that was one of those cases."

She frowned slightly as a realization hit her. "You know exactly what happened that day, don't you?" she pressed him as she noticed her brother tense a little.

Gus looked away, a little uncomfortable. Yes, he had more insight into what had happened, but his sister was still relatively young, despite the typical bravado and maturity she normally portrayed. How much should he tell her? And was it his PLACE to tell her? Right now, too, he felt like he only knew two halves of a story, not the real, unvarnished truth. Yes, he knew more than she did, but did he know the whole story himself? How should he answer her? He didn't feel right lying to her, but he wasn't sure even HE knew the whole truth. "I know some of it, just like you do," he finally replied as he lifted his gaze to stare into her blue eyes, so much like her father's. "But most of what I was told came from our father, not from Justin. I don't want to tell you something that isn't true."

"But Dad wouldn't lie to you," Katie pushed, knowing how close her brother and her father were. She and her Dad had a special bond, a unique bond, but so did they. The dynamics were different, perhaps due to the age difference, but even at her age she knew that sometimes despite how much her father loved her, he and her older brother shared things that she wasn't privy to. "Tell me what he said," she urged him.

Gus sighed. "Katie…"

"Gus, please; I have a right to know. Don't you think there've been enough lies going around already in our family?"

Gus had to smile softly at that statement. "You mean lies – or _schemes_? Katydid, from what I've heard you and Kaylee have been pretty busy yourself sneaking around behind your fathers' backs. Do you think that was fair to them?"

Katie tilted her nose up in the air in insult. "That's different," she huffed. "I didn't cause the two of us to meet. And I didn't keep us apart for all this time, either. I've just been trying to fix things; _somebody _has to do it."

"No," Gus admitted readily. "You didn't. And I know how much that must have hurt when you found out what happened; it hurt me, too, not to see Justin all this time. I loved him – _still_ love him – as much as the two of you do, and before he went away with Kaylee I thought of him as a father just like you do now. But this is different, Katie; you can't force someone to remain together if they don't want to be."

"No, you can't," was her surprising answer as she jutted her chin out in determination. "But you wait and see, Gus. They WILL stay together; I just know it."

Gus leaned over until their heads were touching as he continued to hold her hand, thinking how simplistic his sister's thinking could be. _I hope so, Katydid, _he thought to himself. _For your sake and for Kaylee's – and yes, for mine, damn it – I hope so, too._

* * *

><p>Justin didn't know how long he had been asleep; by the time he woke up, though, he could tell more time had passed than he would have liked. He hadn't even been intending to fall asleep, but his mental and physical weariness, along with the pain medicine kicking in, had lulled him into slumber. Now, turned onto his side and facing the window, he could see the sun rapidly beginning to set low in the horizon and he knew it had to be close to dinner time.<p>

He was about to turn over to check on Kaylee when he heard Brian sigh behind him. Then he began to hear him speaking, the sound of Brian's voice filtering clearly over to his side. Even though his ex-partner was obviously trying to whisper because he didn't want to wake him, he could still clearly make out everything he was saying.

Brian reached over with his free hand to slowly stroke Kaylee's blond hair back from her eyes where some strands had fallen down into her face. "You remind me so much of your father, Princess," he murmured tenderly as he tucked some hair behind her ear. "Beautiful but feisty. Passionate about what you care for and willing to fight for it. And," he had to smile, "ridiculously romantic at heart."

Justin's breath caught; he had to be told after the prom what had happened – and what those words signified. He swallowed hard, a lump knotted in his throat like the blade of a knife as Brian continued, feeling somewhat guilty about not letting his ex-lover know he was awake, but feeling almost incapable of revealing himself even if he wanted to. He wasn't sure, but he suspected that Kaylee was still asleep; he heard no response from her as Brian continued to speak softly at her bedside.

"I… I'm so glad that you're going to be okay, Princess. If anything ever happened to you or Katie…" Brian inhaled a deep breath to calm his emotions, unable to even venture the thought of what might have been. "I love you and your sister so much; I couldn't live with either one of you being hurt in any way. And don't you worry; I promise – whatever happens between your father and me, I will always be in your life from now on." Brian huffed softly as his eyes filled with tears of regret. "Just try to keep me away."

Justin bit his lip and held his breath, unwilling to miss anything Brian was saying. It was like peering inside his ex-partner's head vulnerable and bare to his scrutiny, and the rare opportunity was just too good to pass up.

* * *

><p>His elbows braced on top of the hospital bed's metal railing, Brian cradled his chin on his hands as he stared over at his daughter, almost frightened by just how much he loved her and Katie. A long time ago, before Gus was born, he would have never thought his heart would be open enough to love a child as much as he loved his son and daughters, but that day his son was born – and he met his soul mate – his life had been irrecoverably changed and he had never gone back to the man he had been before. He realized that now. Was it too late for all of them to start over again, though? Was it even possible to retrieve what he thought had been forever lost? Perhaps not. <em>But I'm not giving up<em>, he thought firmly. _Not without fighting for you and for your father_, he vowed silently.

He glanced over at the other bed then, seeing his ex-partner's still form lying there with his back to him and totally unaware that Justin was, indeed, awake and hearing every word. _God, I still love you so fucking much_, he couldn't help thinking, _even if you ARE the most obstinate man in the world_. He sighed again as he turned his gaze back to his sleeping daughter, grateful that she was finally able to rest; well, grateful that both daughter AND father were able to rest. He knew that Justin had no doubt been on his injured foot way too much today.

Leaning over to grasp his daughter's hand once more, he was unable to stop the flow of words that continued. "I really messed up before, didn't I, Kaylee?" he murmured. "I let the best thing that ever happened to me slip through my fingers like sand. I didn't even understand why I did it back then, though; not until I talked to Mikey. He helped me to understand." He laughed softly, almost silently, as the words spilled out like a much-needed balm to his wounded soul. "I was afraid; do you believe that? Your old man was afraid that all that domestic shit would change him into someone else and he would no longer recognize himself. That's why I did what I did; to prove that I was the same old Brian Kinney that I always had been – to prove to myself that I was a _man_. But you know what, Princess? I've discovered that I don't _want_ to be that man any longer; I had _already_ changed into someone else long before that even happened." He snorted in self-derision, his voice tinged with just a hint of sadness. "I just didn't realize at the time what being a man really meant." He restlessly brushed back some of his hair from his forehead in frustration, wondering how someone so perceptive when it came to advertising could be so fucking dense when it came to what really mattered in his life.

* * *

><p>Justin continued to hold his breath as Brian spoke so eloquently and sincerely; it still didn't quite explain exactly why he had fucked that client's son that day, but it <em>did<em> go a ways toward trying to decipher it. For the first time, he began to understand his ex-partner's mindset that day and he felt his anger diminishing just a little. The hurt was still there, but it was now tinged with understanding, also. He decided to stay 'asleep' for a few minutes longer before he turned around to let Brian know he was now awake, not wanting his ex-partner to know that he had overheard him. They were going to have a lot to discuss once Kaylee was discharged tomorrow. But just then he heard a soft scuttling sound behind him and he had to resist the strong urge to turn over to see what was going on.

* * *

><p>At the sound, Brian twisted around in his chair to observe Katie and Gus standing in the doorway. Smiling tenderly at them, he quickly placed his fingers over his mouth to warn them to be quiet and then motioned for them to enter as they softly crept into the room to join him.<p>

"How is she?" Katie asked with nervous concern as she walked over to stand on one side of her father's chair; Gus took up the other side as both children placed their hands on his shoulders and stood there peering down at their sister together.

"She's doing better," Brian confirmed as he broke his handhold with Kaylee to reach up to place his hands on top of both of his children and give them a squeeze before letting go to retake his other daughter's hand. "Her color's better and she's sleeping more comfortably now. I think as long as she stays this way, she should be able to go home tomorrow morning."

"That's great," Gus replied with a relieved smile. At last he would get the chance to get to know his sister better while she was recuperating. He glanced over at Justin's still form in the next bed. "Is he okay?" he asked Brian.

Brian nodded as his own gaze swept over to his ex-lover's. "Yeah… His ankle was starting to bother him and he looked really tired, so I convinced him to go lie down for a little while."

Gus nodded at him as he glanced back over at Justin; in his position he suddenly looked rather small and vulnerable, even though Gus knew he was far from it. In fact, Justin had always been one of the strongest people he had ever known back when they had interacted so much while he and his dad were together. But he also knew from their earlier conversation that Justin _did_ have one weakness; his dad. He might give the impression that their break was irreparable, but no matter what happened, he knew their lives would always be intertwined forever. He looked down then at his own father, noticing the tired lines around his eyes and the strained look on his face. Justin might have been physically injured, but he wasn't the only tired one.

"Dad, why don't you go get something to eat or drink and Katie and I will stay with Kaylee?"

"No," Brian told his son with a slight shake of his head. "I don't want to leave her; I'll be fine."

"Come on, Dad," Gus gently chided him. "You said yourself she seems to be doing much better. Go on down to the cafeteria and find something to eat or get some coffee; I promise I'll text you if I need to, and besides, Justin's here. If something should happen, all I'll have to do is wake him up."

_Yeah, _Brian couldn't help thinking sadly. _As far as the hospital goes, HE'S her father, not me_. At least he and Justin had both promised to rectify that, but right now any possible future court action would do neither of them much good now, so Gus had a point. It wasn't as if Kaylee would be left alone and helpless if he stepped out for just a moment. He inhaled a deep breath and let it out, feeling the weariness seeping all the way into his bones now. Giving Kaylee one last look to make sure she was still apparently doing okay, he nodded as he stood up and picked up the chair he'd been sitting in and softly placed it back down so he didn't disturb either her or Justin.

"Thanks, Sonny Boy," he murmured as he reached to envelope his son into a bear hug for a few seconds, and then leaned over to grasp Katie by the shoulders to give her a kiss on the cheek. "I'll be back in just a few minutes." Casting one more look over at his ex-partner, he nodded before quietly heading toward the door.

* * *

><p>Brother and sister sat down next to Kaylee, Gus reaching over to lightly grip her shoulder through the thin, aqua green hospital gown she was wearing. "You look so much alike," he told Katie in amazement as he stared down at her twin. "It would be hard to tell you apart if you were wearing the same clothes. You even have the same haircut." He looked over at his sister as she laughed softly. "What?" he asked curiously.<p>

"It didn't always look that way," she informed him. "I convinced her to cut it so we _couldn't_ be told apart." She smiled at him. "Duh," she teased him as Gus rolled his eyes in response.

"I should have known," he retorted as he looked over at her, but there was no sting in his voice, only admiration. He studied his other sister, presently sleeping on her back, her lips slightly parted as she slept through their conversation. Apparently Kaylee was a heavier sleeper than Katie; he always liked to say that Katie would wake up if you dropped a pin beside her bed. She could hear the slightest of noises sometimes. "I wasn't planning on getting to know my other sister this way," he remarked softly as he stared at her face. "But I'm glad I'm going to the get the opportunity, though." He paused as Katie nodded beside him before he added, "You think she'll be going back to Britin when she gets out of the hospital to recover?"

Katie placed her hand on her brother's forearm as she, too, gazed down at her sister's face, now peaceful in slumber. "I don't know," she whispered back honestly. "No one's said anything about it yet."

"Well, we'll just have to see that she does," Gus declared firmly, his mind made up. "I'm sure that together we can both be very _persuasive_."

Katie grinned from ear to ear; she liked the way her brother thought. "Yeah," she agreed. "They won't know what hit them."

Gus chuckled softly as together they continued to stand watch over their sister.

* * *

><p>Justin waited a few minutes longer before he finally decided it was safe to 'wake up.' Making a show of stretching his hands over his head and flopping over onto his back, he succeeded in getting Gus and his daughter's attention as he opened his eyes and stared over at them. "When did you get here?" he asked, obviously already knowing the answer.<p>

He twisted to rise up on the bed into a sitting position, gingerly lowering his body to the ground and finding to his relief that his ankle was much less sore than it had been before; apparently the rest, along with the medicine that Brian had procured for him, had done a good job of diminishing the previous pain. He walked quietly over to Kaylee's bedside and glanced down at her to make sure she was okay before he brought his attention back to the other occupants in the room.

He reached over to take Katie's outstretched hand and clasp it firmly as she said, "Gus and I got here a few minutes ago."

Justin nodded as he broke his grasp of her hand and gazed over at Gus who was eyeing him thoughtfully. He still felt a little uncomfortable around this boy – now almost a young man, really – that he had known so well a long time ago but had since lost favor with, but he was beginning to think that maybe, just maybe, he was breaking through the boy's shell just a bit. At least Gus was no longer looking at him like some pariah, anyway, but instead had more of a neutral-type expression on his face.

He nodded briefly at Gus as he played along and asked, "Where's your father?"

"I persuaded him to go find something to eat or drink, or just to take a break," Gus informed him. "I told him we would watch over Kaylee until he got back. And you were here, too, so if anything happened I knew I could wake you up if need be." He paused for a moment before he asked, "How's the ankle? Dad said it was bothering you a lot earlier."

"It's doing better," he told him. _Thanks to Brian_, he added silently as he glanced down at Kaylee. "She seems to be resting comfortably now," he observed. He let out a ragged breath. "God, I'm so relieved," he admitted to them. "When I heard what had happened…" He shuddered at the thought before he sucked in another breath and let it out, smiling slightly over at Katie in reassurance, knowing she still felt responsible for what had occurred. "But she's going to be just fine, Katie; she'll be good as new in no time. She's very resilient."

He reached out his left hand in invitation as his daughter got up from her chair and, walking around the bed, was promptly swept up into a tight embrace as he comforted her; as she leaned her cheek against her father's chest and Justin held her in his arms, he peered over at Gus to observe him thoughtfully watching them. He squeezed her tight for just a moment, letting her go as Brian walked into the room holding two Styrofoam cups of coffee in his hands; their eyes locked on each other's as his ex-partner gave him a half-smile.

"How is she?" he asked Justin softly as he handed him one of the coffees he had purchased down in the cafeteria.

Justin murmured, "Thanks," before he told him, "She's still doing well; hasn't woken up yet, which is good. She needed some rest."

Brian nodded as he looked over at their daughter to confirm for himself that she was, indeed, still asleep, before he returned his gaze back to his other children. "Look, I appreciate the two of you watching her for us, but it's going to be a long night. Gus, why don't you take Katie back to Britin with you? Justin and I can take Kaylee back home tomorrow morning once she's discharged."

Katie stole a glance over at her brother, both no doubt thinking the same thing. "So Kaylee's coming back to Britin to stay until she gets better?" she asked Justin as she peered at him then, noticing a look of indecision on his face; before he could say anything, though, she plunged back in, hoping Gus would take his cue and back her up. "It really _would_ be for the best, Daddy," she implored him. "That way, we take care of her, too. Plus, she hasn't even really gotten to know Gus yet. If she doesn't stay where Gus is, how are they ever going to get to do that? You're WERE planning on staying with Dad and me at home, weren't you, Gus?" she asked innocently, knowing full well that was where her brother normally stayed when he came to visit; her father didn't know that, though.

Gus immediately knew what to say. "Yeah, sure; that is, if it's okay with Dad. This might be my best chance to get reacquainted with my sister."

Brian's face broke out into a smile; he knew exactly what 'game' both of his children were playing, and he had no intention of changing the rules now. "Of course it's all right," he told him warmly just as Katie and her brother thought he would. "That is… If it's okay with Justin," he added as three pairs of eyes turned to stare at him intently.

Justin flushed at all the attention. _Shit_. What could he say? If he refused, Gus would think he was a shitty father for keeping him separated from Kaylee, and there had already been enough of that between the two girls. And he saw where _that_ had led to; anger, distrust, and resentment. No, he would not continue to perpetuate such feelings, even if it WOULD make things awkward between him and Brian. Sighing, he replied, "Okay, yeah. I guess she can come back there. But only until she recovers, okay? I DO have a life back in Chicago and obligations to get back to, you know."

Brian forced his face not to reflect the deep disappointment he felt over that statement; Katie, on the other hand, wasn't as adept at hiding her feelings. As he looked over at her, it was as if a cloud had fallen over her as he thought he saw the faint signs of tears in his eyes and his heart went out to her. As he watched Justin walk over and sit down beside his daughter's bedside to once more clasp her hand in support, he silently thought, _You talk a good talk, Justin, but w__e'll just see about that, Sunshine. We'll just see…_

* * *

><p>As Justin pretended to focus solely on Kaylee by her bedside, inside his mind was in a whirl. Why in the hell had he said that? Yes, he <em>did<em> have a life that he had carved out in Chicago for his career, and for Kaylee's schooling. And yes, Kaylee was involved in a number of after-school activities that she would probably miss, along with a lot of her friends, if she were never to return to the Windy City. And Chicago _was_ definitely a thriving, cultural city. But apart from that, did he really have that significant a life there? Truthfully, no; especially since he and Alex had broken up. Yes, he had made some friends there and had some art contacts that he would hate to give up, but did they really have such deep roots in Chicago that there would be a significant impact if he were to leave there?

If he were honest with himself, he knew the answer would be no. Then why had he just said that to Brian? To hurt him, the same thing he had done to him? To let him know that he was still in need of a better explanation for what had happened that day that had changed everything? To protect his heart from any more pain if things didn't work out between him? As he gazed over at Kaylee's face and tried to come to grips with everything that was happening in their lives, he silently prayed for guidance that whatever his decision might wind up being would ultimately be the right one.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time – Chicago<em>

Alex let out a tense breath as he drove up to Justin's condo; it had been several days since he had last spoken with his former fiancé, but he hadn't been able to get Justin out of his mind. Their words, spoken so bitterly and angrily before, were now muted with time and he found himself desperately wanting to somehow make amends and right the wrongs that he felt both of them had inflicted on each other.

Of course, there was still the major problem with Justin's bratty child, but as he stopped the car and turned it off to stare over at Justin's condo building, he felt confident that somehow they could overcome that issue. How, he wasn't sure. All he DID know, though, was that he was still hopelessly in love with the man and just couldn't let him go. He had tried for days now to email and call him, but had been relentlessly met with silence. Finally, he decided it was time to talk to him face-to-face, despite the chance that his rebellious daughter might be the one to answer the door. It was a chance, however, that he will willing to take.

Closing the car door behind him, he walked up the steps and opened the exterior door, taking a deep breath to steel himself before he trotted up the stairs going to the second floor. Arriving at Justin's apartment a few seconds later, he took one more breath of courage before he rapped smartly on the door. His hope of having the door opened by his former fiancé, or even the insolent child herself, however, were foiled as no one came to open it, even after he knocked three separate times.

As he emerged outside a few minutes later, frustrated by his lack of success, he stood there on the sidewalk as a sudden inspiration hit him. Turning and walking the few steps over to the other building's door, he rapped on it loudly to get the attention of the occupant inside. He already knew from past experience that the woman who lived there was hard of hearing.

He had to wait at least a couple of minutes before he finally heard a shuffling noise from the other side of the door and then the door being unlocked and slowly opened; the occupant kept the deadbolt chain securely attached, however, as she cast a wary eye outward through the crack. "Yes, who is it?"

Alex plastered on his most winning smile as he greeted the woman. "Hello, Mrs. Bailey, do you remember me? I'm Justin's friend, Alex."

He waited impatiently until he thought he saw the woman's mind click in recognition; sure enough, she nodded her head. "Oh, yeah, Justin's beau. Yes, I remember you," she told him as her beady-little eyes peered over at him intently; her face remained fairly passive, however.

"I was hoping you could tell me where Justin is," Alex told her smoothly, deftly keeping his anxiety at bay as he watched what appeared to be indecision flicker across her face.

"I thought you were his boyfriend," she told him flatly as Alex's attention was diverted to a motion at her feet; he instantly recognized Kaylee's cats, Dali and Picasso, weaving in and out of the woman's somewhat plump legs, their backs arched up as they rubbed up against her. _Interesting_, he thought. Apparently Justin was out of town, because he knew whenever he had to leave for business, he always asked this woman to watch their cats.

"I am," Alex replied in assurance, the lie smoothly rolling off his tongue. "But, well, you see, Mrs. Bailey; Justin told me he had to go out of town on business, but just before he left he and I got into a little tiff, so he left without telling me where he was staying. It was a silly little argument, really; and now he's not answering my calls."

The woman's eyes pierced into his as he continued with what appeared to be an apologetic smile, "I really want to apologize to him and make it up to him. Tomorrow's the anniversary of when we first met, and we always celebrate that day. I really need to see him and make amends. It was just some silly lover's spat, and I know what a romantic person you are," he told her as she smiled a little over the compliment, "so I'm sure you can understand the significance of what that day represents. I love him so much, Mrs. Bailey," he told her mournfully. _At least THAT part was true_, he thought dryly. "He must have told you where he was going and left some sort of contact information in case of emergency. Can you please tell me where he went so I can make things right with him? I would be forever indebted to you, and I know Justin would feel the same way."

Mrs. Bailey hesitated, clearly torn over what to do. Justin had told her where he was headed, but hadn't really given her a lot of information; he had merely said he would be staying with his mother for a few days, maybe a little longer, and that it was in his home town of Pittsburgh. She already had his cellphone number, so more information wasn't really necessary. But as she looked into this handsome young man's imploring eyes, she was finding it hard to resist his request. And besides, he and her young neighbor, who she cared for very much and thought of as a fine person and a good father, did always appear happy together whenever she saw them around the neighborhood. The last thing she wanted, then, was to prevent them from making up after they had had such a trivial argument. Justin deserved to be happy; he worked so hard.

"Well, I don't really know all that much," she began hesitantly… and Alex knew at that moment that he had her.

* * *

><p><p>

_Chapter End Notes:_

_There will be another chapter of this story posted before I move onto "Tame The Wild Stallion" that will detail their return to Britin; hope you'll stay tuned for it. Thank you for reading and for your comments!:) And as always, my sincere thanks to my beta, boriqua522, for her ongoing support and encouragement when I doubt myself.:) *Hugs*_


	25. Where Do I Belong?

_Alex arrives at Britin to take ___back_ what is his; as Kaylee begins to recuperate, her two fathers continue to sort through their own feelings for each other._

* * *

><p>Alex smiled at the woman warmly, pasting on his most engaging poker face; he stared into her eyes as if she were the most beautiful woman in the world, even though as she stood there in the crack of the door dressed in her pink, princess slippers and a quilted white bathrobe, he thought she looked incredibly silly. "Oh, I'm sure you can tell me enough at least to give me a start," he replied smoothly as the woman blushed at the intensity of his stare. He cast his eyes downward at the two pesky cats; he wasn't very fond of Kaylee's two felines - in fact, he thought they were rather irritating and always seemed to be underfoot right when you didn't want them to be, such as when he and Justin would be making out on the couch - but if he were to enlist this woman's trust and assistance, he would have to act like he was the biggest cat lover in the world. "I see he left Kaylee's cats with you," he told her, forcing himself to smile.<p>

She nodded as she reached down to scratch the back of Picasso's head as the cat purred in response. "Yes," she said as she picked him in her arms and began to rub his fur with her hand; it was all Alex could do not to roll his eyes at all the attention that the cat was getting. "They're such great company for me; I miss my own cat so much. I hated to put him to sleep, but he had arthritis so bad..."

"I'm sure you did," Alex replied, trying hard to mask his impatience; he could care less about her dead cat. "Uh, look, Mrs. Bailey..."

"Call me Karen," she replied, actually batting her eyelashes at him.

_Oh, brother_, Alex couldn't help thinking. _Haven't we already established that I'm gay?_ He nodded as he continued to smile at her. "Mrs. Ba..., uh, Karen, I don't mean to cut you short, but I'm so anxious to make things right with Justin. Can you please tell me what you know? I don't want to keep you."

She nodded to his relief. "Well, like I said, I don't know very much. But Justin came over a couple of days ago and asked if I could watch the cats while he was out of town for a while. It was kind of strange, though; he didn't really know when he would be back exactly. He just said he had to go back to Pittsburgh to take care of some legal matters and that he wasn't sure when he would return."

Alex frowned. "Legal matters?"

She nodded. "Yeah, that what was he said," she told him, starting to become animated now that she had his undivided attention. "That was about all he said."

"Did he tell you where he'd be staying while he was there?" Alex asked, hoping the woman knew more than this; he knew Justin was from Pittsburgh originally and had family there; perhaps he would be staying with his mother, then, and maybe the 'legal matters' had something to do with her.

To his disappointment, though, she shook her head. "No, I'm sorry." She appeared a little uncomfortable then for some reason, readjusting the somewhat heavy cat in her arms as she added, "I think you need to know that when he left he wasn't alone."

"Yeah, I know," Alex told her. "He had Kaylee with him." _Unfortunately; that kid was ALWAYS around, damn it._

"Uh, no, that's not what I mean," she corrected him to his surprise.

"I don't understand. Kaylee _wasn't_ with him? Did she stay here with you?" He tried to peer through the crack in the door, half-expecting her to be standing there glaring back at him like she normally did, but with the woman's rather ample frame he couldn't. It didn't matter, though, when she spoke up again.

"No, she went, too," he told her as she suddenly looked flustered.

_What the hell? I don't have time for this soap opera. _"Mrs. Uh... _Karen_. Will you please just tell me what you're trying to say? I really want to get going so I can find Justin and apologize."

"Okay," she said after a few moments. "I'm really sorry, young man, but I think you should know that he had another man with him when he left."

"You mean a chauffeur?" That wasn't like Justin; he was so frugal most of the time that it was a running joke between them, even though he knew his boyfriend was successful enough that he could afford a shuttle to and from the airport easily enough. It always seemed like he was hesitant to engage in such luxuries, however, opting to use his extra money on that bratty child instead.

Mrs. Bailey shook her head as she looked at him sympathetically, causing a feeling of lead to develop in his stomach as she told him, "No. He was riding along with him in the limo."

Alex's eyes widened. "Limo?" He pursed his lips tightly together. "What did this man look like?"

Despite her desire not to hurt this other man's feelings, Mrs. Bailey smiled as she told him honestly, "Very handsome. Tall and slender with dark hair; very snappy dresser, too," she added, priding herself on her powers of observation; of course, with someone as attractive as he had been, it was hard not to take a long look at the man who had been standing a feet away from Justin's door as she had spoken to her neighbor. "He was dressed casually, but you could tell he liked well-made, high quality clothes." She actually sighed a little as she added, "He could be a model in a sort of classic way." She blinked sheepishly as she noticed her visitor's eyes narrowed in what appeared to be anger as she hastily added, "He could have just been a business acquaintance and they were just traveling together."

Alex swallowed the sour taste in his mouth as he forced his voice to remain level and nodded. "How old would you say this man was?" A dreadful thought began to coalesce in his head.

"Oh, fortyish, I'd say," she answered. "But he was still a handsome devil," she couldn't help adding truthfully.

"I'm sure," Alex responded curtly. He had a strong suspicion who the man might have been. He had seen pictures of Justin's ex before in his apartment; once Justin had asked him to go into his extra bedroom that he used as a combination library/office, asking him to help him find his car keys that he had misplaced. Unbeknownst to Justin at the time, he couldn't avoid taking advantage of being alone in Justin's private sanctuary to do just a little digging in his computer desk, coming upon the framed, 5" X 7" photo of Justin with an older brunet man tucked away in one of the bottom drawers under some paperwork. He had taken the photo out of the somewhat tarnished-looking, brass frame and flipped it over on the back, seeing Justin's familiar scrawl indicating it was a photo of him and 'Brian' taken several years ago. He could see some sort of museum perhaps (?) in the background, since there were paintings hanging on the walls as Justin's smaller frame was cradled in front of the other man's body, Kinney's long, muscular, sleeveless arms wrapped around Justin's chest as he rested his cheek against his and they smiled warmly into the camera.

It was obvious by the looks on their faces that they were in love with each other; anyone could readily see that. At the time, he thought it was sickeningly sweet and it had made his blood boil with patent jealousy. Yes, it could have been someone else, but Justin heading back to Pittsburgh unexpectedly, right after they had had that fight? The description certainly matched, and while it might have been jumping to conclusions, he couldn't think of any other alternative that fit as well.

"You didn't by any chance catch the other man's name, did you?" he asked Mrs. Bailey. "If you did, it might help me to figure out where he's staying."

Mrs. Bailey carefully lowered Picasso down to the floor before she rose back up to shake her head. "No, I'm sorry; that's all I know. I saw them walk down to the limo and get in to leave together, so I just naturally assumed they were going to the same place. Maybe he was just giving Justin a ride to the airport? I've never seen him in a limo before."

Alex pursed his lips together tightly in irritation. "No, neither have I." All the more reason to suspect it might just be Justin's arrogant ex. There was only one way to find out. "Mrs. Bailey?"

"Yes?"

"I have a favor to ask."

She eyed him warily, still not convinced about the other man's motives, even though she knew he WAS Justin's boyfriend. "What _kind_ of favor?"

"Well, I have a good idea who the other man was, but I'm not positive. If you could let me into Justin's condo, though, I could show you a photo of who I think it is and you could confirm or deny it."

Mrs. Bailey hedged at the invasion of privacy. "I don't know," she told him. "I was just given the key to go get the cats in case I wanted them to stay with me and to water Justin's plants. I'm not sure that's such a good idea."

"Please, Karen," Alex implored in his most sincerest-sounding voice, making sure to emphasize her first name. "If it's who I THINK it is, it's probably Justin's ex-partner. And from what Justin told me, he was really abusive to him in the past; that's why he wound up leaving him and taking their daughter with him. If it IS him, I'm afraid that he's fed him some sort of cock and bull story about changing his ways so he'll take him back and then he'll wind up hurting either him or Kaylee in the process; you know how those kinds of people are." He pushed back the nagging feeling of guilt in the back of his mind over his outrageous lie, telling himself that it was necessary in order to get back together with Justin. He knew he was the best man for him; not some former partner who he suspected had done something to hurt him. If he hadn't, they would have still been together.

"Oh, my God!" Mrs. Bailey cried out in alarm. "You know, now that you mention it, Justin DID seem a little nervous about going with him."

Alex nodded, secretly delighted that she was buying into his allegations; Justin had never told him any such thing. "Well, you know what they say," he told her. "Even in abusive relationships, sometimes the spouse or partner goes back to the abuser out of some misguided sense of loyalty or guilt, even though it's totally misplaced. Please, Karen, for Justin's sake as well as Kaylee's, you've _got _to let me in there. I know where he keeps a photo of this man and only you can identify him for me. I would never forgive myself if something happened to Justin after we fought and he left with this man on the rebound."

Mrs. Bailey clutched the front of her robe as tears filled her eyes. "Neither would I!" she exclaimed. "Hold on," she instructed him as she closed the door and Alex heard the sound of the security chain being slid back to release it. "No, you can't go out," he heard the woman saying, no doubt admonishing one or both of the cats as she opened the door and quickly slipped outside, still wearing her robe; in her hand, however, she was clutching a single key on a keychain fob shaped like an artist's palette.

Sensing triumph, he smiled. "Thank you, Karen; I thank you and so will Justin and Kaylee."

Nodding at him, she led him the few feet over to Justin's door and turned the key in the lock to open it.

* * *

><p>Five minutes later, they emerged from Justin's condo and Alex had his answer. His face grim, he hurriedly thanked Mrs. Bailey and after finally convincing her that there was no need to call Justin (in case the ex was listening and overheard her warning him), he reassured her that he would 'take care of it' as he hurried toward his car parked at the curb. Bidding the woman goodbye as she reentered her condo, he climbed into the driver's seat and sat there for a moment, seething inside.<p>

"No fucking way," he growled. "I don't know what game you're playing, Kinney. But you are NOT going to just show up out of the blue and whisk Justin away to play house with him again." Starting up the car, he emerged into traffic as he picked up his phone to call his personal assistant at his architectural firm.

"Sheila," he said brusquely without any preamble as she answered the phone. "I need for you to book me on the next available flight to Pittsburgh."

* * *

><p><em>Hospital - Next Morning - 9:00 a.m.<em>

"Brian, I am NOT going to ride down to the lobby in a wheelchair!" Justin huffed as Kaylee was placed into a junior version of the hospital's wheelchairs for her obligatory ride down to the lobby to go home. "I'm fine!" he insisted, bristling at the thought of being treated like an invalid. Yes, his ankle was still bothering him somewhat, but Brian's insistence that he use the combination chair/hospital bed last night to keep his ankle elevated, along with another dose of ibuprofen, had helped to ease his discomfort enormously. It had changed from a sharp, stabbing pain like there were needles in his shin to more of a dull, tolerable ache. In either case, the _last_ thing he wanted was for Kaylee to think he was incapable of taking care of her while she recuperated at Britin or to look like some helpless cripple as someone wheeled him down to Brian's SUV.

He had reluctantly agreed for their daughter to return to Britin to help her recover, but he still felt like the primary responsibility for taking care of her lay with him, not everyone else. He had to admit, though, that Brian had done a spectacular job of playing the doting father role while Kaylee had been with him - and while she was here at the hospital. He suspected that Brian thought he would blame HIM for their daughter's accident, but he knew her well enough to know how headstrong she was and that she didn't do anything she really didn't want to, so he couldn't really shift the blame onto him.

Brian sighed in exasperation, although he suspected that would be Justin's response. "Suit yourself, then, _Sunshine_," he said sarcastically, noticing the scowl on his ex-partner's beautiful face. He turned to smile down at their daughter, who was clutching a new teddy bear adorned with a frilly, pink ballerina outfit, a gift from him that he had found at the shop downstairs when he had left Kaylee briefly in Justin's care to go fetch some dinner for the two of them. The front of the tutu had the word "Princess" emblazoned on its chest in silver sequins, so he couldn't resist the rather sentimental, stuffed animal; the look of delight on Kaylee's face when he had brought it back to her, however, had been worth any discomfort or awkwardness he had felt initially when he had handed the bear over to the gift shop's cashier to ring it up.

"Ready to go?" he asked their daughter, who nodded, her eyes shining with happiness at being 'sprung' from her confines. Like Justin, she abhorred hospitals, having spent time there on a couple of other occasions when she had suffered a cheerleading mishap and sprained her arm, and one other time when she had fallen off her bicycle onto a pile of rotted wood full of rusty nails and had required a tetanus shot.

"Am I ever!" she replied with a smile, pleased that she was getting attention from _both_ of her fathers; she also had been told that her big brother Gus and her sister were waiting for her back at Britin. She had been ecstatic to learn that she would be going back there to recover; it meant that whether he wanted to or not, her daddy would have to be around her other father even more. The sentimental side of her believed that the more they were around each other, the more their difficulties would disappear and they could be a family again; at least she fervently hoped so.

Brian and Justin exchanged smiles over her reaction; a good sign, Kaylee thought, as both fathers followed along behind her and the hospital orderly pushing her wheelchair toward the elevators.

A few minutes later, Brian pulled the car up to the hospital's semi-circular drive as Justin helped Kaylee into the backseat of the car, opting to sit beside her to make sure she was comfortable on the drive home.

As Kaylee and his ex-partner engaged in lighthearted conversation about what kind of meal she wanted for her 'welcome home' lunch and how she would have to take it easy for a few days, Justin quietly gazed out the side window in the back seat, watching the familiar, pastoral scenery flying by. In a way, it was surreal. Being back in a vehicle with Brian, heading toward their old home they had shared so many good times together, listening to his ex-partner and one of his daughters talking to each other about family matters, he could almost imagine that their lives had been different, that they had all been happily living together ever since the two girls had been born. He could almost believe that nothing had happened to rend them apart, that they had all been co-existing together in contentment for years. But he knew better.

He also knew that the time had come to get everything out in the open, once and for all, to come to a decision that would have lasting consequences for all of them. He recalled Brian telling him that the ball was in his court and that HE would have to decide what he wanted. He knew what his _heart_ was telling him; what it HAD been telling him for years now. Despite his moving away to begin a new life with Kaylee, despite his recent, long-term relationship with another man, he had never truly given his heart away to anyone else, because it had never been his to offer. It had been given away a long time ago to the complex, unnerving, but amazing man currently sitting in the front seat next to him. His head, though, was still warring with his heart. Only talking everything out, laying both their cards out on the emotional table, bare, unfettered and exposed, would provide the necessary compatibility with the two, or at least allow him to do what he was yearning to do.

Brian's confession in the hospital room last evening helped to partially provide him with the encouragement that they could do just that. He knew Kaylee would have to be made comfortable and she was the main priority at the moment; but he was also encouraged that with Gus's and Katie's help with her, perhaps he and Brian could finally sit down and actually _talk_.

"Justin?"

He blinked as he turned his head to see both pairs of eyes on him; apparently they had been trying to get his attention for some time to no avail. He peered back at them sheepishly as he replied, "Yeah?"

Brian looked at him in the rear-view mirror; actually, he HAD been looking at him for some time through furtive glances while his ex-partner had been preoccupied, wondering just what Justin had been thinking about. Hopefully he had been mulling the same issue HE had been engrossed with; an insatiable need to talk things out FINALLY between them to clear the air and hopefully steer them back on track toward an eventual reconciliation. He found that idea both exhilarating as well as anxiety-producing.

"Kaylee was asking if she could sit out back on the patio in one of the chaise lounges rather than in her room when she gets home. I think that would be okay as long as it's warm enough, don't you?"

"Please, Daddy," she whispered fervently as she stared over at him with those baby-blue eyes that always made him cave in.

He sighed, knowing he was being ganged up on. "Well, as long as you stay put, I guess it would be okay," he finally answered. "And provided you rest and don't overexert yourself," he hastily advised as his daughter's eyes lit up with delight.

"I won't," she promised with a smile. "If I need anything, I'll have you, Dad, Gus, and Katie to help me."

Justin nodded as his eyes met Brian's in the rearview mirror; he found his face warming over his ex-partner's stare, not sure why, as Brian turned his attention back to the road.

* * *

><p><em>Thirty Minutes Later - Britin<br>_

The moment her father's SUV rolled up the driveway, Katie threw open the heavy, wooden, leaded-glass door and ran toward the vehicle, barely giving it time to come to a stop before she flung the back door open. "You're home!" she squealed as she leaned in to tightly hug Kaylee around the neck.

"Easy, Katie," Brian cautioned her as he opened the driver's side door and got out, observing Gus walking up to join them. "Remember, she just got out of the hospital and needs to rest."

"Dad," Kaylee huffed softly as Katie nodded and let go of her sister. "I'm not made out of glass."

Justin had to hide a smile of amusement over his daughter's minor queen out as he emerged from the other side of the vehicle, his expression sobering a little as he noticed Gus watching him intently; it was almost a suspicious sort of stare, leaving him wondering if Gus was questioning his motives in coming here. Truth be told, he was wondering the same thing.

"Sonny Boy, how about giving your sister a hand into the house?" Brian asked his son, providing Justin with enough time to divert his attention back to his daughters.

"Dad..."

"Don't argue with me, Kaylee Marie," Brian told her gently but firmly. "Remember, your father and I agreed to let you sit out on the back porch, but only if you took it easy. We can easily change that to your room..."

"No," Kaylee hastily replied as Brian exchanged an amused look with Justin.

"That's better," he told her as he nodded at Gus to indicate it was okay to pick her up.

Kaylee looked up at her tall, handsome older brother, the sibling she really didn't know at all and suddenly she felt shy. Her brother smiled at her warmly, however, and she couldn't help returning his smile.

"Hey, Sis," he greeted her softly, thrilled that he could finally talk to her at last. "You look just like someone _else_ I know," he teased her. "Haven't I seen you before?" he asked as she giggled. Kaylee unbuckled her seatbelt as he reached to scoop her up into his arms, her own arms sliding around his neck for balance as he easily lifted her from the car.

"You and I have a lot of catching up to do," he told her as she smiled at him, feeling just a bit more at ease; the fact that her brother looked so much like her Dad, also, helped make her feel more comfortable as he turned around and began to carefully walk with her toward the door.

"Coming?" Brian asked Justin with a cock of one eyebrow in an eerie recreation of that day so long ago at his loft; the day that he had first met the man who would have such an impact on his life.

He nodded, unable to avoid thinking of how odd the entire situation was as he watched Gus carry Kaylee toward the door, followed by Katie and Brian, who had his arm around her shoulder as he hugged her to his side. Stopping for just a moment to soak in the entire scene - it was the first time he could recall seeing all of them together in, well, he didn't know _how_ long - he proceeded to follow them up the sidewalk.

* * *

><p>"Gus, go ahead and carry Kaylee out back, would you?" Brian requested as he let go of Katie. "And, Katie, would you go get your sister one of those lightweight blankets from the linen closet upstairs?<p>

Katie nodded as she turned to head toward the steps.

"Thanks, Chiquitita," Brian told her softly as Katie smiled over at him before rushing up the stairs. As Gus walked away with his precious cargo, Brian turned to peer over at his former partner, who was quietly standing off to the side near the foyer entrance.

"What did you just say?" Justin asked, startled, from his place near the door.

"I asked Katie to go get a blanket for Kaylee."

Justin shook his head. "No, that's not what I meant. _Before_."

"Before what?" Brian asked, weary from spending all night in the hospital with only a few minutes here and there of sleep; perhaps that was why nothing Justin was saying at the moment was making much sense to him.

Justin eyed him intently. "Before - when you thanked her. You called her Chiquitita. "

Brian nodded, suddenly feeling exposed; it was an emotion he wasn't used to, and he found that it left him feeling vulnerable, especially in front of his ex-partner. "That's right," he replied simply. But of course, Justin couldn't just let the subject drop.

"Why? I've never heard you use that name for her before. You never used it when we were living together here."

Brian shrugged, trying hard to appear nonchalant; inside, though, his heart was hammering in his chest over his slipup. "It's just a nickname, that's all," he told Justin, trying to dismiss it.

"No, it's not just a nickname; it's the name of a song." Justin insisted softly as he tried to catch Brian's attention, but his ex-partner's eyes were averted away from him. "The same song that you and I danced to once." It had been a night he would never forget. It was the night after the Pride parade, something he hadn't even been sure he wanted to participate in with his mother, especially after running into Chris Hobbs doing his so-called penance at the hospice house. What an ironic bunch of bullshit that had been! It had freaked him out, seeing him there and hearing Hobbs telling him that he wished he would get AIDS and die. Only Brian's ability to comfort him later at the loft and his urging him to attend the parade as a big 'fuck you' to Hobbs had convinced him to go, and to his surprise he had wound up feeling strangely vindicated in a way as he had walked proudly in the parade with his mother, who had become such a large supporter in his life.

He remembered walking away from Brian at Woody's that evening, telling his partner to 'go find a stud' to help him alleviate his feelings of frustration over being hit on by every lesbian wanting his sperm donation along the parade route earlier; he had been stunned a few minutes later, though, when Brian had, indeed, gone searching for a stud and had found HIM instead. The street had been filled with half-drunk, rowdy, boisterous partygoers that night - nelly bottoms, bears, drag queens, tall men, short men, blondes, brunettes, even straight people, no doubt, who had been caught up unexpectedly in the celebration. It was flashy, it was blinding, it was noisy, and it had been packed with wall-to-wall people. But as they had slowly danced together to that insipid, mushy, Abba song, it had been as if they were the only two people on Earth at that moment. And the looks that Brian had given him as he held him in his arms, that soft smile as he stared down into his eyes almost bashfully; well, it could have only been one thing, if he had just opened his heart to see it: Brian Kinney had fallen in love with him, just as he had done, only he had lost his heart the first night he had met him. And as much as he might not want to admit it, he had never bothered to get it back. Truth was, he couldn't even if he wanted to.

"Was it?" Brian asked softly as he finally turned his head to stare over at Justin. "I guess I forgot."

Katie stood at the top of the steps, listening raptly to every word; she knew her father was lying. He had told her _exactly_ where her nickname had come from, and her Daddy was absolutely right. That was one of the reasons why it had become one of her favorite songs on her MP3 player, because it helped to remind her of how much in love they had been back then, and how much they were STILL in love. It was time to start straightening out this mess, she decided. And they thought SHE was stubborn!

"Tell him the truth, Daddy," Katie scolded him as she walked down the steps with a lime-sherbet colored fleece blanket held in her arms. "Tell him he's right."

"Katie..."

"No, Dad!" she cried out, her voice rising. "Hasn't there been enough lying already? Just tell him the _truth_! Why is that so hard for both of you to do?"

"Katherine Elizabeth," Justin began sternly, for some reason feeling like his daughter was overstepping her boundaries with her impertinence.

"No, she's right," Brian said quietly as Katie stood there defiantly next to them, clutching the blanket like some piece of armor against her chest. "That _IS_ where her nickname came from," he confessed as he stared over at Justin. "I didn't forget," he admitted. He paused for a moment before he added, "I remember every minute of that night."

It had been almost magical, that evening. Justin had survived his beating at the hands of that fucker, Chris Hobbs, and had recovered, albeit slowly, to the point where at last the two of them could start having sex again. That prio night at the loft when they had made love again for the first time had brought out such tender feelings toward his younger lover that they had both scared and exhilarated him, but he found that Justin had a way of doing that to him over and over again. That night after Pride when they had had the chance to dance again, he couldn't pass up the opportunity. And as he had gazed over into those expressive, blue, trusting eyes and they had swayed together in that hectic street to that incredibly schmoopy song blaring, all the other sights and sounds had promptly been pushed away, and it was just him and Justin; nothing and no one else mattered, and while it wasn't the same as the night of the prom, it had brought back a lot of the same emotions for him. It had also cemented in his mind that he did, indeed, love him, was IN love with him for his bravery, his courage, his passion, and for just being HIM. And yes, after what Justin had been through, he no longer looked at him as some pesky little kid. No, Justin was a full-fledged man in every sense of the word.

Justin stared over at Brian, Katie temporarily forgotten. "You do?" he asked him softly.

Brian didn't see any point in denying it, especially after their daughter had just called him out on it. "Yeah, I do."

Katie couldn't help grinning like a goofy loon. _Score one for me and Kaylee_, she thought silently as her father turned to look at her. "Aren't you supposed to be out on the patio, Katie?" Brian reminded her, one eyebrow arched upward in question; there was no animosity in his voice, though, as he spoke.

"Yeah," she said as she turned to go; just as she walked by her father, though, Brian reached out with his hand to affectionately ruffle her hair. Winking at her, she grinned over at her other father as she proceeded to walk down the hall toward the back of the house.

Justin sighed as Brian turned to smirk at him; something told him he was facing an uphill battle against both Brian AND the two girls. The question was, though, did he want to fight any more? He was very lonely lying in his cold bed of righteousness at night. Why did his ex-partner have to look so smug about it, though? It was almost as if he could read right through his mind.

He shook his head in resignation. "I'm going to go check on Kaylee," he muttered as he started to walk by his ex-partner; Brian, however, wasn't quite done with their conversation. He reached out to grasp Justin's upper arm, feeling the heat of his skin practically burning through the fabric.

"What, Brian?" he asked softly, not feeling particularly combative at the moment; his ankle, while much better, was still aching somewhat and they both had an injured child out on the back porch.

"Justin, I meant what I said at the hospital," he reminded him as he stared into his eyes. "We need to have a talk, a _real_ talk. Don't you think it's about time that we settle this, once and for all?"

Justin felt his heart pound in response, recalling Brian's heartfelt words spoken to their daughter at her bedside. Should he tell him that he had heard everything he had said? He wanted to, but he was also afraid that Brian would be angry if he thought he had been eavesdropping on him, however unintentional it had been. "What happened to the 'ball being in my court,' Brian?" he quietly reminded him.

Brian sighed. "Justin, aren't you tired of this game we're playing? I know _I _am. We both know you're going to have to stick around for a while until Kaylee recovers; and we both agreed that we need to work on readjusting the custody arrangement. So what harm would there be in trying to talk things out? That is... unless you don't want to." He pressed his tongue into his cheek, suddenly feeling apprehensive over what Justin would say. He knew what he _thought_ he had seen in some of the looks Justin had been giving him lately; there seemed to be a definite 'thawing of the ice' between them, but could he be sure? He heart dropped when he heard Justin reply softly, "No."

But then Justin added, "I'm tired of fighting with you, too." He lifted his eyes to stare over at Brian's as he explained, "I... I want to try and work things out. For the girls' sake."

"Shit, Justin!" Brian growled as he gripped both of Justin's shoulders to turn him to face him, resisting the urge to shake some sense into the man. "What about _you?_ Like Katie said, can we stop dancing around everything and just be honest with each other for a change? Are you happy with the ways things are between us?"

Justin's eyes flashed; this man could get him more worked up than anyone. "Of course I'm not happy with the ways things are!" he replied stiffly.

_Thank God_, Brian thought silently. "Well, prove it, then," he dared him.

Justin was finding it hard to concentrate at the moment with Brian holding him by the arms; it was almost as if he were on fire. "How?"

"Let's go somewhere private where we can talk," he suggested, his voice low and smooth.

"Talk," Justin repeated suspiciously; he knew what normally happened when they 'talked.'

Brian let go of his ex-partner's arms as he huffed in insult. "Yes, Justin, _talk_. I AM capable of doing that vertically at times."

"Good to know," Justin murmured in amusement as Brian glared over at him. "So where do you want to _talk?_" he inquired, hoping Brian would not suggest the master bedroom. Just walking back into this house was enough to surround him with memories, powerful ones of their former life together, and he needed to try and keep as clear a head as possible if he were to come to the correct decision; he had to consider both him AND his daughter this time.

Brian surprised him then by suggesting, "You always liked to ride Eton and Ceres; let's take the horses up into the mountains like we used to."

Justin pondered that idea; he always _did _love to wander up into the mountains on horseback, both before and after the girls had been born. There was just something so peaceful about being away from all the hustle and bustle of the Pitts. Not to mention that the two of them invariably found other 'temptations' to enjoy after their picnic lunch was consumed and the girls were fast asleep taking their afternoon naps...

Justin bit his lip in indecision as he reconsidered the wisdom of such a venture. "I don't know..."

Brian rolled his eyes, immediately seeing through him. "Don't worry, Mr. Taylor; I think I can keep my hands off you for a couple of hours. Or are you afraid of what YOU might do?"

"Don't flatter yourself," Justin told him with a huff as he crossed his arms over his chest. "Okay. Fine. We'll take the horses up into the mountains and _talk_."

Brian nodded, secretly pleased; he knew Justin would take the bait. "Good. Now what do you say we go see about our daughter first?" As anxious as he was to finally sit down and try to explain to his ex-partner his mindset so long ago, he knew it would have to take at least a temporary backseat to more pressing matters.

Justin nodded back at him before a sudden thought occurred to him. "My clothes... They're all back at the house."

Brian eyed him up and down so intently it made him flush. "You look like you haven't gained any weight since I saw you before," Brian observed, unable to keep from casting an appreciative gaze on his partner's lean body. "You look like you might have picked up some more muscle, though," he couldn't help adding. He smirked as his eyes met Justin's and he noticed the pink tint to his cheeks. He was silently happy that he could still evoke that sort of reaction in him.

"I try to exercise," Justin said just a little defensively as if he thought Brian figured he was incapable of such a regimen.

"I didn't mean anything by it," Brian told him quietly, feeling embarrassed all of a sudden; he was just trying to help and obviously Justin misunderstood. "I just meant that I still have some of your old clothes upstairs, in the master bedroom closet. You could wear some of those for our ride."

Justin's mouth gaped open. "You _what_? Why would you keep my old clothes in the closet? I would have thought you had cleared those out a long time ago to make more room for yourself."

Brian shrugged. "I just never had the need for the extra space," he replied, knowing that was a bald-faced lie. He still was quite meticulous in his dress and enjoyed trying out the latest fashion styles just like he always did; and he knew he still struck quite a sharp image by the reactions others gave him whenever he was at Kinnetik or in the Pitts. He could always take advantage of extra closet space.

But he had long ago ended his tendency to possess every new item of clothing that struck his fancy. He had more important concerns now - the care of his daughter who he loved more than life itself; well, her and three _other_ people: Gus, Kaylee, and Justin. And the truth was, in the back of his mind he thought if he kept Justin's old clothing in their closet, right where it had always been, then perhaps one day Justin would be back in his bed and in his life, too. The only thing he regretted was that somewhere along the way the scent that he always used to smell on Justin's clothing that had provided him with just a bit of comfort on several cold, lonely nights had gradually dissipated. Perhaps that was why when he had first been physically close to his ex-lover again it had been his smell even more than the sight of him that had affected him so deeply.

Justin stared at him in disbelief; he didn't buy that excuse for one second. The only _other_ logical explanation, however, was hard for him to acknowledge. All this time the picture he had held in his mind of his ex-partner was quickly being swept away to be replaced with a man he really didn't know all that well anymore. But he was rapidly coming to realize that he would like to get to know this Brian Kinney very much.

Brian shuffled his feet. "Anyway, you can wear something up there for our ride, if you want." Trying to lighten the mood that had suddenly turned a little too serious for his taste at the moment, Brian added, "You must still have a high metabolism, Sunshine, even if you DO work out, because something tells me that you haven't changed your junk food habits all that much; at least based on what Kaylee has told me."

Justin huffed, even though Brian was absolutely right; he DID still love to imbibe in sweets and high-calorie foods. "Maybe," he conceded reluctantly as Brian grinned over at him in triumph. "I'll be right back," he told Brian as he turned to head up the steps.

Wanting fervently to follow his ex-partner up to the bedroom, if only to see him back in their most sacred of private places, he forced himself nevertheless to remain where he was at the bottom of the steps as he nodded. "I'll wait here."

Justin turned his head to nod before he continued his ascent up to the second floor, feeling his heart beginning to pound as he turned and walked down the familiar hallway toward the spacious, master suite. It had been a long time since he had dared to enter that room; in some ways it seemed like an eternity, in others it seemed like just yesterday.

As he arrived at the doorway, he stopped to peer in, curious to see what sort of changes Brian had made once he had left. To his surprise, he found that it was quite similar to how it had been before: the same drapes, same furniture, even the same works of art on the walls: HIS works of art. They were just as he had left them when the two of them had separated. But as he walked into the room that haunted so many of his memories at night, he noticed a few slight changes. There were two pencil sketches on the walls that he didn't recognize: one of the front of Britin in what appeared to be springtime, and one of their two horses (he grimaced; funny how he still thought of Ceres and Eton as 'their' horses), their heads held high as they galloped around the paddock. Walking closer to the sketches, he noticed a small scripted name in the lower right-hand corner, and couldn't help the swell of pride that bloomed inside him as he recognized Katie's signature. He knew she had inherited his talent for art, but it still filled him with happiness to know that she, too, enjoyed his passion. He silently resolved to make sure he spent time with her, no matter what happened, encouraging her love of art.

Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he turned and walked over to the closet, noticing instantly that Brian had, indeed, kept his clothing hanging up in its normal space on the right-hand side. Each item was carefully hung and spaced out almost as if it had been done with precise measurements; something he would never have cared about, but he could certainly see Brian doing it. Even his jeans and khakis were hanging from specially-made pants hangers, all of the clothing arranged by type and then by color. Brian had obviously taken great pains to ensure that his clothing was well taken care of; it was yet another surprise of many that he had been encountering ever since he had returned.

Quickly donning a pair of beige khakis and a soft, cotton, candy-apple red, V-necked tee shirt (not stopping to consider that it used to be one of Brian's favorites on him), he slipped back into his worn but well-loved sneakers and turned to leave; clutching his worn clothing in his hands, something made him walk over to the master bathroom and open up the hamper to place his soiled clothing in with Brian's before he turned and headed toward the door.

Brian glanced up as Justin appeared at the top of the landing, and his breath caught in his throat; did Justin realize he was wearing one of his favorite tops for him? The one that complimented his pale complexion perfectly and somehow made his blue eyes pop even more? Was he trying to test what little amount of self-discipline he had left? Or was it just some wild coincidence? He swallowed hard as Justin walked down the stairs, forcing himself to plaster what he hoped was a neutral expression on his face as his ex-partner joined him at the bottom of the steps.

"After you, Mr. Taylor," he intoned formally as he swept his hand outward. Justin stared at him for a moment until Brian looked away and he nodded, leading the way as Brian used the circumstances to secretly admire one of Justin's most intriguing assets. _Well, I'm glad to see that ONE thing hasn't changed_, he thought to himself as they headed toward the back doors leading out to the patio.

* * *

><p>"Grandma, will you let me get a word in edgewise?" Gus groused at Debbie over the phone as the fathers slid open the door and moved to join him. He looked over at Brian and Justin helplessly. "I know I was supposed to call you last night, but something came up. I'm fine, and the car's fine." He rolled his eyes as the two ex-partners clearly heard the grating, loud female voice on the other end when Gus punched the speakerphone button so they could hear her part of the conversation.<p>

"Yeah, I bet I know exactly WHAT _came up_," Debbie retorted on the other end. "I thought you were more responsible than that, Gus; otherwise, I wouldn't have let you borrow Vic's old car."

Gus huffed in indignation. "Grandma, I was NOT out having my dick sucked, if that's what you're implying! Remember, I was with Justin, anyway. Do you seriously think that's what I would do with him in the car with me? Shit." He shook his head while both girls giggled nearby as they looked at him in amusement over his embarrassment; both sisters were currently reclining side by side on identical chaise lounges, clearing enjoying their brother's discomfiture.

"Well, I wouldn't be surprised," Debbie replied, "looking at the role model you had." Debbie realized that wasn't quite fair, though; she knew that ever since Justin and Kaylee had left, Brian's previous, promiscuous lifestyle had taken a dramatic turn, at least that's what she had discerned through the grapevine. Not that Brian was the kind of person to announce such matters, but from everything she had heard and seen, he was not the same type of person he had been after they had left. Never again, for instance, did he come into the diner looking spaced out on E or with bags under his eyes after spending way too much time at the baths or Babylon. And she never heard anyone discussing their one-night stand of bliss at the hands of Brian Kinney, the sex maestro. No, from everything she could tell, Brian's normal response to being stressed out or in emotional turmoil hadn't taken its normal path; from all intents and purposes, he had actually become a caring and, dare she say it, _responsible_ father to Katie.

Brian walked over and motioned with his hand for Gus to give him the phone. Taking it from him, he brought it up close to his mouth to speak. "Deb, it's Brian, the former cock sucking champion," he wisecracked; Justin had to place his hand over his mouth to keep from laughing as he stood nearby.

Everyone could hear a huff on the other end. "I guess you heard what I told Gus. I take it you're together? Where? Britin?"

"No, Deb," Brian told her, clearly aggravated now. "I decided to instruct him in the joys of having foursomes, so we stopped at the loft; the bed was bigger and it was more convenient to the baths where we picked them up."

"Brian..." Justin warned him, not wanting the girls to receive any more 'educating' than they already had.

Brian punched the phone to disable the speakerphone option. "Deb, hold on for a minute," he told her as he covered the lower part of the phone with his hand and turned to face Justin. "I think she needs to know what happened to Kaylee," he told him. "You know she's going to be pissed if she finds out later, not to mention she'll probably wallop Michael up the side of the head if she knows he's been keeping it from her. And your mom will be angry, too."

Justin sighed; he knew Brian was right. He also knew that both women would probably STILL be angry even after they told them the truth, but better to divulge it now rather than later. "Okay," he told him softly as Brian nodded.

Turning back to the phone, Brian held it up to his ear to say, "Deb, there's a good reason why Gus couldn't call you last night..."

* * *

><p>Brian blew out a deep breath between his lips as he pressed the disconnect option on Gus's phone and handed it back to him and brushed his right hand restlessly through his hair. "That went over well," he deadpanned as he shook his head. Just as he thought, Debbie had been furious with them over not letting her know that Kaylee had been injured, despite Brian's reassurances that she had gotten help immediately and was never in great danger.<p>

Justin sighed as he walked over to him. "My turn now," he said with dread as he reached inside the pocket of his jeans to retrieve his own phone. "Wish me luck."

* * *

><p>At least after Justin's mother had gotten over the initial shock, she had actually been quite reasonable about the whole matter, especially when he had assured her that Brian had been with Kaylee the whole time and Michael had been there as well. She sounded almost pleased to hear that he and Brian had spent the night together, standing vigil over their daughter's bedside. He suspected it was because his mother was reading far more into it than was warranted, but at least she hadn't threatened to cut him a new one before they disconnected. Of course, if she DID want to, she would soon have the chance to do it in person.<p>

As he hung up, he turned to Brian. "I think I should warn you - my mother has taken it upon herself to invite both her and Debbie out here today to make sure Kaylee really is okay. She said they should be here by lunchtime."

"Lovely," Brian replied dryly. "All the more reason for us to get away."

"Get away?" Katie asked, picking up on her father's statement immediately as her ears perked up. "Are we going somewhere?"

Brian and Justin exchanged a look as Brian told her, "No, not _we_ as in all of us; your father and I are going to take the horses up into the mountains alone for a little ride - if that's okay with you and your brother - and you, too, Kaylee," he added as he looked over at his other daughter. He paused for a moment before he explained, "Your father and I are overdue for a long talk and we thought it might be best to discuss some things in private."

The girls' eyes lit up as they secretly grinned at each other; this was the best news they had heard in a long time! "No, we don't' mind," Kaylee hastily reassured them from her place over on the chaise lounge, hardly able to keep a straight face as she looked over at their fathers. "I'll be fine; I'm feeling much better now. You go ahead, right, Katie? Right, Gus?"

"Yeah, Dad, we'll be just fine," Katie assured Brian. "Gus can take care of anything we need, and I'll help with Kaylee," she told him eagerly. She didn't even try to hide her happiness as she grinned over at him and Justin like a fool. "And our grandmas will be here soon. So you go ahead. Take all the time you need."

Brian rolled his eyes at Justin, both knowing exactly what Katie was implying. Would she wind up being correct, though? Brian knew what HE wanted to come out of their 'talk,' but he still wasn't convinced what Justin wanted. He thought back to the promise he had made to himself earlier at the hospital; he wasn't about to let either Justin OR Kaylee go without a fight. Then, if Justin DID decide to return to Chicago, at least he would know that he did everything he could to make them stay.

"Well, thank you for your approval, Katherine Elizabeth," he told her wryly as he looked over at Gus, who didn't appear quite as excited about the idea. He frowned. "Something wrong, Gus?"

Justin noticed Gus's expression and couldn't help thinking that the boy he used to regard as a son was still suspicious of his motives; he supposed he couldn't really blame him, though. He had heard two parts of a story; how could Gus know which version was true? Even HE didn't really know the whole story; not yet, anyway. He was hoping by the time he and Brian were done, though, he finally would know the entire explanation. More importantly, he hoped it would be a plausible, convincing one, because he now knew that his heart wanted nothing less.

Gus eyed Justin intently for a moment and glanced over at the hopeful faces of his two sisters before finally he shook his head. "No, Dad," he told Brian quietly as he turned his attention to his father. "I'll be glad to watch out for both of them; it'll give me a chance to get to know Kaylee better, too." He turned to flash her a soft smile as she nodded at him in agreement.

Brian nodded. "Thanks," he told his son as he turned to look at Justin, his tongue planted firmly in cheek; he knew what they needed to do was important, but that still didn't mean he couldn't have just a little fun at his ex-partner's expense. "Ready to do a little riding, then ... Sunshine?"

Justin glared at him, unwilling to let himself slide back into caving simply by looking at Brian's face; he made himself recall the reason why they were doing this in the first place. He turned to peer over at his daughters, who seemed to be watching their every move with rapt attention. Walking over to both of them, he leaned down to lightly caress Katie's cheek as she smiled up at him lovingly before he turned to lean down and repeat the gesture with Kaylee.

"You sure you're okay with us leaving you for a while, Sweetheart?" he asked softly, feeling a little guilty about leaving his injured daughter despite her reassurances.

Kaylee nodded as she reached up to clasp his hand. "Yes, Daddy. I want you to go." She crooked her index finger with her other hand as he leaned in so she could whisper in his ear. "I want you to make up with him. Forgive him, Daddy; he loves you so much, and I'm sure he really is sorry."

Justin swallowed hard and blinked, trying furiously to keep the stubborn tears he felt prickling his eyes from falling. He merely nodded silently, not trusting himself to speak as he stood back up and let go of his daughter's hand. With one last smile at his other daughter, he turned to go just as the front doorbell sounded.

He frowned as he looked over at Brian. "There's no way that could be my mother already," he stated.

Brian shook his head. "No, there's not been enough time. I'll go see who it is."

"No, Dad," Gus interjected from his place near the back door. "I'll get it; I was going to go get Kaylee a better pillow anyway."

Brian nodded, grateful for his son's thoughtfulness. "Okay, we'll wait here until you find out what they want before we head to the stables."

Gus nodded back at him as he pulled the sliding glass door open and entered through the kitchen. Walking down the hallway to the front door, he pulled it open to see a dark-haired, blue-eyed man standing there dressed informally but immaculately in a lightweight, beige jacket, dark-blue jeans, and a dark green polo shirt. The man smiled at him as he opened the door and peered over at him.

"Yes?" Gus inquired somewhat impatiently, thinking that any man dressed this nicely out here in the sticks must be some sort of salesman; only someone that persistent would normally show up out here.

"Hello, is this the Kinney residence?" the man asked politely, only adding to Gus's suspicions.

"Maybe," Gus responded somewhat brusquely. "Who wants to know?"

Alex tried hard not to glare at the tall teenage boy eyeing him so warily. _Cheeky little shit; must be Kinney's obnoxious kid_, he couldn't help thinking, remembering that Justin had told him that his ex-partner had an older son, and this slender, lanky teen bore an uncanny resemblance to the version of Brian Kinney he had seen in that photo in the desk. Obviously, he had the right house; that much was obvious.

Deciding that it was perhaps not a good idea to be totally upfront with this kid, he impetuously opted to weave a different sort of tale based on some previous information Justin had given him. Keeping the smile on his face, he replied, "I'm so sorry to intrude, but my name is Sidney Bloom; perhaps you've heard of me?" He saw a slight frown appear on the boy's face as if the name rang some sort of bell, but he wasn't sure as he plodded onward. "I'm an owner of several art galleries in the Pitts, and I heard that one of my former artists, Justin Taylor, was back in town visiting temporarily and was staying here with Mr. Kinney. I was hoping to talk to him and convince him to display some of his works in my studios again before he returns to Chicago."

Gus hesitated as he held the door partially open. The name _did_ sound familiar for some reason; perhaps his mom had mentioned it at one time or another? He peered at the handsome, confident-looking man standing in front of him curiously; he certainly didn't _sound_ like a salesman; after all, he was looking for Justin, not his father. If he was a salesman, how would he even know that Justin was here? "How did you know Justin was back home?" he asked curtly.

Alex's heart leapt at the disclosure; so Justin WAS here! It made him both excited as well as angry to think that his boyfriend, the man he had asked to marry, would agree to come back home and stay with his ex-partner! What was he thinking? He shrugged, quickly reaching for a plausible explanation as he told the boy, "You know how it is in the art world; word gets around quickly. One of my business acquaintances found out and let me know; he knew I would want to see him. Please...I won't take up much of his time. Could I speak with him?"

To his delight, Gus finally nodded his head as he opened the door wider for him to enter. His initial amazement over how opulent Kinney's residence appeared from the outside gave way to utter astonishment as he entered the foyer and had his first look at the grand interior; it was all dark, expensive hardwoods, leather furnishings and quality artwork, including a couple of impressionistic sculptures and what appeared to be an Andy Warhol sketch of an angel hanging over the fireplace mantel of the study that led off from the main hallway. He also recognized to his disgust several works of Justin's hanging up, both in the study and other rooms; by now readily able to identify his style. Apparently Kinney still held his paintings in high regard. _Well, that's ALL you're going to hold onto, you asshole_, he thought with disdain as he allowed the boy to lead him toward the back of the house. He wondered exactly where they were going, but figured Kinney's kid knew what he was doing.

Finally, they walked into a gourmet, professional-size kitchen with two, six-burner stoves and a built-in, stainless steel refrigerator as he followed the tall teen to a set of double glass doors; he noticed several round, glass-topped tables outside with chairs on the other side, assuming that Justin was out there, no doubt with his ex-partner and Kaylee. He had already decided that he didn't care if he found him alone or not; it was time to stake his claim and take back what was his, Kinney and Kaylee notwithstanding. All it would take was some reasoning with Justin on his part, and he was sure his boyfriend would see the wisdom of returning with him. He would have to decide what to do with the brat later.

"He's out here," Gus told Alex as he swung the door open; four sets of eyes immediately trained themselves on their new visitor as Alex followed Gus outside.

"Justin, it's for you. Sidney Bloom." Gus said as he walked outside and waited for Alex to follow.

Justin frowned in confusion until he saw just who Sidney Bloom was; as soon as he did, his eyes widened in shock and anger, following by two little girls who immediately rose to their feet, even though one was still not completely healed.

Alex's pulse accelerated as he saw the object of his desire staring back at him; even with his eyes flashing in anger and his face furrowed with annoyance, he still thought he was the most incredible sight he had ever seen. "Justin, I can explain," he began softly as he held his hands up in supplication.

"Alex," Justin murmured in shock; he was the last person he expected to see here.

"Daddy, what is HE doing here?" Kaylee cried out in disgust as Katie held onto her arm for support. "Make him go away!"

Alex looked over at the source of that statement and his eyes almost bugged out of his head; two, identical little blonde-haired girls were glaring at him. Everything about them - their expressions, their rigid stances, their haircuts, were the same, except for the clothing. "What..?"

Brian's face darkened with fury; he knew full well what Sidney Bloom looked like, so he immediately knew the man was an imposter. But when he heard Justin mention his real name, his puzzlement rapidly turned to hostility. "Get away from him, Gus," Brian warned his son in an oddly calm tone of voice as he started to walk toward their visitor.

"Brian..." Justin implored quickly, feeling the aggression almost pouring off his ex-partner in waves and recognizing that tone of voice as being even worse than Brian screaming at someone; his ex-lover was pissed. No, make that angry - _very, very_ angry. "I'll handle this; please," he pleaded as he grabbed Brian's sleeve and held on tightly, hoping it would be enough to stop him. "Let me take care of this."

Brian glared at the other man, feeling himself boiling inside. He tried to tell himself it was because he was merely being protective of Gus and his daughters, but he also recognized it for the truth that it was: jealousy. His daughters had told him about this man - this person who had the gall to ask Justin to marry him. To him, that meant the man was his No. 1 Enemy, and while he would never admit it to Justin, the thought of him having serious competition for his ex-partner's affections scared the hell out of him. Knowing he was stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place, though, he finally curtly nodded as Justin let go of his arm slowly to make sure he would, indeed, stay in place like he promised.

Justin let out a shaky breath as he left Brian to walk closer to his ex-fiancé. "What are you DOING here, Alex? I thought I had made my wishes clear before when we said goodbye."

Alex, however, was still having a hard time adjusting to TWO identical girls staring back at him icily. "There're... There're _two_ of them?" he whispered as he turned at last to look back at Justin, his mouth hung open in shock.

"Yes," Justin said stiffly as he wrapped his arms around his body and stood in front of him rather defiantly; feeling every bit the protective father as he deliberately placed himself between Alex and the children. "Twins. You already know Kaylee; the other one's Katie."

Alex shook his head, perplexed. "How...?"

Justin sighed, not really feeling like the man deserved an explanation but deciding to give him one anyway in hopes he would just go away for good. "After we split up, Brian received custody of Katie, and I got custody of Kaylee. According to the court agreement, they weren't supposed to find out about each other until they turned eighteen, but they happened to meet at camp and decided to switch places with each other."

Alex's mouth hung open in realization; his eyes narrowed as he peered over at the two bookends staring back at him almost smugly. "At camp? You mean when I went with you to pick up your daughter, it wasn't...?"

"No," Justin admitted. "It was Katie instead; only I didn't know that until Brian figured out what had happened and brought Kaylee back up to Chicago with him to switch them back." He turned around slightly to peer over at his daughters in amusement as he told Alex, "Only they had _other_ ideas; they refused to tell us which one was which, so I had to come back home with Brian until we could get them sorted out. And I wanted to change the custody agreement going forward anyway so Brian and I could spend time with both our daughters."

Standing next to his father, Gus eyed the man warily as Justin and Alex conversed. He still didn't quite know what was going on, but he could tell whatever it was, his father was NOT happy; he could actually see a vein bulging out of the side of his neck as he stood next to him. Obviously whoever this person was, he was NOT Sidney Bloom; not after he just mentioned going with Justin to his sisters' camp to pick up Kaylee, although it had actually been Katie at the time. Almost subconsciously, he reached to squeeze his father's shoulder, feeling the tenseness beneath him. His father was very angry; of that there could be no question.

Alex's face darkened. "How convenient," he commented as he glared over at Brian, who matched him with an identical expression.

"What's _that_ supposed to mean, Alex?" Justin replied as he continued to stand there with his arms hugging his chest and his feet spaced apart as if in a fighter pose.

"Come on, Justin!" Alex cried out in disgust as he locked icy gazes with his rival. "Can't you see that he set all this up? He wanted you back, and apparently he's found the perfect tool to do that! How blind can you be?"

"Why, you son of a..." Brian snarled.

"Dad," Gus called out as he noticed his father about to make his move. "It's okay; let Justin handle it." He now knew who this person must be; Katie had tipped him off to the moronic ex-boyfriend once she had returned to Pittsburgh. So this character was Justin's ex-boyfriend and would-be fiancé. _Yep_, he thought to himself. _Katie was right; he IS a Grade-A asshole_.

Brian continued to seethe inside as he watched Justin talking to the man who had the audacity to try and take him away from him. Just the thought of that man touching him, making love with him, made him sick to his stomach. He grudgingly had to admit the guy was attractive, he supposed, in a dark, brooding sort of way, but he obviously had no manners - or respect - for either his ex-partner or his daughters. And what man would lie his way in just to see an ex-lover? A man he had no respect for, that's who. He was going to give him two more seconds before he took care of him himself. He soon found out, though, that Gus was right; Justin could be quite feisty when he wanted to be.

Justin's eyes flashed with insult. "He did NO such thing, Alex! He was as surprised by what they did as I was! Stop trying to insinuate things that aren't true! How did you even know I was here?"

For once, Alex's confidence faltered as he admitted, "I found out from Mrs. Bailey; she identified him as the man you left with the other day."

"How would she even know who Brian was?" Justin pressed him. "I never introduced them."

Alex rolled his eyes. "If you must know, _Justin, _I found a photo of the two of you together in your desk drawer that day when you misplaced your car keys."

Justin's face darkened in dismay. "You went through my personal things in my desk?" He pursed his lips tightly together and subconsciously clenched his fists as he replied, "I can't believe you did that." He huffed out a deep breath as he told Alex then, "You know, you're right; I guess I WAS blind!" Alex began to smile in triumph over at Brian before he heard Justin explain, "I was blind to think that you and I could actually be partners! You have no respect for me, my daughters, or Brian - or his _son_ who you lied to! Now GET... OUT!"

To Brian's surprise, he watched as Justin reached over and actually _shoved_ the other man as Katie yelled out, "Get him, Daddy!" He snorted in amusement over his daughter's prize-fighting call of encouragement until he watched as the other man reached out to grab Justin's hand and pull his body tightly against his.

"You don't mean that, Justin!" Alex told him firmly as he wrapped his hands around Justin's body and held him against him like a vise. "Think about what you're _doing_! I LOVE you, damn it! He's just _using_ you! Wake up! Even your own _daughters_ are conspiring against you! Leave them with HIM and come back with me where you belong!"

"That's it!" Brian roared, unable to take anymore as he wrenched himself away from his son's grasp and rushed over to Justin's side, Gus hurrying to catch up with him; both girls' eyes widened in alarm as they watched their father hurry to their Daddy's defense. It wasn't that they didn't think he could take care of himself, but having their Daddy in the middle - literally - as well as their brother in the thick of the melee frightened them.

Brian walked up to within inches of Alex's face as he pulled Justin away from him and cocked his fist.

"No, Brian!" Justin yelled just as the fist hit its mark; only, Brian didn't manage to strike Alex, however; his fist impacted with Justin's jaw instead as his ex-partner vainly tried to intercede between them. Justin flinched as the fist made contact with the right side of his face and Brian looked over at him in dismay.

"Justin..." he murmured, his face instantly contorted with regret.

"I'm okay," Justin reassured him quickly as he turned his attention back to Alex; at least the mishap had served momentarily to distract him, because his ex-boyfriend was standing there gaping at him. He used the brief interlude to tell him, "I'm only going to say it one more time, Alex - get the hell out of here! I never want to see you again, do you understand? Get OUT!"

But Alex was as dense as he was deceptive; he continued to stand there as he pleaded now, "Justin, listen to reason; I'm trying to help you here."

Gus snorted; he could only take so much drivel himself. "Are you fucking kidding me?" he yelled as he reached over and grabbed Alex by the scruff of the neck as the shorter man yelped in reaction. "The welcome mat has just been rolled up, pal; you're _out_ of here!" he commanded as he used his larger stature and strength from bodybuilding at the high school weight room to grasp the man by his shoulder with his other arm and proceed to drag him toward the side of the house. "I'll be right back, Dad!" he called out to Brian as he walked toward his two sisters with his captive. "I just have to take the garbage out to the curb FIRST!" He continued to drag a struggling Alex toward the edge of the patio, right past where the girls were now standing near their chaise lounges. As they neared Katie's, she promptly stuck her foot out just in time for Alex to trip on it; he would have promptly fallen flat on his face, straight onto the concrete, if not for Gus still holding onto him by the arm.

"Katie..." Gus scolded her as he walked past her, still dragging an unwilling, sputtering Alex toward the side yard. "Play nice now," he said as he twisted his head around just long enough to wink at her and smirk, just like her father would do. Both girls giggled as they watched a totally undignified, ruffled Alex being forced to retreat toward the front of the house toward his parked car.

Within a few seconds, Gus and Alex had disappeared around the side of the house, leaving the surroundings surprisingly quiet.

"That was FUN!" Kaylee cried out suddenly as she clapped and Katie grinned over at her. "It was almost worth going to the hospital, even!" she decided.

Justin sighed in relief as he walked over and sat down on one of their patio's white, metal chairs. Brian walked over and scooted a chair next to him, cocking his head sideways in an attempt to see what damage he had inflicted. He felt like shit for hitting Justin, even though it had been unintentional; but he had been so mad and yes, so fucking _jealous_ of that prick, he had reacted on instinct. Unfortunately, his fist had made contact with the other side of Justin's face that was presently hidden from him, so he couldn't really see the damage. He knew from the sound, however, and from Justin's reaction that he had hit him a good one.

"Justin? Do you want me to get some ice?" he murmured as his ex-partner hung his head in his hands and let out a heavy breath. After a few seconds, Brian watched him mutely shake his head no. "Tell me what I can do," he said softly, feeling terrible about what had happened. He wasn't sorry that son of a bitch was gone, however; surely this time the man had gotten the message. His eyes widened slightly as he watched Justin raise his head and push back from the table to stand up.

He eyed his partner with concern as he noticed the beginnings of a bluish-black mark on his light-colored cheek. "Fuck; I'm sorry, Justin," he whispered as he stood up next to him. "Just tell me what I can do to help make you feel better."

To his surprise, Justin smiled a half smile. "You can take me for a ride like you promised," he told him softly. Holding his hand out toward his former lover, he held his breath for a second until Brian reached over to firmly grasp his hand in his and nod.

"Let's go, then," he replied as he gazed into his eyes. Noticing Gus returning alone, Brian's son nodded in confirmation that he had taken care of their 'problem' before, hand in hand, the two men turned and began to walk toward the pathway leading to the stables.

Gus walked over and plopped down on the edge of the chaise lounge belonging to Katie as he let out a deep breath. "Well, I haven't had this much fun since I got expelled for smoking pot," he decided as his two sisters' eyes widened in surprise.

He looked over at them sheepishly. "Whoops! Forget I said that, okay?" Both girls nodded with a smile as he grinned up at them. "Okay, little sister, time for you to get some more rest; you've had enough excitement to last a lifetime now. The wrestling match is over." He watched as she nodded and carefully climbed back onto her chaise lounge as Katie sat down next to him on the other one.

"I'll go get us some iced tea; I saw some in the fridge earlier," he told them as he rose to leave; Kaylee, however, pulled on his arm as he looked down at her curiously. "You need something, Kaylee?" he asked softly.

She nodded with a sort of shy smile. "Yeah; don't go just yet... tell me some more about Dad - and about _you_. Did you really smoke pot?"

Gus laughed as he sat back down. "Well, it all started when I was thirteen..."

* * *

><p><em>AN: As always, thanks to my beta, boriqua522, for looking this over and for her encouragement. Thanks, my friend.:)_


	26. The Talk

_The two fathers have a chance to talk about their past; will they be able to resolve their differences and construct a future together, or will they finally part ways for good? _

_Same Time..._

Brian quickly averted his eyes as his met Justin's for the second time; from this side he could clearly see the bruise he had inflicted on him, and it was quickly turning a nice, dark, purplish color, indicating that he had at the very least damaged some capillaries underneath the tender skin. He still felt like a total asshole for hitting Justin, even though he hadn't done it intentionally and he was aware that Justin knew that.

"Will you fucking stop it?" Justin suddenly demanded quietly as Brian started in embarrassment over being caught red-handed. "I already told you, Brian, I know it was an accident."

Brian sighed. "I know," he replied. "But it's starting to look pretty bad. And your ankle..."

Flustered and irritated now, Justin snatched his hand away from Brian's grip as he pulled up short on the dirt path leading from the house to the stables; his ex-partner mourned the loss of the familiar, warm touch as he huffed in irritation, "Brian, enough of the self-recriminations, okay? That's not why I asked you to go for a ride with me. We need to start leaving all that crap behind us."

"I know that, Justin!" Brian replied a little more curtly than he had intended. He turned to face Justin as he held up his arms in surrender and added, "Okay, fine. You said you wanted to talk; what do you want to talk _about?_" Of course, they both knew what they _needed_ to talk about; it had been festering at both of them for years now, ever since it had happened so long ago, and he wasn't just talking about fucking the guy at Kinnetik. If they were going to lay all their cards out on the table, it was time to discuss the infamous weasel Ethan as well. The fact that Justin actually wanted them to go off by themselves to actually talk and had initiated it himself had to be a good sign,though - didn't it? He let out a deep breath to calm himself, afraid to read too much into it as he waited for Justin to answer.

Justin placed his hands on his hips as he responded, "Let's just get the horses saddled up and get started, okay? I've got a lot on my mind right now."

"That makes two of us," Brian grumbled under his breath, but he nodded. "Okay; whatever. But we ARE going to talk this time, Justin; agreed? We're going to hash this all out once and for all."

Justin stared at him for a few seconds before he, too, nodded. "Yeah," he said softly. "I agree that it's time." Just the thought of it made his pulse quicken; whether it was out of fear, excitement, anticipation, or a combination of all three, he wasn't sure.

Brian quirked one side of his mouth up in amusement. "Well, for once we agree on _something_; let's hope that's a good sign." Tentatively, he held his hand out, knowing he was risking rejection once again. "I think it's time to reintroduce you to the other males at Britin; the four-legged kind," he added, making sure there was no misunderstanding what he meant. He held his breath for just a second or two before Justin seemed to call another truce and nodded in agreement as he slowly placed his hand back in his. _God, it felt so right_, he couldn't help thinking as a sort of electric current rushed through his body on contact, just like it always did whenever they touched. He wondered if Justin felt the same way, but chose not to address it out loud as they resumed their walk toward the stables.

Unbeknownst to Brian, Justin _was _feeling much the same way. Every time they touched now, whether it was a handhold, a kiss, or a comforting grasp on the shoulder, it didn't matter; his body seemed to come instantly alive under Brian's touch. As they strode now among the winding, dirt path that took them back to the stables, Justin was once more reminded of Brian's thoughtfulness in creating the tranquil scene before them. He found that he had to slow down each time they came to one of the marble statues of the girls to admire them once more, a need that Brian seemed to understand and patiently allowed.

"These really are incredible, Brian," Justin murmured in awe as they stopped at the last one showing the two girls together, hand-in-hand; it was so realistic, almost as if they were there in person. It brought back a lot of memories of how close they had once been before they were all separated. He was so glad that they were slowly regaining their bond to each other, and that he and Brian's troubles hadn't pushed their girls apart permanently. "Who did you get to do these for you?"

Brian appeared a little uncomfortable as he explained, "I went to PIFA and talked to one of the professors there."

Justin's eyes widened in stunned realization. "Are you talking about Professor Wilkinson?"

Brian nodded. "I remembered you telling me how much you liked his sculptures back when you went to school there."

Justin's mouth hung open in amazement. "And you talked him into doing these for you?" The professor, well-known around the world in art circles for his exquisite depictions of real-life people and objects, had long ago retired from active art creation, deciding to concentrate instead on teaching at PIFA. Articles in various art magazines had long attested to his vehement refusal to undertake any new commissions, even though people had tried time and time again to get him to change his mind. "How in the world did you get him to do these for you? People would _kill_ for one of his pieces. He hasn't sculpted anything in years."

Brian shrugged. "I'm the best adman in town, remember? I was introduced by a client friend of mine who knew him and I just told him how much the girls meant to me. I showed him some photos of them, and I could tell he was enthralled by the blue eyes and the blond hair." _Just like I was with YOU_, he couldn't help thinking as Justin stared over at him in incredulity. "Turns out he has twin girls himself, so I guess he has a soft spot for them. We discussed how many sculptures I wanted and what sort of poses, along with the terms, and a year later, here they were."

Dropping Brian's hand, Justin walked over to the statue mounted on a 36" base and lightly ran his fingers over the wavy ringlets of curls framing a young Kaylee's cherubic face. His daughters' joyous faces stared back at him, big as life, causing him to smile in wonder at their realism. "These must have cost a fortune, Brian," he whispered in realization as he continued to run his fingers down the marble figure reverently, knowing how much in demand Wilkinson's previous works had been; they consistently commanded six-figures. He reluctantly turned back around to face his ex-partner, almost sorry to have to turn his back on the wondrous work as Brian looked back at him a little self-consciously.

"I would have paid whatever he wanted me to pay," he admitted. "Those girls are priceless to me," he explained as Justin gazed back at him thoughtfully. The next words escaped his lips before he gave it any additional thought. "Just like _you_ are." He held his breath, wondering if Justin would deride him for such a statement after what had happened so long ago, but to his relief his ex-lover merely nodded.

"I think I'm ready for our ride now," Justin replied softly as he slowly turned and began to walk toward the stables, Brian following closely behind.

* * *

><p>It was only a few minutes later as they stood next to the horses that Justin realized his predicament; his ankle, which was slowly healing, was still a little weak. As Ceres chuffed softly in impatience, he hesitated as he warily eyed the stirrup, wondering why he had thought this would be a good idea in the first place.<p>

"Let me help you up," Brian entreated softly from behind as Justin turned around to look at him with a thinly veiled expression that said _I'm onto you_.

"Yeah, right."

Brian huffed, silently admitting to himself that he wouldn't mind touching his favorite part of Justin's anatomy to assist him in mounting the horse. God, just the thought of the words _ass_ and _mounting _in the same sentence made him groan inwardly in repressed desire as his beautiful ex-partner peered back at him suspiciously.

He sighed. "Justin, I just mean if we're going to take a ride, you're going to have to get on top of Ceres, and in order to do that, you're going to need help because of your ankle. Now will you stop overreacting and just let me help you up? Or this is going to be a very short ride - and a very short conversation."

Brian held his arms silently out in an "_I don't mean any harm"_ sort of gesture until, finally, Justin nodded in agreement and walked over closer to the horse. Brian hesitated for just a moment, trying to decide how to handle the somewhat delicate situation, before he finally grabbed onto Justin's ass and helped give him a push up into the saddle.

Brian forced his imagination not to run away with itself as, mission accomplished, he quickly hoisted himself up into Eton's saddle and took the reins, peering over to see Justin placing his other, uninjured foot into the opposite stirrup. He took just a brief moment to consider how odd it seemed after all this time to see the two of them astride their horses again; it had been years since they had gone for a horseback ride together, but it still evoked all sorts of memories for him - _good_ memories. He cleared his throat. "Okay?" he asked as Justin nodded. He nodded back at him as slowly he gave Eton a gentle poke in the sides and the horse began to slowly walk toward the open doorway of the stable; Justin followed silently right behind him, just like they had done so many times before.

* * *

><p>The steady clop-clop-clop of the two horses on the dirt trail through the field awash with wildflowers was the only sound heard for several minutes as the two men simply enjoyed the warm, late spring day and the scenery; the clouds interspersed here and there only hid the sun occasionally as Justin rode alongside his ex-partner, the dirt trail wide enough to accommodate them both at this point. He really didn't have to ask where they were going; somehow he already knew that Brian was about to take him on a trip back to Memory Lane. He could tell by the direction they were taking that Brian was no doubt about to take him up to the waterfall were they and the girls had gone so many times before, where the girls would nap after wearing themselves out frolicking in the water and where THEY would wear themselves out by making love by the rushing water afterward, over and over again as the girls slept, oblivious to their activities several feet away.<p>

He had to admit - he was both inordinately curious to see what it looked like now and anxious in a way, because he knew it would bring back a lot of memories of the four of them together. It seemed fitting in a way, though, if they were going to confront their past and hopefully resolve it that they begin at the beginning. Was he ready for it? Would they finally be able to clear away all the hurt and forge a new path together? Only time would tell, he decided.

"I go riding a lot with Katie," Brian told him unexpectedly, breaking the peaceful silence as Justin gazed over at him as he spoke. Brian turned his head to look back at him as the horses slowly meandered toward the base of the mountain that wound up into heavily-wooded terrain.

"It's always so peaceful here," Justin replied as he admired the sloping land composed of fields and woods; it was the time of year when all the wildflowers began to bloom in profusion, and everywhere the eye could see were undulating, colorful waves of purple and yellow like a flowing, landlocked sea. He sniffled just then as Brian eyed him with scrutiny, knowing that Justin enjoyed the artistic beauty of the landscape but not the side effects.

"You did bring your inhaler with you?" Brian asked him as he raised one eyebrow in question.

Justin eyed him sheepishly. "Yeah, but I don't have it on me right now; I forgot."

Brian huffed in exasperation. "Justin..."

"It'll be okay," he told him firmly. "As soon as we get up into the mountains, it'll die down." He gave Brian a look then that distinctly said _don't pursue it and treat me like a fucking baby _as Brian wisely chose to obey, simply nodding in acceptance.

* * *

><p>Just as Justin thought, Brian chose to take the well-worn dirt path that he remembered took them up toward the waterfall the two of them had discovered so long ago; to his surprise, however, when they came to the familiar fork in the path that he recalled, Brian steered Eton toward the left, AWAY from it. "Where are you going?" he asked him, frowning. "You're not going up to the waterfall?" He was flustered somewhat by the disappointed tone in his voice, thinking that might be giving just a bit too much away, as Brian shook his head.<p>

"Not this time," he told him mysteriously. "There's some _other_ place I'd like to show you."

Justin eyed him curiously; he opened his mouth to speak only to have Brian add, "Just trust me, okay? You'll love it."

Justin sighed but finally nodded in acceptance as he and Ceres followed along behind, the path now too narrow for side-to-side traversing.

Finally, after approximately twenty minutes, he could see the thick canopy of trees beginning to thin out as they arrived at a break in the tree line; with Brian in the lead it took him a few seconds to get his bearings and figure out where they were. When he did, his mouth hung open in awe and he gasped at the sight. They were perched at the very top of the mountain in a cleared out area; to the left was a compact, cedar cabin with a stone chimney jutting out of the side and a small corral attached on the other end. A double ring of creek bed stones with approximately a 10' diameter was placed in a circle approximately 50 feet away, the bed of ashes inside attesting to fires having been built previously. The most amazing part of all, however, was the view. There had been just enough trees felled at some point to provide a 360-degree, panoramic view of the surrounding countryside; other mountains, gently sloping hills with what appeared to be cattle and sheep grazing, a meandering, curving river; even Britin itself could be seen, which from here looked much smaller than it actually was. The entire sight was like a painting come to life, and Justin found his hands itching at the thought of capturing it on canvas or in a sketchbook.

As if reading his mind, Brian reached down and unhooked one of the two leather saddle bags from Eton's side and retrieved a sketchbook with a graphite pencil lodged in its metal spine. Holding it out to him, he told him softly, "I thought you might want this up here."

"But how did you know we would even be coming up here?"

Brian shrugged. "I was hoping, I guess. I put it in there a few days ago; it actually belongs to Katie. I think she would be honored if she could share it with you."

Justin swallowed the lump in his throat over Brian's thoughtfulness as he nodded and reached over to take it, his hand brushing against Brian's and causing that old, familiar jolt to erupt once more. "Thanks," he murmured sincerely as Brian nodded.

He held onto it as if it were a precious jewel while his ex-partner deftly dismounted from Eton and walked over to his side to hold his hands up toward him in silent invitation. Justin huffed at the insinuation. "I'm not a child, Brian."

Brian's eyes flashed and a vein popped out on his neck in aggravation. "Damn it, Justin, you are the most stubborn man I've ever met! You want to try and dismount with that gimpy ankle, go right ahead! Shit." He shook his head angrily as he turned to leave.

"Wait!" Justin called out a few seconds later as Brian stopped and slowly turned around, lifting one eyebrow expectantly. He flushed in embarrassment as he admitted, "Maybe I _could_ use some help after all."

Brian rolled his eyes but nonetheless walked back to his ex-partner and took the sketchbook out of Justin's hand to place it on the ground. As he held his hands up, Justin twisted around in the saddle so he was facing Brian now as he removed his injured foot from the stirrup and began to slide downward as Brian caught him in his arms under the armpits and slowly lowered him to the ground, taking great care to help avoid Justin putting a lot of weight on the affected ankle. His hands slid down to rest at either side of Justin's waist, then, even though at that point it was totally unnecessary. He found, though, that he just couldn't let him go of him yet.

Justin's heart pounded as he gingerly applied weight to his injured ankle, relieved that it seemed to be doing much better now. His heart wasn't reacting to that fact, however; it was Brian's body pressed up against his that was causing all sorts of emotions to course through him. His ex-partner's large hands were clasped supportively around the waist, even though there was no need; somehow his own hands would up resting, palms down, on Brian's chest as he lifted his gaze nervously to meet his. Their lips were so close; just a few more inches and he would once more feel that mouth on his, those lips sliding across his as Brian's tongue demanded entrance inside. His heart ached to taste him again, but his head still held him back. Knowing that was typically the way they resolved issues and that this time, for once, they needed to engage in an actual conversation first, he reluctantly pulled away from Brian's embrace. "Thanks," he mumbled awkwardly as he reached down to pick up the sketchbook and pencil.

Brian sighed softly in frustration as he nodded, unable to resist admiring Justin's ass as he bent down to retrieve Katie's book.

As he rose back up, Justin tried to break the tension by averting his gaze and studying more of the scenery. He noticed a wooden picnic table sitting near the stone fire pit as he turned to Brian to ask, "When did you DO all this?"

Brian gazed at his handiwork and couldn't help smiling wistfully in memory. "About five years ago. Katie learned to ride just before she turned six, and she loved to ride with me up to that waterfall we always visited. One day we decided to follow an old deer track and it led up here. We both fell in love with the view, and I decided to build that cabin over there so we could take some overnight trips together and have someplace to stay for the night if we didn't want to head back right away." He paused as he looked over at the makeshift stone campfire pit and the picnic table as he grimaced. "We've had more wiener and marshmallow roasts over there than I can count. And Smores for dessert, too." He shuddered. "I don't even want to think about all the carbs I've ingested here."

"You wouldn't be caught dead eating that shit," Justin pointed out.

"Yeah, well, that was before Katie," Brian told him simply to his surprise. "I would do anything for her, Justin; for _both_ of them." _And for YOU_, he couldn't help thinking as he gazed over at him thoughtfully. "I've changed a lot since you left."

Justin swallowed hard; God, when he did stop being able to predict every move that Brian would make? Before, he could guess what he would do before he did it; now, it was almost as if a new man were standing in front of him. What more did he not know about him? "Sounds like you've had a lot of fun up here together," he told him softly.

Brian nodded as he hugged his arms to his sides and admired the vibrant, spring colors and inhaled the wondrous pine smells that invaded their surroundings. "It's been great," he told him, and he meant that. His daughter was a joy to be around. He chuckled a bit as he told him, "I didn't even know the right end of a hammer until I had a need to. She and I built that cabin ourselves," he told him to Justin's shock, a touch of pride in his voice.

Justin shook his head in awe; Brian was right. This was NOT the man he had left before. "You never fail to surprise me, Brian," he admitted. He cleared his throat, prepared to tell him that he was ready to talk now, but before he could say anything, though, Brian beat him to it.

"So where do you want to go and talk?" he asked, trying hard to keep his voice calm and level; inside, though, his heart was beating rapidly in anxiety and anticipation. "Over there?" he asked, indicating the picnic table sitting along the edge of the mountain. He knew better than to suggest they actually go inside the _cabin_ and talk; something told him if they did that they would do a lot more than just 'talking,' at least if HE had anything to do about it. Just holding Justin in his arms earlier had been bad enough. And besides, Justin would read the same thing into that request, so he wisely chose a different location.

Justin nodded. "Okay." Slowly he began to walk toward the table as Brian took hold of both horses' reins and led them over to the corral to loosely tie them to a hitching post before walking back over to sit beside Justin on the same side of the table.

They both remained there for a few moments in silence before Brian reached over to gingerly caress the ever-darkening bruise on Justin's cheek with the back of his hand. He watched as the golden eyelashes closed briefly before he murmured regretfully, "Shit, Justin...why am I always hurting you, even when I don't mean to?" He dropped his hand down onto the table in frustration and bit his lower lip, finding it almost too painful to look at what he had done. He shook his head when Justin moved to open his mouth to speak as he revealed, "I had a long talk with Michael yesterday. And he helped me to understand a lot of things."

His hands clasped together on top of the cedar table, Justin peered over at him curiously. "What _sort_ of things?"

Brian met his gaze as he replied softly, "About my motivations regarding that day; about why I did what I did that...Hurt you so badly."

Justin held his breath; this was what he had been waiting for all this time. "And what did you find out?"

Brian gazed into his eyes; he was done hiding. "The day before it happened? You and Ben were out of town; Michael reminded me that you had some art show in Philadelphia that weekend - at least he thought that was where it was." Justin nodded in confirmation, recalling that one-man show back then that had been so exciting; it had been his first solo show out of town, and it had gone quite well. That is, until he had come back home.

"Well, I picked Michael up at the comic book store and we walked down to Woody's for some drinks so we could do some catching up; if you remember, we didn't get much of a chance to see each other too much back then." That had been his choice, however; at the time, he honestly preferred to spend what little, non-working, quality time he had with his partner and his children whom he had adored - and still did. By then Michael had had his own life to live and so did he. He brushed his hand restlessly through his hair as he added, "We were sitting at one of the tables just having some drinks...And that's when it happened."

Justin frowned, not wanting to jump to conclusions and believe what he was afraid Brian might say, but he had to ask it anyway. "_What_ happened, Brian? You're not going to tell me that you fucked some other guy that night, too, are you?"

Brian's mouth hung open in disbelief as he stared over at him. "Fuck, Justin! No! That is NOT what I'm trying to say here, okay? Will you stop putting words in my mouth? Do you honestly think I was doing that on a regular basis when you weren't home? Because if you do, maybe we should just end this conversation right now!" He huffed out an angry, hurt breath as he twisted his torso so he was looking away from his ex-lover when he felt Justin's hand on his right shoulder.

"No, Brian," Justin replied apologetically from beside him. "I don't think that. I know you weren't fucking around on me. I think that's why it hurt so much when you _did_ that day. So help me to understand why..._Please_."

Brian turned around and stared into the wide, blue eyes as he finally nodded in acceptance, his anger slowly ebbing away as Justin removed his hand from his shoulder to impetuously reach over and grasp his hand in his. Despite their problems, it still felt so right, so perfect resting there.

Brian held onto it like a lifeline, finding that it gave him a little more courage to continue as he told him, "What happened is that two guys were sitting nearby, and saw me take out a photo of you and the girls to show Michael; you know, that wallet-sized photo of that portrait you had had taken as a Christmas present for me a few months earlier?"

Justin nodded, knowing exactly what he was referring to; Brian's look of unbridled pride and delight when he had presented it to him had made his heart so full of love for him that day. Not to mention that he had been well-rewarded later that night after the girls had headed off to bed by being lavished with a marathon round of lovemaking that had lasted until dawn. Just as if on cue, it had snowed furiously earlier in the day on that Christmas Eve, blanketing Britin in a pristine blanket of fluffy, white snow. He remembered sitting on the window seat by their huge picture window in their master bedroom, looking with fascination at all the millions and millions of diamond-like sparkles on the ground where the full moon was shining down on the newly-fallen snow. It had been so beautiful. And then Brian had emerged from the adjoining bathroom, still wet from his shower with just a white, thick, terry cloth towel wrapped low across his hips as he walked over and promptly, wordlessly scooped him up into his arms and literally carried him the few feet over to their bed to place him almost reverently down upon the mattress where he had proceeded to thank him properly for such a thoughtful gift. It had been one of his most treasured memories, and it had been such a magical night.

"I remember it well," he told him softly as Brian reached into his pants pocket and withdrew his wallet, opening it to slip out the same, well-worn and well-loved photograph. Justin looked at him in shock as he confessed, "I haven't taken this out of my wallet since you gave it to me. And that portrait still hangs over our fireplace in the bedroom."

Justin chose to remain silent as he digested that interesting revelation; in a way it surprised him, but in another way it didn't. Brian had already told him that he still loved him, and he knew how much he loved the girls. Brian had always treasured that portrait, too. But a glimmer of hope began emerging along with it; if Brian still had that portrait hanging over their bed, he doubted seriously if his ex-lover would bring tricks home to fuck them while they were staring at it. What exactly did that mean, however? "Go on," he pressed softly, wanting, no, _needing_ to hear it all now.

Brian nodded, his jaw set in angry recollection. "Well, Michael helped me to remember that there were two guys sitting nearby that watched me take it out and show it to him. I must have had this...this _look_ on my face. Hell, I don't know _how_ I looked! But then Deb called me on speakerphone to remind me to stop and buy some milk for Katie, and the next thing I knew I overheard them snickering and saying how much they never thought they would see the day when the great Brian Kinney had been," he took a deep breath before finishing..."had been _neutered_ by a blond boy toy. And how I had turned into some prissy little housewife who had traded in my briefcase for a fucking diaper bag. It just went on and on and on, Justin."

He looked down at his and Justin's clasped hands as he admitted, "I tried not to let it get to me. I knew it wasn't true. But it still made me so fucking angry." He shook his head as he stared straight ahead and recalled what had happened next. "They wouldn't shut the hell up! And when they made some other comment about how hot I would look in a frilly, lacy, white apron, it was too much. I stood up and coldcocked the fucker where he sat and kicked the other asshole right in his balls to give him a little taste of his own medicine."

He turned his head then to peer over into Justin's as he admitted something he had never admitted before. "And I was scared."

Justin frowned; that was not what he had expected from this normally confident man. "_Scared_? Of what?"

Brian sighed. "Justin, you _know_ what," he gently chided him. "You've always known me better than anyone else has. Scared of what it represented. Scared of being thought of as weak, as emasculated. Scared of fucking growing old. Scared of no longer being looked upon as the one in charge and the one who controls everything." He idly played with Justin's hand, drawing comfort from it as he added, "I was so angry when I heard that, and so humiliated. And that Monday, when that big-shot client showed up with his weak little faggot son in tow, it was so easy to go back to my old tricks to prove that I was going to prevail like I always did." One side of his mouth quirked up wryly as he added, "Well...You know what I mean." He sobered as he explained, "The presentation wasn't going well. The art department hadn't implemented any of the suggestions I had given them, and they had fucked up the font size AND the style by mixing it up with another campaign. The guy absolutely _hated_ it, and I could tell we were about to lose the account." He let out a shaky breath. "So...I did what I normally would do in that situation - with disastrous results."

He bit his lip as he stared into Justin's eyes, wondering exactly what he saw there. Understanding? Forgiveness? Contempt? At that moment, it was hard to tell. But he took solace in the fact that his ex-lover's hand was still being held in his and he hadn't snatched it away. "It was a stupid, selfish move on my part, Justin. And I've regretted it every day since it happened." He thought he saw just the beginning of tears in Justin's eyes as he whispered, "I know what us doing it bareback meant to you, and I know what it meant to me, despite what I did. And our girls mean the world to me; _YOU _mean the world to me. If I could have taken back what I did, I would have." He sighed. "But I can't, Justin. And now ten years have passed - ten _fucking_ years! I don't know where the time has gone. But we've been given another chance, and we can all start fresh now." He paused. "At least if that's what you want. But I have to know. I can't keep doing this. Either you have to forgive me, or we have to decide to go our separate ways, because this whole situation is fucking killing me."

A sudden clap of thunder unexpectedly boomed, making both of the men jump and breaking the tension just a bit. Justin actually laughed then as he said dryly, "You think someone _else_ is trying to speak?" Brian couldn't help grinning back at him slightly over the irony as he noticed the angry-looking clouds quickly scurrying across the sky, signaling an impending storm.

"Shit," he muttered in frustration, wanting desperately to continue their conversation. What else could go wrong? Another boom sounded, closer this time, as the raindrops began to fall slowly then more steadily, causing both of them to hurriedly rise from the table's wooden bench seat. "Come on!" he urged Justin as the rain began to pelt them now with heavy, fat drops. He began to run with Justin closely behind him toward the small cabin, struggling to locate the key to the door in his jacket pocket. There was no overhang at the front of the small structure, so they quickly became drenched as Brian tried to fish the key out. Finally, he jammed the key into the lock and turned the knob to push it inward as both men scurried inside to get out of the rain.

Both of them now soaking wet, they took a moment to shake the water from their clothes. Brian couldn't help secretly ogling Justin's appearance; he looked just like the proverbial, drowned rug rat, but fuck, the look definitely wore well on him. Justin's hair was plastered to his face, and there were tiny droplets kissing his eyelashes, as more drops slowly trickled down his neck; Brian longed to walk the few feet over to him and lick every one of them off, knowing exactly, even after all this time, what the skin underneath would taste like. And Justin's long-sleeved tee shirt was molded to him, revealing every delicious curve of his chest and two, erect nipples poking out from underneath. He was wearing jeans that were made of heavy denim, but even so, it didn't take too much imagination to fill in the parts that he couldn't see very well through the outline of the fabric. He had to bite back a groan of unrepressed desire as he watched Justin look around the room curiously as he hugged his hands around his chest to try and keep from shivering after the unexpected shower.

Justin, on the other hand, was curious about the inside of the cabin, but he was also using it as an excuse not to look at Brian; he had taken one quick look at the wet hair sticking to his ex-partner's head when they had first come in, and it merely served to make him recall that first night they had met and he had been indoctrinated into the wondrous world of gay, man-on-man sex. That day was the day that changed his life and the day he had fallen in love with Brian, and he had never been the same again.

He glanced around the room now, his artistic eye immediately liking the simplicity that he saw. Over in one corner was a table and chairs for two, apparently made out of the same cedar wood as the picnic table. The table was located directly underneath one of three large windows and faced the south side of the mountain where one could look out and admire the amazing view as they ate. In one corner was a futon with a rustic, braided, moose print with a rough-hewn, pine coffee table in front. On the opposite wall, nestled into a corner angle, was a twin-sized bed with the same print as the futon. There was a stainless steel sink set up next to the kitchen table, built into a pine vanity and some cabinets overhead the sink, but other than that, it was decidedly Spartan. The most dramatic part of the room was the huge stone fireplace and mantle opposite the table and chairs; it took up practically one entire wall of the cabin.

"You like it?" Brian asked softly from the other side of the room as Justin finally risked peering over at him; God, what a mistake! He was even sexier all wet and bedraggled looking than he had imagined he would be. And by the intense look he was receiving, he had a feeling he was having the same effect on Brian as well. He flushed in reaction, trying hard to still his beating heart as he nodded. "It's simpler than I would have thought you might have made it, but it fits." Brian nodded in satisfaction, pleased that Justin liked it. He walked over to the massive, stone fireplace as he said, "I really like this," he told him as he lightly swept the pads of his fingers over the partly rough/partly smooth, gray rocks. "You didn't build this by yourself, did you?"

Brian grinned. "No, I haven't changed THAT much. Katie and I built the outside; I had a construction crew build the inside. I might be more familiar with a hammer now, but when it comes to the most complicated shit, I still bow to the experts." He noticed then that Justin shuddered, realizing he must be chilled from the sudden, late spring rainstorm; he always DID seem to be more susceptible to such things. Walking over to the left side of the fireplace, he pulled out three logs from the built-in wood holding bin and pushed the mesh chain of the fireplace aside to place them inside along with a small, wood starter block. "It's not really the time of year I normally build one of these," he explained as he plucked a long, wooden match out of a cylindrical container on the hearth and ignited it against the flint on the bottom. "But this'll warm us up after being caught in that rain." A couple minutes later, the small wood starter log caught fire and it wasn't long before the crackling of wood could be heard as the fire heated up the room.

His breath caught in his throat as he turned around and drunk in the amazing site of his ex-lover's form again, his eyes slowly raking over every delectable inch as he added, "I keep telling Katie that we need some artwork over the fireplace; one of these days I'll bring one of her framed sketches up here and hang it up. Or maybe one of yours AND hers." He stared pointedly at Justin, who had remained silent all this time before he asked one of the questions he had to have the answer to. "That is, if you're planning on sticking around here long enough to do that." He peered into Justin's eyes as his lips curled inwardly, suddenly feeling insecure and unsure of what was going to happen. He couldn't tell by the look on his ex-partner's face what he was thinking, and it unnerved him. He took a deep breath before he plunged back in. "Justin? ARE you going to stick around after the custody agreement is revised?" He didn't have to spell out what he was trying to say; both of them knew what he meant.

Justin shivered; partly from the dampness now permeating every pore of his body from the unexpected rainstorm, but partly from the hopeful tone of Brian's voice. A bright flash of lightning lit up the room just then, followed quickly by a loud boom of thunder as he slowly walked toward Brian, their eyes locking onto each other's as the fire continued to blaze anew; _both_ fires.

It was when he was inches away from Brian when he finally spoke. Raising his hand to lay it lightly across Brian's cheek, he began, "I have quite a few things I'll have to wrap up in Chicago first..."

Brian's heart leapt at that statement. Did that mean...? He had to be sure. He turned his neck so he could feel Justin's hand more firmly on his face as his ex-partner slowly began to stroke it with his long fingers. "Are you saying that you'll move back here for good? That...?"

Justin slowly nodded. "I'm saying that yes, I'll put my condo on the market and Kaylee and I will move back here so we can be closer to you and Katie."

Brian reached up to cup Justin's hand against his face before linking their fingers together and placing their twined hands against his chest. "Justin, is that ALL it means? I have to know. Say it."

Justin gazed into the eyes that were boring into his; the intensity of Brian's stare was both unnerving as well as unexpectedly open. He hoped that his own eyes reflected the same depth of emotion as he finally said the words that Brian had been waiting forever to hear. "No, that's not all it means. It means that I've been a stupid, stubborn ass for far too long; Gus was quick to point that out to me," he told him dryly before his voice sobered. "It's time to finally try and put things right again between us. I won't move Kaylee and me back into Britin, though, at least not yet," he clarified to Brian's slight disappointment, "but maybe we'll find a small house or condo somewhere nearby to rent for a while until you and I can figure out where to go from here and the girls can continue to bond with each other. Maybe Gus would agree to stick around for a while longer, if he can, too, so Kaylee can get to know him better. I think after our talk earlier, we've reached an understanding..."

"Justin..." _I have to hear you say it._ "Do you...?"

Justin reached up with his free hand to place his fingers across Brian's mouth to silence him. "Yes, Brian," he whispered in response. "Yes...I forgive you; I already have. And I hope that YOU will forgive ME for breaking my promises to you, too, and for hurting you...with _him_." He couldn't bring himself to say Ethan's name; neither of them wanted to spoil this moment by bringing up that era again. Besides, right now, that was the last thing on either of their minds. They both wanted to move on; no matter how much they might have wanted to stop time and rewind the past decade, they both knew they couldn't do that.

The rain began to pelt against the large windows now as Brian reached up and gently brushed the wet hair away from Justin's bangs before he took his other hand in his; a large, monstrous weight felt like it had just been lifted from his heart as he brought Justin's hand up to his mouth to kiss the curled fingers before he whispered, "You know I do. I did that a long time ago, too."

Justin nodded as he swallowed the lump in his throat and admitted what the girls already had told him. "I never stopped loving you all this time."

Brian gazed down at him wistfully. "Neither did I. Not once." He sucked in a shaky breath. "I tried; God, I tried so hard to forget you, to stop loving you, to try and ease all the fucking pain. But every time I saw Katie, I saw YOU there. And everywhere I looked inside the house, it just reminded me of _you_." He laid their clasped hands against his chest, his heart beating wildly beneath them as he told him, "I could never let Katie go up to your studio, not without you there. I couldn't stand to be in there anymore, either. I always hoped that one day, though...One day you would be back up there painting, but I didn't know..."

"I will," Justin assured him. "I want nothing more than to paint again at Britin - and share that passion with our daughter." He shook his head in regret. "Brian, we've wasted so much fucking time because of my..."

"Shh," Brian stopped him. "I don't want to live in the past anymore, Justin; I want to plan for our future instead." He eyed Justin questioningly for a moment, seeking silent permission, before he couldn't wait any longer. He leaned down and gently nuzzled the side of Justin's neck with his lips. Becoming emboldened further when he heard a slight sigh of appreciation from his ex-lover, his tongue slid out from between his slightly-parted lips as it took a slow path down the side of the tender flesh, lapping up the slightly salty raindrops as it went. "Fuck, Justin, do you know how long I've waited for this? How many wet dreams I've had about this?" he murmured against him as he tasted the unique nectar that was only his ex-partner's; Justin's response was a throaty groan as he arched his neck in the opposite direction to give him better access to the sweet target, his hands breaking off with Brian's to grasp him by the shoulders. It was almost like a feeling akin to drowning, but he fervently hoped that he would be pulled even further under if it felt as wonderful as this.

He continued to be inexorably lost in a haze of desire and lust, born of their history together. As Brian continued to nibble, kiss and lick the flesh of his neck, all the feelings he had been trying so hard to tamp down for so long came rising instantly to the surface. He held onto Brian's shoulders for a few moments longer to try and steady himself as he clutched at the fabric of Brian's drenched shirt. "Brian..." he finally managed to whisper out; that apparently inflamed his ex-lover's passion even more, however, as suddenly his face was grasped firmly on either side by a pair of warm hands and Brian's lips came crashing down upon his without any warning.

The kiss was feral, demanding, and possessive as he felt Brian's tongue pushing to enter between his lips; a moan erupted as he opened them and the kiss instantly deepened when Brian invaded his mouth. He seemed to swipe at every crevice as he angled his head firmly in his hands and continued to plaster his lips against his as their tongues became reacquainted. He could feel Brian's hands moving downward - shifting from his cheeks to his neck and then to the 'V' of his shirt when, suddenly, he heard a ripping motion and felt coolness on his now-exposed chest. That was enough for him to break off the kiss and peer into his ex-partner's darkened eyes and flushed face in stunned realization. "Brian..." he breathed out again in a pant, his chest rising rapidly in spiraling desire. Even through the denim fabric, he could feel their twin arousals between them as he wantonly rubbed his lower body against Brian's.

Brian growled at the action; his body aflame. "Take it off, Justin," he demanded huskily as he separated the two, tattered halves of his shirt and tugged at it in a clear signal for his ex-lover to remove it. Actually, he didn't really care at the moment; as long as he could feel and taste that smooth, pale skin that he had been craving now for so long, he didn't care if the remnants of the shirt were still being worn. To his satisfaction, however, Justin dropped his hands down by his sides and let the shirt fall to the floor in a wet, mangled heap as Brian tugged at his belt and used his leverage to pull him toward the small, twin-sized bed in the far corner.

The storm that continued to rage outside was nothing compared to what Justin was feeling; it had been so long since he and Brian had made love that it almost felt like some sort of a dream, but as he felt Brian pulling him toward the bed and his ex-lover's fingers working his belt buckle to unclasp it, he knew it was most definitely real. Encouraged by Brian's actions, his hands shakily reached over to begin unbuttoning Brian's shirt; he was apparently not doing it fast enough, however, for Brian's liking as a few seconds later he heard a sort of impatient huff escape his ex-partner's lips and he released him long enough to smack his hands away to grasp his own shirt and rip it open like Superman emerging from a telephone booth; buttons flew everywhere, causing Justin to giggle briefly before Brian hooked his finger through one of the belt loops and resumed pulling him toward the bed.

There was no question what was about to happen, what they both had wanted to happen since that time they had first laid eyes on each other in Chicago, and both hearts were pounding together in anticipation. Brian reached the bed and stopped just long enough to give him a brief but passionate kiss on the lips before his hands deftly unbuttoned Justin's fly and unzipped the jeans to yank them and his briefs down in one, rough, urgent swoop. His cock, heavy, full, throbbing, and leaking pre-come, sprung from its confinement as Brian's eyes dilated even more with desire at the sight. Justin couldn't take his eyes off Brian as his ex-lover slowly knelt down in front of him to begin pulling the offending garments down the rest of his legs, going excruciatingly slow as Brian savored each amazing inch being exposed to his admiration.

Brian yearned to skim his hands down Justin's thighs and his lower legs as he worked at removing the wet clothing, but he held off, knowing the best was yet to come - and come - and come... Justin managed to toe off his squeaky shoes to help just as Brian pulled the rest of his clothing away, including his socks, and threw them a few feet away, uncaring of how or where they landed.

It was almost as if they had been predestined to be together forever, Brian thought, as he rose to his feet and openly ogled now the slightly shivering body displayed before him; the flickering of the flames nearby seemed to dance upon Justin's pale skin, mesmerizing him all over again. It was all he could do not to reach out and curl his fingers possessively around Justin's majestic cock, reluctantly choosing, instead, to hurriedly open the fly of his own jeans; he had to struggle to shimmy out of them and his briefs because of how stiff they had become from the rain, but finally, after removing his own shoes, he was able to shove them down his wet legs and step out of them. The final item, his soppy socks, soon joined the rest of the clothing heap as finally they stood face to face with no more barriers between them.

Brian's eyes slowly traveled down Justin's toned body; he was even more beautiful than he had remembered, he decided. "Fuck, Justin, I want you so badly," he growled as he reached over and grabbed his ex-lover by the upper arms and ground his lips against his.

Justin moaned into the kiss as his own arms wound around Brian's bare skin, down his firm chest and then around to his back to pull him closer, feeling the smooth flesh and corded muscles under his touch. So many memories came flooding back as they became reacquainted with each other's bodies, and at that moment he realized nothing he had ever experienced with Alex would _ever_ come anywhere close to this intensity, this rush, this deep bond he felt with Brian.

"Brian." Justin spoke his name again breathlessly like it was almost a prayer as they finally broke for air; he felt thoroughly kissed and possessed, his lips tingling from the passion of Brian's ferocious onslaught as his ex-partner impatiently pushed him down onto the bed; he landed in a sitting up position, giving him a perfect opportunity to carry out what he had been itching to do ever since Brian had shed his clothing. He stared up into the darkened eyes of his lover reborn for just a moment, remembering another time in a hotel room so long ago. Their eyes locked on each other before he lowered his gaze to concentrate on his target; placing his left hand around Brian's waist for leverage, he cupped his fingers around the hard, pulsating flesh.

He thought he heard Brian suck in a breath as he took a tentative swipe of the pre-come with the tip of his tongue like a cat lapping up milk before his fingers tightened around the shaft further and he suctioned his lips firmly around the base. He could feel Brian's body stiffening in response and his hand almost painfully twisting in the crown of his head as his lips began to bob up and down on the hot silkiness.

"Ah... Justin," Brian breathed out in ecstasy; this man always could make his body react in ways that no one else could. The sensations were even better than he had remembered. "So good; so fucking good," he murmured as Justin continued to work his cock like a consummate master. He knew he wouldn't last long - and normally he would have been embarrassed as hell over that fact - but right now he didn't give a fuck; it just felt too damned incredible.

All it took was for Justin to remove his hand from his cock and cup his balls lightly in his palm before he let out a loud, vocal cry and felt his body grow rigid before he exploded in climax, his seed gushing into Justin's talented mouth. He placed both hands on top of his lover's head to steady himself while he rode the waves of his orgasm, Justin continuing to swallow and lick him clean from tip to base before he finally removed his lips with a soft plopping sound.

Placing his hands on Brian's waist, he slowly slid up from his sitting position to stand face-to-face with a thoroughly debauched Brian Kinney; his hair tousled, his face sweaty from exertion, and his chest still heaving in and out in the after throes of his passion.

"Fuck, that was...That was..." Brian couldn't even get the words out. Sex with Justin had always been extremely satisfying and exciting; Justin always could take him to heights of passion that no one else could. But this time - this time it was almost too much for words. His eyes darkened with lust, he reached around to squeeze Justin's ass possessively before he plundered his mouth once more, unable to get enough of the taste. It was exhilarating, it was dizzying; it was fucking intoxicating. He spent several seconds thoroughly investigating every centimeter of Justin's mouth before he broke off the kiss to nuzzle the side of Justin's neck, his hands all the time roaming, roaming everywhere he could reach. He could feel his arousal building once more and Justin's hard cock wedged between them, reminding him that he had a favor to return. But he was selfish, he had to be inside when he climaxed; he wanted _more_...So much more.

"God, I need to fuck you," he growled in Justin's ear as he reached down between them to grasp his lover's cock and stroke it as Justin moaned at the sensation, himself lost in a swirl of mindless ecstasy. "I need to be inside you."

He could feel Justin nodding in agreement against his lips as he continued to slide his mouth down the slickened, sweaty skin, licking and nipping to mark this man as his again. How could he have ever risked losing this?

"Yes..." Justin was lost in a haze of desire as Brian reacquainted himself with his body, his left hand skimming all over his back and buttocks as he continued to kiss, lick, and nibble his neck and collar bone and pump his cock rigorously. His body was quickly rising to heights of indescribable pleasure, and he knew he was about to reach the point of no return as he finally gasped out, "Brian...You, you have to stop, before...Before..."

Justin felt Brian's fingers still on his cock a few seconds later with a half-sigh, half-moan of acknowledgement as he raised his head to look into his lover's eyes. Brian nodded as he placed both of his hands on Justin's shoulders and gently pushed him down to lie on the bed. His ex-partner spread his legs to accommodate him as he couldn't resist kissing those plundered lips once more for several seconds, their cocks lying heavy and full between them and dripping profuse amounts of pre-come as he lay on top of him. Rising up just enough on his elbows to stare into Justin's eyes, he admitted, "I...I've waited so fucking long for this," as he savored the image of the ravaged beauty of a man staring back at him. The thoroughly kissed look was so hot on Justin, and when he was staring back at him with such lust and desire in his eyes like he was now, it turned him on even more than he could describe.

Justin's chest was heaving in barely-controlled anticipation as he whispered, "condom?"

It was like ice had been thrown on Brian as he realized a terrible reality. "Shit."

Justin frowned as he caressed Brian's chest and wantonly tweaked his nipples for good measure, making Brian gasp at the sensation. He shook his head; how could he have been so stupid? It took all he had in him to admit, "I don't have one." Part of him was vastly disappointed that Justin would require one, and part of him was enormously ashamed that they needed one in the first place. If he had been able to control himself so long ago, it would be irrelevant now and he would already be deeply imbedded in the wondrously tight ass that he was yearning to experience again.

Justin couldn't believe what he was hearing. "You have to have one! Your pants pocket?" He craned his neck. "One of the cabinets here?"

Brian groaned in frustration. "No, nowhere!" he verified. "Fuck." God, he couldn't believe this! To have come so far - to get to this point - only to be stopped because of a piece of fucking latex. That had to be the height of irony, poetic justice, or both.

Justin stared up at him in utter astonishment. "You're telling me that you don't have one condom in your pants pocket, or anywhere else?"

Brian bristled slightly at the skeptical look on his ex-partner's face. "Yes, Justin, that's _exactly_ what I'm telling you! You may find this hard to believe, but I don't grow them on trees out back and I don't keep them in candy dishes at Britin, either." He sighed in utter defeat as he twisted his body to roll off the smaller one and lay there on his side in disgust, his body still craving the release that only Justin could provide for him.

Feeling a pronounced loss now that Brian wasn't touching him or kissing him anymore, Justin turned on his side as well to face him, immediately discerning by the disappointed look on his lover's face that he was, indeed, telling the truth. He stared into Brian's eyes as he whispered in confusion, "I don't understand, Brian. You never used to go anywhere without one in your pocket or your wallet or _somewhere_. What changed?"

Brian sighed; did he really not understand after all this time? "Justin, I've been trying to tell you. Don't you get it? I'm not the same man you knew when you left. I had a daughter to raise who was depending on me. And...," he paused, almost embarrassed to admit it now, even after all this time. "...And after what I did, the last thing I wanted to do was go out and fuck some trick or anyone else for that matter. What would that have proved?" He averted his eyes almost in embarrassment as he grumbled, "Besides, it just wasn't the same after you left. No one would have ever come close to what we had."

The wood in the fireplace several feet away continued to crackle and pop as Justin stared at him incredulously. "Wait a minute; I have to get this straight, because I just can't believe this. Are you trying to tell me that in all these years, you have never...?"

Brian continued to gaze downward, unable to meet his scrutiny, forcing Justin to place the fingers of his left hand under Brian's chin and force him to look him in the eyes. "Brian, answer me," he demanded quietly. "Are you telling me that you haven't fucked _anyone_ since I left?" That had to be impossible for someone like Brian to sustain; he had always been such a dominant, sexually-driven human being. To live without sex for someone like Brian was like not having air to breathe.

"I haven't been a fucking saint," Brian finally acknowledged. "I've had plenty of blowjobs and given them when the guy was hot enough - and I was horny enough." He sighed. "But like I told you, Justin. I'm not the same person you used to know. I don't stay out until all hours of the night at the clubs or the bars anymore." He grimaced, wondering if that sounded pitiful. "Ask Debbie or even your mother. I spend more time with Katie doing things with her now than anything else. She's the most important thing in my life. If I hadn't had her, well, I probably _would_ have spent a lot of my time smashed on Beam or strung out on E or weed to dull the fucking pain. But I just didn't have time for that shit anymore." He stared into Justin's eyes, wondering what he was thinking. "You can believe me or not...But it's the truth."

Justin dropped his hand down onto the mattress as his mind reeled over this information. Would Brian lie about something like this, merely to impress him or win him back? That really didn't make sense, though; he _wanted_ to have sex with him; it wasn't as if he needed to say that to persuade him to. He was sure, in fact, that Brian would move heaven and earth right now to find a condom if he could just so he could be inside him again. He shook his head in amazement. "You surprise me, Brian Kinney," he murmured. He swallowed the emotional lump in his throat as he told him, "That just makes me want you even more right now." He reached over to push some hair back from his lover's face, Brian's pupils darting from side to side like they always did when he was emotionally charged up as he regretfully informed him, "You know I won't do it raw with you. You do understand why, don't you?"

Brian's heart sank; yes, he had expected that, but he still didn't have to like it. "You still don't trust me."

"No!" Justin immediately corrected him as he reached for his hand. "No, I mean, I DO trust you, Brian! I do. But...it's just that, well, I'm not quite ready for that just yet. I thought when we did it before that it meant we were never going back, that we would never need them again. But look what happened. I need to be sure this time, Brian." Now it was Justin's turn to look away as he admitted, "We _both_ need to be sure."

Brian frowned as a tendril of dismay threatened to bubble to the surface. He had never considered, _no God, not that_... "Justin, did you...And that asshole Alex...?" He couldn't even finish the sentence; just the possibility was too painful to even consider. He had never even thought about that, and now it almost made him physically sick to even think about it.

Justin's hand tightened in his grasp as his eyes widened. "No, God, no, Brian! We never did it raw!" He eyes flashed. "How could you even _think_ that? Shit!" His voice softened at the stricken look on Brian's face as he explained, "What you and I had was special, Brian; I have never done that with anyone else since then...And I never would." He brought both of their hands up to his mouth to kiss Brian's knuckles reassuringly as he added, "You were my first, Brian; for _everything_. And you always will be."

Brian nodded, enormously relieved - and silently smug - over Justin's declaration. Despite his past sexual history, in a lot of ways, _Justin_ was his first, too. First one he fell in love with, first one he gave his heart to, and the first one he really made love to - in every sense of the word. Before he met Justin, it was all just sexual gratification and fucking. With Justin, it was so much more. He had to know one more thing, though; he couldn't help it. "I'm glad, Sunshine," he whispered as Justin smiled softly back at him and nodded. "But, shit, I have to know. I would understand - I wouldn't like it - but I would understand..."

"...You want to know if he fucked me," was the perceptive reply; he knew his lover so well in that regard, even after all this time. Brian nodded in admittance as to his immense relief Justin confirmed, "No, Brian. I was never his bottom. I _did _fuck him; I wasn't a saint, either. And it's not like he didn't want to," he admitted truthfully. "But I just couldn't let him. After a while, he finally stopped asking, because he knew I wouldn't change my mind. I think that always bothered him, because he knew why I would never agree to it." He paused as he stared into the expressive, hazel eyes. "He knew it was because I had never gotten over YOU."

Brian smiled in pleasure over that statement. He ached to make love to Justin again with every fiber of his body, but if it meant doing it with a condom for the time being, he supposed he could live with that. "Well, apparently the man has some intelligence," he begrudged him. "The first thing I'm going to do when we get back to Britin is invade my son's stash of condoms," he growled as Justin's face blushed; even after all this time, he was amazed he could do that to him, but for some reason it made him inordinately happy. His face softened, though, as he added, "I hope one day we won't need them again. Would you consider that?"

Justin brought their hands down to lie between them as he pondered that question for a moment. He loved Brian; he had never _stopped _loving him. If he was going to trust him, he had to trust him all the way - with his heart and his body. "Yes, Brian," he told him softly. "One day."

Brian nodded, willing for the time being to accept that. Considering where they had begun, it was a big jump in the right direction. Having sex with Justin before without any barriers would make it hard to go back to condoms, but the alternative of never being with him again was much too hard to imagine.

"I suppose we should get back, then...to the girls," he finally said, a twinge of disappointment in his voice.

Justin raised one eyebrow at him impertinently. "Excuse me? You owe me a favor. I seem to still have a not-so slight problem that you need to address." Justin took Brian's hand and laid it over his rock-hard cock, still aching for release. He now regretted having stopped Brian earlier, but something told him that was about to be rectified as Brian leered at him in a way that made him flush.

Brian smirked as he squeezed the hot, silky, pulsating flesh, hearing Justin grunt in appreciation. "I think I can take care of that for you," he assured him, his mouth salivating, in fact, at the thought. His hand wasn't going to be nearly enough, though; his lips ached to wrap themselves around that flesh, and they would - soon. Leaning in to kiss the full lips briefly, he whispered huskily against Justin's cheek, "Tell me you'll stay in my bed tonight." He pulled back to look at Justin's face, finding that he was holding his breath as he waited for a response.

"If I say no, are you still going to blow me?" Justin asked curiously, one eyebrow raised in question, adrenaline rushing through his body at the thought of finally being with Brian again - completely.

"Would it matter if I didn't?" was the saucy reply.

Justin gazed into his eyes, unable to lie. "No," he whispered honestly. "I would still be there."

Brian nodded, mesmerized by the intense look in Justin's eyes as he peered back at him without blinking. "But you still won't move back in. Why waste money on another place, Justin?"

"Brian..." He sighed. "It's not just us now; it's the girls, too. I want to get it right this time; for all of us. I..I just need some more time to make sure. Okay?"

Brian leaned in to nudge Justin's nose, Eskimo-style, bringing back so many older memories for both of them. It was such a 'Brian-esque' thing for him to do. "I don't like it," he growled softly as he leaned back just enough to look Justin in the eye. "But I guess I can live with it - for now. Just don't expect the girls to like it especially."

Justin grinned back at him wryly. "No, something tells me they probably won't. But it will be a start. For ALL of us." Brian nodded in acceptance as his lover groused, "Now would you get on with it, already? I'm a lot younger than you are - and a lot more impatient."

Brian snorted. "I'll let that age comment pass, Sunshine. For now. And as for the _other_ part - I always WAS a man of action." Swiftly, before Justin even had time to react, Brian grabbed his cock by the base with one hand and pushed him down to lie flat on the bed with his other as he engulfed his dick in his hot, probing mouth and Justin gasped at the incredible feeling overwhelming him.

He curled his toes in exquisite pleasure as Brian lay on top of him and his tongue began to make some crazy sort of swirling motion around his cock while he used his fingers to lightly stroke the underside of the base as he continued to suckle him. "Fuck!" he cried out as he blindly reached to fist Brian's hair with one hand while he grabbed a hold of the bedspread with the other. "Brian," he moaned out as his lover reintroduced himself at long last. "God, I've missed you," he breathed out as his entire body began to spark with an electric rush.

Brian placed his hand on one pale hip to hold Justin firmly in place as he tasted the sweet/musky scent of his lover. It was every bit as alluring as before, if not more so. The mewing sounds and mantra constantly issuing forth now from Justin's lips encouraged him further as he sped up his ministrations, bobbing his head up and down on the thick, leaking head as he felt Justin's body stiffening beneath him. He released Justin's cock just enough to peer up into the flushed face, seeing Justin's eyes squeezed shut in almost unbearable pleasure. "Give it to me, Justin," he growled as he plastered his lips around the unyielding head even more tightly and began to suck anew. Justin was now arching his back up to ram his cock further down Brian's throat as his moans grew louder and louder until he finally emitted one, last vocal cry and exploded into Brian's willing mouth.

Brian eagerly lapped up every drop as Justin's body collapsed spent onto the bed in a boneless heap, his breaths still ragged and shallow as he tried to come down from his high. Brian slowly crawled up his body until they were lying chest to chest and he could stare into the sweaty, exhausted face. Brushing back some hair from his lover's forehead, he leaned in to steal one more lazy kiss as he whispered, "Was it everything you remembered?"

Justin's face broke out into a wistful smile of memory as he answered precisely the way Brian had hoped he would: "Yes...And more. _Much _more."

* * *

><p><em>One Hour Later<br>_

"Well, Scout, any sign yet?" Gus glanced over in amusement at his sister as she continued to kneel on her bedroom's window seat, her eyes plastered against a set of binoculars she had procured from the coat closet downstairs. Normally they were used by her and their father on their camping trips to spot interesting wildlife; today, however, they were serving a much more important purpose.

Katie sighed in response, but refused to leave her perch. "Not a thing," she reported in disappointment, keeping her eyes peeled on the large expanse of glass that overlooked the trails leading down from the mountain range behind the house and the stables. She figured that was where her two fathers had gone; there weren't any signs of them in the meadow or the pasture, and if they HAD gone horseback riding, they had to be on one of the dirt trails somewhere. That left the wooded path leading up into the mountains. Even though she had no idea what was happening - she knew there was no cell phone signal up there and besides, she didn't have the nerve to try and call them - she clung to the knowledge that they had been gone for a few hours now. If things had gone badly, she reasoned, they would have been back long ago - wouldn't they?

The rain, which had come down in torrents earlier, had ended a short time ago and the sun had soon reappeared with a vengeance, creating a brilliant, rare, double rainbow that had risen in the sky immediately over the stables. She had taken just a moment to hurry and retrieve her digital camera to record the wondrous sight for use in some sketches later, but had quickly scooped the binoculars back up to return to her post where she presently maintained a vigilant pose.

"Your grandmas sent me up here to bring you down to dinner," he told her. "It's getting cold." They had arrived a short time ago to check up on Kaylee's condition with Daphne promising to show up soon, all concerned about what had happened to her and needing to make sure that she was okay. They had discovered, however, that if they wanted to see Katie, they were going to have to come and find her; like some soldier of Cupid, she had refused to leave her position since staking claim about an hour ago in front of the window when the time had stretched on far too long for her taste with no sign of her fathers returning.

"I'm not hungry," she called back to him, even though that was a lie; truth be told, she was starving, and she knew if her Grandma Debbie had anything to do with dinner, especially, it would be some of her favorite foods. But her heart was heavy with anxiety, and she had promised Kaylee she wouldn't leave her post until she spotted their fathers returning. She intended to keep that promise. "I'll eat later - after they're back." _That is, if I have an appetite for it by then_, she thought nervously. Her stomach was already tied up in knots while she waited.

The double rainbow was slowly dissipating in the sky when all of a sudden she spotted two figures on horseback emerging from the shadows of the heavy woods; she hurriedly turned the lens wheel on the binoculars to focus in on the movement as her heart skipped a beat. "It's them!" she squealed out excitedly to her brother. "Dad and Daddy!"

Gus's eyes widened and his own heart sped up. "How do they look?" He silently chided himself over that question, though, thinking how juvenile that sounded; would they 'look' any different if they've made up? How could they tell? Perhaps by their expressions? "Do they look mad at each other?" he couldn't help asking anyway.

Katie peeled her eyes on the two figures. They were leisurely riding side by side together, neither really looking at each other, though. They didn't appear angry or flustered, however; but then again, they weren't exactly smiling, either. What exactly _had_ happened up there? "No," she finally answered her brother as she shrugged, her eyes still glued on the pair. "But I can't tell _what _they're feeling by the look on their faces; they just kind of look...," she struggled for the right word before settling on "..._normal_."

Gus silently digested that information before Katie added something else. "But something's different," she decided, scrunching her nose up to try and figure out what it was. It soon came to her and her face broke out into a smile. _Interesting...VERY interesting..._

Gus lifted an eyebrow in question, his own dinner temporarily forgotten as he walked over to stand next to the window seat to peer out at his father and Justin. They didn't seem that different to him. "What?" he asked. "What is it?"

She couldn't help grinning widely now. "Well, they both have on a different shirt than the one they left with. I've seen the ones they have on now, though; they're some of the shirts that Dad keeps up at the hiking cabin." Their father being such a normally fastidious person, he always kept several changes of clothing up there, just in case he got dirty or 'they ran into a bear,' as he often liked to tease her.

"Well, well, well," Gus commented in amusement at the revelation. Katie was right; they WERE wearing different shirts than the ones they had worn before. Perhaps it was due to the heavy rain; maybe they had been caught in it, and his father had simply offered a couple of his spares at the cabin so they could get out of their wet ones. But the fact that they had apparently been up at the hiking cabin he knew his sister and father used on occasion was very revealing to him. It was both quiet - and private; very, very private. Of course, that could just mean that his father thought it was an excellent choice for some much-needed introspection, too. Or it could mean something else.

"Now don't go jumping to conclusions, Katydid," he gently warned her, but inside his own heart was hoping the same thing. Now that Justin was back and they had had their heart-to-heart talk and cleared the air earlier, it was obvious to him that both men still loved each other deeply. Only a resolution of their past differences would lead to a reconciliation, though. But he wanted his father to be happy, and he knew that his father would only be truly happy with Justin back in his life. "We don't know that anything has been resolved yet," he added as he placed his hands on his sister's shoulders.

Katie finally lowered the binoculars as her two fathers headed toward the stables. She turned around to peer up into her brother's eyes with resolve. "Well, there's only one way to find out," she decided as she placed the binoculars down and scooted off the seat.

"Where are you _going_? Your dinner is getting cold!" Gus shouted at her as she hurried past him in a blur. He stood there for just a moment before he suddenly shouted, "Wait, I'm coming with you!" Grinning like a co-conspirator, he rushed to follow her down the steps, his sneakers slipping slightly on the polished, hardwood floor of the hall as they hurried downstairs in record time and headed toward the back of the house to the kitchen.

The two grandmothers and Kaylee looked up, startled, as they suddenly appeared near the kitchen bar counter; they had elected to eat casually in the kitchen rather than in the dining room tonight.

"_There_ you are!" Jen responded with a relieved smile as Katie suddenly appeared nearby. "Come and eat while your dinner is still warm, Katie."

"No time!" Katie shouted as she rushed toward the sliding glass doors leading to the backyard. She turned to stare over at her sister, who was sitting on one of the barstools, much like they used to do so long ago when they had breakfast with their fathers. "They're back!" she cried out in glee as her sister's eyes lit up. "And I'm going to the stables to find out what happened!"

"I want to go, too!" Kaylee replied excitedly as she began to slide off the stool; it was four feet high off the ground, however, and as she tried to place her left foot on a bottom rung of the stool to get down, her foot get caught in it and she began to topple off. The women nearby gasped in alarm, but fortunately Gus managed to catch her by the upper arms and steady her and the stool until she could dislodge her foot. Not wanting to take any chances, he scooped her up into his arms as he scolded her, "Now listen, Kaylee. We just got you back on the mend; don't go doing something else to make you wind back up in the hospital, okay? Why don't I carry you just this once?"

Kaylee beamed at her big brother as Gus smiled down at her affectionately; they had only known each other for a short time now, but already she liked the idea of having a protective, older brother. She nodded up at him almost shyly as she slid her arms around his neck and nodded in agreement.

The two women exchanged a relieved glance as Jen asked, "Honey, do you think that's wise? Like Gus said, you did just get out of the hospital and it's getting a little chilly out there now. And you haven't eaten all your dinner yet. Why don't you just wait until they..."

"No!" Kaylee replied, her chin jutting out determinedly. "I can't wait to see what happened! I have to go; this means everything, Grandma, don't you realize that? I'll be careful and Gus will be with me. Please?" she begged them, noticing her sister getting a major head start on her as she slid the door open and took off at a run toward the stables. "Let me go; they'll be back any minute now!"

Jen and Debbie looked at each other; they were as anxious to find out what happened as their granddaughters were. They weren't sure how Justin and Brian would feel about being confronted the moment they returned, but Katie had already rushed out the door and would not be deterred; they might as well let the rest of the army go, too, then. They only hoped the girls weren't in for a major disappointment. Debbie shrugged and nodded before Jennifer told them, "Okay. I guess we can't stop you anyway." She opened her mouth to add that she hoped it was good news, but it was too late; Gus and Kaylee had already hurried to catch up with Katie.

Jennifer sighed. "I hope they were able to work things out," she murmured as she watched the pair disappear from sight. She felt Debbie's hand on her shoulder as she looked over at her friend.

"Yeah, Jen; me, too," she whispered.

* * *

><p>Katie arrived in record time near the stables; she pulled up short, however, and hid like a juvenile version of Nancy Drew behind the last marble statue of her and Kaylee just in time to see her two fathers arriving at the front of the stables astride Eton and Ceres. From her vantage point across from the building, she could see clearly through the open doors of the structure, providing her with the perfect opportunity to study her two fathers unobserved as they led the horses slowly inside and pulled on the reins to stop them. She quickly turned around and placed her fingers across her lips as she heard a sound behind her and her brother and sister hurried up to join her.<p>

"What's happening?" Kaylee whispered as Gus gently lowered her to the ground.

"Nothing yet," she reported tensely as three heads all turned around in perfect synchrony to observe what was going to happen next. They all instinctively held their breaths in anticipation as they watched their father dismount from Eton and walk the few feet over to Justin's side. They watched Justin slide sideways in the saddle and dangle both feet over the horse's body as Brian silently held his hands up toward him. Justin rolled his eyes in amusement, but his face slowly broke out into a smile of acceptance as he began to slide down the horse to dismount and Brian caught him in his arms to slowly lower him to the dirt floor. They stood there a few inches apart until Justin's hands wound around Brian's neck and he pulled his head down for a deep kiss that seemed to go on and on and on. Brian's hands, which had been on Justin's upper arms, slid around Justin's back to pull him closer as they continued to kiss, oblivious to their audience several feet away.

Kaylee and Katie's eyes grew wide as saucers as they watched their fathers making out like love-struck teenagers; it was hard to determine which girl's smile was wider as they both shouted out "Yes!" and gave each other high-fives as Gus tried frantically to shush them, but it was too late. Both men slowly disentangled themselves at the sound of their excited cry and turned to stare over at the statue as their two daughters slowly peered out sheepishly from behind it and Gus slowly rose up to his full height to disclose his involvement as well.

Brian and Justin grinned at each other before Brian dryly responded, "I should have known we'd have an audience." He reached over to give Justin one more quick peck on the lips while he had the chance, wanting desperately to be alone with him, but knowing that was going to have to wait for a while now before he called out, "Come over here." The two men broke apart, but continued to hold hands as the two girls and Gus came rushing up to them, three sets of eyes searching theirs expectantly. "We need to talk to you."

* * *

><p><em>AN: Thank you to my beta, Gloria.:)_


	27. Man on a Mission

_The girls finally get their wish - at least partly. Will Brian get HIS wish, too, before the night is over? _

* * *

><p>"I suppose you saw all that," Brian asked them as they all grinned back at them goofily. That was answer enough. He nodded as he stared into Justin's eyes. "You want to tell them, or should I?"<p>

Justin let go of Brian's hand to slide his arm around his ex-partner's waist and pull him closer, deciding he would speak for them, although he wasn't quite sure what to say.

Three anxious faces peered back at him as he finally looked at Kaylee and advised, "I'll be going back to Chicago in a few days." His eyes widened in alarm when her face fell like she had been struck by his statement as he realized what he had just said. He pulled away from Brian's side to rush over to her. Placing his hands on her cheeks and seeing her eyes glimmering with tears, he hastily explained, "No, no, Kaylee; listen to me! Hear me out! What I mean is, while you stay here I'm going back so I can put the condo up for sale."

Slowly Kaylee's face transformed into hopeful realization as she asked, "We're moving back here, Daddy? You and Dad really are getting back together, then?"

Justin glanced over at Brian for help as he interjected, "Not exactly, Princess," he tried to explain as Kaylee's face clouded over again. "Well, not at first. Your father and I have decided to take things a little more slowly this time and see what happens. When I get back, we're going to find us a little place of our own nearby so you, Katie, and Gus can all continue to get to know each other better and your father and I can work on resolving some things."

"But...you love each other," Katie protested as Kaylee nodded her head in agreement; they didn't understand any of this at all. It all seemed so simple now. They had seen them kiss...

But Gus understood; in fact, he would have been a little disappointed if they had just rushed back into their previous arrangement. He was finally beginning to understand that true, lasting relationships took time to grow. "I think that's a good idea," he told his father and Justin as he looked over at the astonished faces of his two sisters. "We all need time to get used to each other again. A long time has passed and things have changed since then." Before his sisters could open their mouths to protest, he turned to look at Brian and Justin. "But you two _do_ still love each other..." He realized as he spoke that he, too, needed that reassurance, although anyone who looked at what had just occurred between them couldn't possibly doubt it. He still needed for them to say it out loud for some reason, though.

"Yes," Brian answered firmly as he gazed over at his partner, his eyes revealing all he felt. "More than ever." Justin smiled back at him tenderly as he nodded in agreement as their hands reached almost of one accord to link together again. It was almost as if they couldn't bear to break off their touch with each other now that they had settled their major differences.

Katie sighed in frustration. She was happy, so happy that their fathers were united again. Then why did they have to live apart? Her mind churned as she desperately tried to come up with a better solution. "But, Daddy, the house here is so big. It's not necessary for you and Kaylee to live somewhere else. Why can't you live on one side of the house and Dad on the other? We never use the whole house, and it would cost a lot of money for you to find somewhere else to live. And just why did you two buy such a big house, anyway?" she asked, her nose crinkling in confusion. She recalled how when she was a lot younger she took inordinate glee in playing an impromptu game of hide and seek with her father; in such an obscenely large house, it wasn't hard to do at all. She could still remember how her giggling always gave her away, though, whenever she secretly watched her father standing there a few feet away from her, scratching his head in frustration over not being able to find her. Inevitably, then, it was her own doing whenever he eventually found her, not through his own initiative.

Kaylee smiled; she loved her sister's idea! Yeah, that made perfect sense to her, too, and she knew what an unbeatable combination they could be together. One sister against them? Maybe defensible. Two? Uh, uh...

"Yeah," she interjected as she walked up to stand next to her sister as she peered over at their father; she could tell he was hedging already. "You're always telling me how we need to be wise with our money, Daddy. Spending money on something that's not necessary doesn't seem very wise to _me_. And if we live in the same house, I can get to know Gus a lot better. All that driving back and forth would be such a big waste of time and gas, wouldn't it, Gus?"

Brian had to briefly cover his mouth to hide his smile as Justin glared at him in a sort of _you're being a traitor here _sort of way, but Brian merely lifted his eyebrows at him and shrugged before peering over at his son. "Yeah, Sonny Boy, you're involved in this, too; what do YOU think?"

Gus knew what his father WANTED him to think. Although, actually he was kind of torn; while he knew that made sense economically, was that enough of a physical separation to really allow them to analyze their feelings and make sure that they did, indeed, get it right this time? He glanced down into the hopeful eyes of his sisters as he warred with his decision.

"Well...I'm not sure, Katydid. There's a reason why they might need some time apart to think everything through here. I'm sure the last thing you want is go through this all over again."

"But that won't happen," Kaylee insisted as she came to her sister's defense, her lip jutting out in dismay. How could their own brother turn against them? "They love each other. They said so."

Gus nodded as he glanced over at his father and Justin. "I don't think there was ever a question of that," he told her; he was now absolutely convinced of it, and he now knew he hadn't quite heard the entire story of what had happened before from his father. "I'm sure they do," he assured her as he knelt down in front of Kaylee to talk to her. "And I know they love both of you, too. But sometimes you can love someone and still not be able to live with them. If love was all that they had needed, they never would have broken up in the first place."

Kaylee's eyes filled with tears as Katie bit her lip in an attempt not to mimic the same response, but she was finding it difficult as she swallowed hard. "But there must be another way; there HAS to be. We've come so far," she whispered. "Please, Gus."

Gus reached out and cupped his palm across her cheek. "I know it's what you want; it's what all of us want. But this time they have to be sure, Kaylee. They love you both too much not to get it right this time." Kaylee sniffled as Gus added reassuringly, "I'll stick around as long as I can so we can get to know each other better. And I can drive you and Katie back and forth as much as you need me to, so you'll see each other all the time." He smiled at her. "We'll have a lot of fun together, Kaylee, I promise. I'm glad I'm getting the chance to get to know you." He nodded over at Katie in amusement. "Because this one can be a real pain sometimes."

"Hey!" Katie protested, despite her sadness. "I'm the best sister you ever had!"

Gus laughed. "Well, one of them, anyway; now I have _another _one." He sobered a little at the concerned look on Kaylee's face, now streaked with the tears that were trickling down her cheeks. "It'll all work out, Kaylee. You'll see. Just give it some time, okay?"

But Kaylee stubbornly shook her head. "No...I don't want to be apart from my sister or you." She looked over at Brian, silently pleading for a solution. "Or dad. It's not fair."

Brian tightened his hand in Justin's as he heard his ex-partner say almost under his breath, "I fucking hate this, Brian." Brian nodded as he let out a frustrated breath. He understood why Justin felt the need to ease back into their relationship, but seeing the anguished faces of their daughters almost was enough to make his heart break in two all over again.

"Maybe there's another answer," Katie suddenly piped up as her heart began to beat a little faster over the thought. Her eyes lit up as she looked over at her father and suggested, "What about the carriage house?"

Brian eyed her sympathetically. "Katie..."

"Well, why not?" she countered as the idea began to bloom inside of her. "It's far enough away to be a separate house, but it's still on the same property. That way Daddy and Kaylee would have somewhere else to live, but still be nearby. It's just sitting back there empty right now, but it has furniture in it and everything. It's plenty big enough for two people." She looked over now at Justin, her hands on his hips. "Isn't that what you said you wanted, Daddy? To live close enough together so we could all get to know each other again but still have some breathing room? It's the perfect answer!"

Kaylee bit her lip anxiously as she and her sister peered over expectantly at their father.

"Well, yeah, I did," he admitted. "But I don't know, Katie..."

"You would already have a place to paint, too, Daddy," Katie pressed as she turned the screws a little tighter. "You can paint upstairs in your old studio; you'll need a space when you move back here and it's up there just waiting for you. Dad would never let me use it after you left."

Justin turned to gaze over at Brian in surprise. "You wouldn't? Why?"

Brian appeared a little uncomfortable as he finally explained softly, "I just couldn't. It just didn't feel right. Without you up there, it felt like I was intruding or something." Perhaps in the back of his mind, he always dreamed that one day Justin would be back, painting right where he had before. "You know that Katie's biggest wish has always been to paint with you."

Justin gazed over at his daughter as both pairs of blue eyes locked on each other. "Is that right?" he whispered as she nodded, her eyes wet.

"More than anything," she told him, and she meant every word. "Please, Daddy. Don't separate us all over again. I promise Dad and I will give you all the room you need. I won't come and bother you unless I know you aren't busy. And I'll even cook you and Kaylee dinner every night. I'm a good cook, aren't I, Dad?"

Brian grinned over at his crafty daughter affectionately. He didn't mind going along with this at all. In fact, the more he thought about it, the more he really _liked_ the idea. And he already knew how hard it was to say no to these two conniving, adorable daughters. "Yes, she is," he told Justin as he watched him beginning to vacillate; he could see the indecision written all over his face. "I wonder where she got _that_ talent from?" He paused for a moment. "You did tell me that you wanted to share your love of painting with your daughter, Sunshine; here's your chance. Admit it; it would be a perfect solution."

Justin's eyes filled with tears now as he walked over and swept her against his body to hug her, feeling like an asshole. "Oh, Honey, how could even think that you would ever be a bother, anyway? My God, Katie! Every day with you has been some of the most wonderful moments in my life!" He pulled back to gaze down into her eyes, holding her face in his hands as she peered up at him, her eyelashes kissed with moisture. His heart melted as he told her the only thing he _could_ tell her. "Okay, Sweetheart. I think the carriage house will be perfect for us. And as soon as I get back, you and I will paint something together, okay?"

Katie beamed in jubilation as her heart sang with joy. She nodded as she impetuously wrapped her arms around her father as he held her tightly against him. At that moment, all the hurt, worry, and disappointment washed away as she merely relished being held in her father's arm, and she felt like she never wanted to let go.

Finally, though, after several seconds, Justin loosened his hold on her after giving her one last squeeze. With a grunt, he let her go to look over at Kaylee. "Sound like a plan, Princess?"

Kaylee smiled at him radiantly and nodded as Gus placed his hand companionably on her shoulder. Things were suddenly looking up; not perfect, but oh so close, she decided.

"Okay, _Sunshine_," Brian chimed in. "You go off to Chicago and take care of your business, and when you come back you and Kaylee can move into the carriage house. All your art supplies are still upstairs," he informed him, liking this arrangement more and more by the second. He had no doubt that Justin might start OUT at the carriage house, but if he had anything to say about it, he and Kaylee wouldn't there for long.

"You won't have to bring anything back here with you except maybe yours and Kaylee's clothes," he assured him.

Justin eyed him with amusement, marveling at how he could be such a wonderful father to Katie and still be so naïve in other ways when it came to pre-teen girls. "...And her makeup and her soccer balls and her cats..."

"Cats?" Brian choked out with a pending sense of doom. "You mean those furry beasts that kept brushing up against my Armani pants? You know how much they charge at the dry cleaners to remove cat hair?"

Kaylee giggled as Justin grinned, actually enjoying the pained look on Brian's face. "Yes, one and the same. You know if I agree to this, it's a package deal. You will have to get used to cats roaming the premises. Kaylee and her babies are inseparable. Sure you don't want to change your mind after all? You can still back out." Although the more he thought over the idea, the better he liked it. Brian wasn't the _only_ one that felt pained at the idea of being any farther away than need be. Since his and Brian's tryst earlier at the cabin, he couldn't get it out of his mind. And if he had to leave tomorrow for Chicago, he wasn't going back there without satisfying one, particular itch, damn it.

"No," Brian told him just as he hoped, quickly weighing the pros and the cons; at this point, he would do practically anything to keep Justin close by - with one exception. "But they do NOT get carte blanche inside Britin; they are NOT going to be allowed in our bedroom."

Justin nodded back at him, not missing the reference to _'our'_ bedroom; just the thought of being back in their bed made his face flush with heady anticipation. "I guess that's reasonable," he told Brian as his ex-partner rolled his lips under, glad that Justin wasn't calling him out on his slip of the tongue.

"Well, then, what do you say we head back to the house for dinner?" Brian suggested as Justin nodded. He eyed his recently-injured daughter carefully. "Kaylee, are you okay to walk back up to the house? I can carry you if need be."

Justin grinned; he had an idea that wouldn't set too well with her. Anything that even hinted at her being incapacitated or weak made her quite obstinate.

Sure enough, just as he thought, her eyes flashed in exasperation as she replied brusquely, "I'm not a little kid, Dad! I'm fine."

Gus wisely chose not to mention that he had just gotten through doing just that earlier as Brian nodded and the five of them slowly ambled back up the walkway leading up to the house. Just as they neared the large structure, Brian reached over to grab Gus's sleeve. "Uh, we'll catch up with you in just a second," he told the others. "I need to ask Gus something."

Gus thought he noticed a knowing flush on Justin's cheeks as he and his father's eyes locked on each other before Justin nodded and placed one hand on both girls' shoulders to continue toward the back of the house.

"Yeah, Dad?" Gus asked once they were alone; he thought his father actually looked a little uncomfortable as he waited for him to reply. He soon found out the reason why.

"Uh, I was wondering if you might have a, uh...shit, this is so awkward!" Brian muttered as he nervously scratched the back of his neck. Who would have ever thought he would find himself in this situation? _Shit_.

"What is it?" Gus pressed, his face creased into a frown. This wasn't like his normally confident father at all.

Brian sighed; his almost aching need to be with Justin again warring with his embarrassment. It didn't take long for one to win out over the other, though. "You know how I'm always telling you to be careful?"

Gus bristled as he quickly misunderstood. "You mean behind the wheel? Dad, I haven't had an accident or a speeding ticket yet! Why this lecture _now_? Grandma Debbie SAID I could borrow Vic's old car!"

Brian shook his head in exasperation. "No, I don't mean about driving." He sighed. "I mean...About sex."

Gus huffed in irritation. "Dad, I'm almost an adult; I know how to stay safe. Why are you bringing this up now?"

Brian hesitated for a moment until finally he revealed what he really was trying to say. "No, that's not it. What I mean is," he said with a resigned look, "I need to borrow a condom from you."

"A cond...? Ohhh," Gus said in understanding, his mouth forming into a large 'O' shape and his eyes widening in realization as he let out a laugh over his father's expression. "_Now_ I get it." He grinned impishly. "Just one?"

Brian brushed his left hand through the top of his head as he admitted, "Well, maybe you could just give me what you've got - just in case." He was relieved that Gus HAD condoms; if he had struck out with _him_, he thought he would have quite possibly combusted due to anticipation and desire. That, or he would have quickly rushed out to the nearest drug store, whether it was ten miles away or not. Out here in West Virginia, it took quite a bit longer to replenish supplies. But some things were more urgent than others - and this was at the top of the list.

Gus laughed once more. "Oh, how I wish I had a tape recording of this," he replied as Brian promptly gave him a playful shove. "This is too funny."

"Well, you utter one word of this to anyone, and we'll see just how funny it is when I take Vic's car away and all your fancy electronics that I paid for, including your Iphone; you got it?" he growled.

Gus grinned. "Don't worry, Dad," he whispered in a conspiratorial tone, although no one was around. "Your secret's safe with me." He fought hard to wipe the grin off his face as he reached inside his pocket to retrieve his wallet, handing his father a couple packets of condoms that he always had at the ready tucked inside the currency flap. "I have some more of these in my shaving kit up in my room," he advised his father as Brian nodded. His face turned serious as he asked quietly, "Dad...?"

"Yeah?" Brian replied as he quickly slipped them into his jeans pocket and patted them as if he were reassuring himself that he would get to use them soon; VERY soon, if he had anything to say about it.

"Justin knows you're planning on having sex with him?"

Brian didn't think to question how odd it was to be discussing this with his teenage son, but then again their lives had never been traditional, either. He was just thankful that the two of them were comfortable enough with each other that they could be upfront about it. "Yeah," he confirmed with a sort of short, ironic laugh. "Trust me; he was the first to know." He grimaced then, recalling what had happened earlier. "I was not happy up there in the cabin when he asked me if I had one, and I had to tell him I didn't."

Gus peered intently into his father's face. "How did he react when you told him?"

"He was surprised."

Gus nodded. "Yeah, I guess he would be. I'm sure things have changed a lot since you were last together. But he wanted to?"

"Yeah," Brian told him softly. "Both of us did." _You have no idea HOW much_, he thought silently. He cleared his throat, suddenly feeling very odd discussing this with his teenage son. "Come on, we'd better catch up with them before they wonder what's going on."

Gus nodded as Brian clamped a hand around his shoulder and they began to walk toward the house.

"Dad?"

"Yeah, Gus?"

"I don't want you to get hurt again."

Brian paused just before they reached the back door. "Gus, we managed to hurt each _other_. But I really want it to work this time," he told him as Gus nodded. "It _has_ to work." For Brian, there could be no other option.

* * *

><p>A pair of concerned but innately curiously eyes turned to stare at Justin and the girls as Jen heard the back door being opened. She instantly wondered why Brian and Gus weren't with them, but as she looked at the girls' faces she got even more confused. They look like they had been crying, but at the moment they actually had smiles on their faces.<p>

"Justin..." Jen paused. "Wasn't Brian with you? And where's Gus? Nothing happened, did it?" After what had happened to Kaylee, she couldn't help perhaps jumping to conclusions.

"No, they're coming," he assured them to her relief. "They should be right behind us. Where's Debbie?"

"She's in the dining room, setting the table and pouring the iced tea. You're all just in time for dinner."

Justin nodded with a small smile as the girls walked ahead of him, stopping for a few seconds to let Jen kiss each one on the cheek. She gave each girl a look that clearly said 'what happened' as Katie beamed at her and winked before the two of them walked out of the kitchen and down the hallway side by side.

"Girls, go wash your hands before you sit down to eat," Justin called after them quietly as they nodded and practically skipped toward the half bath at the other side of the hall. He sat down in one of the kitchen stools and propped his head in his hands and let out a breath, trying to release some of the anxiety and stress that had enveloped him so deeply lately but that was slowly beginning to finally dissipate.

"Justin," his mother called over to him softly, her pulse quickening with hope over the encouraging sign her granddaughter had just given her. _Was it possible at last? _ "Can I ask what happened between you and Brian during your ride? Were the two of you able to work some things out?"

At first, she was afraid after what she had done earlier that Justin wouldn't answer, or at worse would tell her that it was none of her concern. But just then he lifted his head to peer over at her and her son's face seemed to relax as he smiled over at her in recollection of what had happened earlier. "Yeah, we did," he told her. "We had a long talk and cleared up a lot of things."

"Oh, Justin," she whispered as she wiped her hands on a towel and placed it down on the kitchen island to walk over to him and sit next to him on the same side of the island. "I'm so happy for you, Sweetheart." She leaned over, placing her hand on his shoulder as she gave him a kiss on the cheek. "The girls looked like they might have been crying earlier," she told him. "But they had these smiles on their faces when they came in. And Katie winked at me before she walked away. So I wasn't sure _what _to think."

Justin laughed softly. "Little sneak," he said affectionately as he explained what had happened and that he would be returning to Chicago to put his condo on the market.

"I can help you with that if you want," she told him, all too eager to help any way she could. "I'm familiar with some agents in that area and can recommend one." Justin nodded as she tried to verify, "So you're moving back in?"

Justin's eyes widened. "Whoa, not so fast, Mom. Well, almost, I guess." She eyed him in confusion before he explained what the living arrangements would be. He laughed. "I know, just like everything else when it comes to Brian and me, it's complicated. Kaylee and I will be moving into the carriage house out back until Brian and I can work everything out."

She frowned. "But I thought you had already done that."

Justin brushed his left hand through his hair. "Mom, after all the time we've spent apart, both of us need to be absolutely sure this is the right thing to do; not for just our sakes, but more for our daughters. I wasn't sure if the carriage house was such a good idea at first, but the more I thought about it, the more I decided that it really is a good solution. This way the girls can continue to be together and Brian and I can work on strengthening our relationship while we petition the court to change the custody agreement."

"You mean dissolve it completely."

Justin sighed. "I don't know, Mom. Probably. But I would say if we can just get it amended initially, it would be a good start." He bit his lip. "I just want nothing to happen to fuck everything up this time," he told her. He paused. "I do love him. More than ever. That's why it would decimate me - and Kaylee - if this doesn't work this time. Do you think I'm being _overly_ cautious?"

Jennifer shook her head as she smiled over at him tenderly. "No, Sweetheart; I think you're being very responsible - and a loving father. I would expect nothing less." She cocked her head at him. "You don't think Brian is being sincere?"

"No, that's not it. I really think he means what he says," he assured her. "I...it's just that so many years have gone by. In a lot of ways, we don't know each other anymore; at least not the way we used to. He's changed a lot; I'VE changed a lot. I need to make sure that we can love each other the way we are, not the way we were."

"Justin, he adores Katie; he's a wonderful father to her. And he will be to Kaylee, too; you'll see."

Justin nodded. "Mom, you have to promise me something, though..."

She held up her hands before he could finish. "I know...whatever happens it's yours and Brian's decision. Trust me; I've learned my lesson. You know I only want what is best for you and the girls. That's _always_ what I wanted."

He nodded as he heard a sound from nearby. His heart began to thump in his chest as he turned to see Brian sliding the back door open and Gus following him inside. Their eyes met for a few seconds before each gave the other an almost shy smile.

"Jen," Brian said quietly as she smiled over at him.

"Hi, Brian. Dinner's ready in the dining room. Hungry?"

Brian didn't quite get a chance to answer the question, however, before they were soundly interrupted.

"THERE you are!" Debbie scolded the two boys as she walked back into the kitchen. "Dinner's getting cold and the girls are waiting for you. Lasagna tastes like shit when it's cold," she groused.

"Yes, Ma'am," Brian told her dutifully with his tongue rolled into his cheek as he walked up to her and gave her a brief hug and a kiss on the cheek. Secretly, dinner was the _last_ thing on his mind at the moment. Now that Gus had given him what he needed so badly, there was something _else_ he needed desperately to do - be alone at last with his ex-partner. Food could wait; right now he had a much different hunger he needed to assuage.

Unable to find a good way to tell Debbie that he was turning down her famous lasagna, and unwilling to incur her wrath at the moment, however, he sighed in resignation as he turned to walk over toward Justin, intending to follow him into the dining room.

"Just a minute," Debbie grumbled as they both turned to face her. "Jen, would you tell the girls we'll be right there? And let them go ahead and start eating if they want to. You, too, Gus; I have something to discuss with these two."

Gus tried to keep the smile off his face as he nodded; he knew his grandmother well enough to have a good inkling what she needed to know. She was probably more curious at the moment than anyone else. "Sure, Grandma," he told her as he and Jen walked the short distance into the dining room to join the two girls.

"Debbie...the lasagna's getting cold."

"Nice try, Brian, but that's what microwaves are for." All of a sudden, Brian noticed her opinion had changed about cold lasagna. He noticed her staring intently at both of them as she demanded, "Well?"

Brian arched an eyebrow at her. "Well, what?"

"You _know _what! I want to know what's going on with the both of you. Have you two finally come to your senses?"

Justin bestowed a slight grin on Brian before explaining, "We got some things settled, if that's what you mean."

"That's a start. And?"

Brian shook his head slightly in amusement. "Better tell her the rest before she explodes."

Justin smiled. "Well, we've agreed to give it another try...AFTER we make sure it's the best thing for us and the girls."

Debbie's initial elation gave way to exasperation as she placed her hands on her hips. "What exactly does _that_ mean, Sunshine?"

Justin glanced at Brian before he told her, "It means that I'll be heading up to Chicago tomorrow to put my condo on the market. And when I get back, Kaylee and I will be moving into the carriage house out back."

_Tomorrow? _Brian was glad to hear that Justin would be putting their plans into motion so soon, but he also felt disappointed that he would be leaving again so quickly.

"Why?" he heard Debbie press. "Why not move back into the house? It's big enough to be a fucking hotel."

_Not quite big enough_, Justin couldn't help thinking. He had a good idea what would happen if he and Kaylee were to move back here. He needed to keep a clear head around Brian and listen to his brain instead of his heart. He loved this man with every fiber of his being; that was why he had to make sure they were going to make it work this time.

"Deb," Brian interjected before he could respond. "I agree with Justin on this." He reached over to clasp his ex-partner's hand and squeeze it for reassurance before dropping it. "We've been through a lot; the _girls _have been through a lot. And we've both changed since we broke up. We want this to last this time. We don't want any questions remaining about whether this is the right thing to do. So this is the best arrangement for now. The girls can come and go as they please - and Justin and I can get to know each other all over again."

Justin continued to be amazed by the changes in his ex-partner as Brian gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and walked down the hall to the bathroom to wash up. His ex-partner truly had gone through a metamorphosis for his daughter's sake since their separation. He had a feeling that he was going to enjoy getting to know this hybrid version of his ex-partner immensely.

* * *

><p>Unbeknownst to Justin, however, Brian wasn't just heading into the bathroom to wash his hands before dinner; he was on a mission. A mission to find something that he desperately needed. He had been able to procure some condoms from his son, but now he needed lube. Almost frantically, he flung every drawer open in the vanity as he scrounged for a tube. "Shit," he muttered. There had to be a used one here <em>some<em>where. He wasn't about to let Justin leave before they finished what they had started up in the cabin. He sighed in frustration as he reached the last drawer at the bottom: his 'junk' drawer. After pushing aside several trial-size containers of shampoo, conditioner, and body wash, his eyes lit up as he finally found a half-full tube of KY at the very bottom. Smiling over his good fortune, he securely pocketed it in his jeans pocket just before he heard someone behind him.

"What are you doing?" Justin asked softly as Brian turned around to face him, noticing the bottom drawer of the vanity jutting out at an angle and items haphazardly askew inside. Normally Brian was very neat and tidy with his things. "Everyone's waiting for you to eat."

Brian curled his lips under as he drunk in the sight of his beautiful ex-partner. "I needed to take care of something important first," he told him in a velvety-deep voice.

Justin's face warmed at the look on Brian's face, even though he still didn't know what he had been up to. "What?" he couldn't help asking as Brian walked closer to him.

He watched as Brian reached inside his pocket and produced a very familiar object and his heart began to pound. So he hadn't been the _only_ one obsessed with that particular issue; it had been on his mind continuously, ever since they had had to stop up at the cabin. "Brian..."

His ex-partner pocketed the precious commodity back into his jeans pocket as he grasped Justin's upper arms. "Couldn't we just skip dinner?" he asked huskily, his eyes boring into Justin's. "You know how long it's been? There's something _else_ I would much prefer to eat."

Justin swallowed hard as his dick twitched in anticipation and his heart hammered in his chest. He knew only TOO well. "Of course I do," he told him softly, his hands coming up to rest on Brian's shoulders as they gazed into each other's eyes. He sighed. "But we can't, Brian; at least not just yet. That would be rude after Debbie made us dinner."

Brian huffed in irritation. "Fuck the dinner, Justin!" he growled in disbelief; even now his ex-partner's country-club manners couldn't be discarded. He closed his eyes briefly as Justin's right hand came up to lie, palm down, against his cheek. Even that simple touch was enough to project him into a stratosphere of suppressed desire. He opened his eyes back up to stare into the expressive, ocean blue eyes and knew he was going to need to exhibit the patience of a saint. "You are NOT leaving here without us being together in every sense of the word." It was not an entreaty, it was not a question; it was a statement.

To his relief, Justin shook his head. "No. You know I want that, too." He leaned up on his tiptoes to give Brian a kiss just as a voice sounded from down the hall.

"Boys! We're waiting for you! How long does it take to wash your hands and take a piss?"

Brian sighed as their foreheads came together in frustration. "Not nearly long enough," he muttered as he stole a brief kiss from Justin before reaching over to clutch his hand. "Come on, Sunshine. The sooner we can finish dinner, the sooner we can fuck."

Justin laughed softly. "Well, I'm glad to see that _some_ things never change."

Brian grinned at him as together they walked down the hallway to join the rest of their family.

* * *

><p>To Brian's relief, he wound up being seated to Justin's immediate right at the dinner table, which provided him with the perfect opportunity to start 'becoming better reacquainted' sooner than Justin may have planned; just because they had to endure dinner and some inane conversation for a while didn't mean that he still couldn't get the ball - or in this case, <em>balls<em> - rolling. His hand, therefore, somehow found its way to Justin's denim-clad thigh right after the main course was passed around the table. He managed quite well to eat his lasagna with his right hand while he slowly squeezed the firm flesh of his ex-partner's thigh with his left as everyone else ate their dinner oblivious to the other activity occurring right under their nose.

As soon as he made contact, however, he could feel Justin jolt under his touch and even gasp softly in reaction, but his ex-partner managed to hide his discomfiture well from everyone else at the dinner table as their two daughters carried on a lively conversation with their brother. Jen and Debbie, too, began to discuss some event coming up soon for PFLAG and were unaware of the unspoken 'conversation' being waged across the dinner table as Justin reached over and placed his hand on top of Brian's to firmly place it over on his own leg. As soon as he put his own hand back up on the table, however, Brian's hand was right back where it had been before, only it was slowly inching itself higher and higher toward his crotch.

Justin squirmed slightly in his seat as Brian merely smiled over at their daughters across the table, pausing occasionally to ask them questions about inconsequential matters as if he didn't realize he was groping him under the table: the horses, the swimming pool out back, whether Kaylee liked to play tennis (she did, in fact), and what sort of things they might like to do during the summer since both girls would be together for the foreseeable future now until school started in the fall.

"Daddy?"

"Huh?" was the 'intelligent,' half-choked reply as Justin's face flushed in realization that everyone was staring over at him; he had been so busy trying to continually remove Brian's probing hand from his body that he hadn't even noticed Katie calling his name. "I'm sorry, Katie; what were you saying, Honey?"

Katie frowned, wondering what was going on, but the expression was only momentary as she asked, "Do you like to swim, too?"

Memories of him and Brian skinny dipping in the pool under a warm, moonlit night came filtering into his mind as he nodded over at her. Back before the girls were born, it had been one of their favorite activities - swimming nude and then making love afterward. There was just something about doing that in the buoyancy of the heated water that made it so sensual and incredibly arousing...

"Uh, Daddy?"

_Shit_. He realized he had done it again. He cleared his throat as he thought he heard Brian snicker. "Yes, I love to go swimming," he told his daughter. "But back home Kaylee and I didn't get much of a chance to do that. Did the two of you go swimming at camp? I read where they had all sorts of activities in the lake there."

"Not like the ones we used to have," Brian whispered as Justin promptly turned red.

"Yeah, I got to go canoeing," Katie reported, unknowing of what was going on between her two fathers; Gus, however, was close enough to overhear it, and he couldn't help biting back an amused smile.

"Got to use a drill, too - on Sandra's canoe," Katie reported proudly as she looked over at her sister, who giggled at the memory. At the time, it was pretty scary when Sandra was on the hunt for her, but now that she and her sister were safe and sound, she thought her sister had been pretty darn clever.

"I don't even want to ask," Brian told her in reaction as he reached over once more to squeeze Justin's cock this time. Justin bit down on his lip to keep from letting out a moan or another gasp as he felt himself becoming painfully hard.

"Stop it!" he hissed under his breath at Brian as everyone turned to stare at him.

"Is something wrong, Daddy?" Kaylee asked in concern, seeing her father's face contorted into an odd expression.

"No, Princess, your father is just a little tired after our long ride," Brian politely explained as Justin tried hard not to roll his eyes while he was forcefully removing his hand from his dick. "Isn't that right, Sunshine?"

"Something like that," Justin muttered in reply as Brian grinned. Fuck, how he had missed this!

Debbie eyed them suspiciously, having a good idea precisely what was going on. While the two may have changed, apparently _some _things hadn't. She gave Brian a disapproving stare when she pushed back from her chair to stand as he merely arched an eyebrow back at her in challenge. "We have French cheesecake with strawberries for dessert!" she announced as she smiled over at her granddaughters, still thrilled to see them back together for a change. "Emmett's Aunt Lula's secret recipe. Who wants some?"

"Me!" both girls shouted out in unison as Debbie smiled at them and nodded. "Gus, Jen?"

Both nodded back at her as she turned to address the two men. "I don't suppose you want some?"

"Oh, I want some, all right," Brian huskily quipped as Justin blushed, silently berating himself over his typical response. Of course, Brian knew exactly what he was doing, too. "But I think I'll pass on dessert." He yawned melodramatically. "Actually, I think it would be a good idea for Justin and me to go check out his new digs out back so it's ready when he comes back from Chicago. It's been a long time since anyone occupied the carriage house; I think it might need some airing out and you and Kaylee will probably need some fresh bedding and groceries stocked." Brian peered over meaningfully at his ex-partner. "Don't you think that would be a good idea?" he asked, his intentions crystal clear as he pushed back from the table and stood up.

To his consternation, Justin merely sat there, however. Was he going to have to spell it out for him? Apparently. "Justin? Did you hear what I said? You look a little tired, too," he added for effect. "I think you could use an early night, especially if you're planning on returning to Chicago tomorrow."

"I'm fine, actually," Justin told him with a gleam in his eye as Brian's mouth hung open in dismay. "Almost like I'm getting my second wind now. I think that ride was very..._Invigorating_."

Brian reached over, however, to grab Justin's wrist and pull him off the chair. He grunted. "Maybe you'd like to go for _another_ 'invigorating' ride, then," he growled.

Debbie had to bite back a laugh at the desperate look on Brian's face as she told them, "Well, I suppose I could save you a piece, Sunshine, if you need to go take care of _your problem _first."

"Can you save us a piece, too, Grandma?" Kaylee suddenly beseeched as Brian's eyes widened in horror; he knew what she was going to say before she said it. "I'd like to go see it, too!"

"Yeah, that's a great idea!" Katie promptly chimed in as Justin had the gall to laugh at the change in plans. "We can all help get it ready for you!"

"No, Princess!" Brian hastily replied, grasping at straws as his daughter's lower lip stuck out in a decided pout. "I mean...there really isn't that much that needs to be done. Your father and I just need to check it over, that's all. It shouldn't take long." Well, that was a bold-faced lie; what HE had in mind might just take the entire, fucking night if HE had anything to say about it. He wanted to rememorize every delectable inch of Justin's body, and he was intending on doing just that.

Gus thought his father looked so desperate at that moment that he decided it was time to give him a hand as he interjected, "Dad's right, Katydid," he told her. "You and Kaylee can take a look at it tomorrow when it's light out. Remember, your sister just got out of the hospital and she was told to take it easy. She's already probably done much more today than she should have." Before the two girls could protest any further, he suggested, "Why don't we take our dessert upstairs to my room and check out the new video system I brought with me? It's really cool, and I have the new Mario Brothers game for it. It's amazing! How's that sound? I promise I'll take you out to the carriage house myself tomorrow, Kaylee; Katie's seen it a thousand times already, anyway."

"But, Gus..."

"Come on, Katie," he pressed. His sister could be so damn persistent sometimes. "You don't want your sister to wind up back in the hospital, do you?"

"Of course not!" she retorted defensively as she reached over to squeeze her sister's hand. "I don't want anything else to happen to her," she softly admitted as Kaylee smiled over at her. "You want to wait until tomorrow, then, and check out the game with Gus instead?" Katie asked her.

Kaylee bit her lip for a moment - and Brian held his breath - until she finally nodded; it didn't seem to matter much if she saw it tonight or tomorrow, and it might be better to see it in the daytime rather than at night, even though she _was_ quite anxious to check it out. "Okay," she agreed. "Would that be okay with you, Daddy?"

Justin smiled at her. He wasn't sure if he was happier for her or for him. "Of course," he told her tenderly. "And I think your brother is very wise," he told her as he smiled at Gus gratefully.

"Yeah, thanks, Sonny Boy," Brian told him as he surreptitiously winked at him. "I owe you one; uh, the _girls _owe you one." Gus grinned with a nod.

Jennifer pursed her lips together to keep from laughing out loud as she looked at the expression of vast relief on Brian's face; it was _sooo_ obvious what was going on. She had an inkling that if Brian and Justin were kept apart much longer, Brian especially would probably combust from lust overload. The not-so-silent looks of longing passing between them were almost palpable.

She stood up from her place at the table to begin gathering up the dinner dishes. "I'll help you clean up, Debbie," she told her friend as she looked over at the two men. "Sure you don't want any dessert?" she asked innocently with a knowing smile.

"No, thanks, Jen," Brian told her hastily as he grasped Justin's elbow and began to forcefully lead him toward the hallway and out to the kitchen. "Don't worry; we'll get our dessert soon enough."

"Brian," she heard her son respond in obvious embarrassment just before they disappeared out of sight. Grinning over at Debbie who rolled her eyes and shook her head in amusement, they continued picking up the soiled dishes as Gus and the two girls waited eagerly for their _own _dessert.

* * *

><p>Chapter End Notes:<p>

_Well, I had planned on posting the entire part I have been working on, but it wasn't quite done yet and I figured part of the update was better than none at all, so I'm posting this as a separate chapter. I AM working on the next part (yes, 'that' part - wink, wink), and it should be posted in the next day or so. In the meantime, I do hope you enjoy this chapter. Thank you for reading and for the continuing support, and thanks as always to my beta, boriqua522.:)_

Previous


	28. Unquenchable Fire

_The two fathers finally find some private time together and discover their passion flaring anew. *Smut Alert*_

* * *

><p>"I wouldn't have even thought about the carriage house," Justin mused as he and Brian approached the structure that normally would have served as either a guest house or as quarters for a caretaker. "Why isn't it being used?" he asked as he felt Brian's hand lightly pressed against his lower back, making him shiver slightly.<p>

Brian shrugged. "The guy who's been doing the landscaping for the last several years prefers to live off-site, so I pay him a little extra for gas. And Katie and I never had enough visitors here at one time to warrant opening the carriage house up for use. In case you haven't noticed, the house is rather large."

Justin snorted softly. "I noticed," he told him dryly as Brian reached around him to unlock the door. Justin felt Brian's breath on his cheek as his ex-partner told him, "I'm glad it's empty at the moment, though - because I can't wait any longer, Justin." He pushed the door in as he slid both arms around Justin's waist to pull his body back tightly against his, his arousal clearly evident as a rush of desire poured over him. "This is what you want, too, isn't it?" Never before would he have been so tentative, so unsure with anyone, but this was different.

He didn't realize he was holding his breath until he felt Justin place his hands over his and whisper, "You know I do." Brian briefly nuzzled the soft flesh on the side of Justin's neck, hearing a sigh of pleasure in reaction, before he pushed Justin into the room and managed to flip on the switch for the table lamps sprinkled throughout the open, combination living and kitchen area, instantly bathing the great room in a soft glow of light.

His heart pounding as Brian stood near him, Justin glanced around the large, open area. "It doesn't look much different than the last time I saw it," he observed. He turned as he heard a soft chuff of exasperation coming from his ex-partner nearby and he eyed him sheepishly.

"Did you come here to talk about architecture, Sunshine?" he murmured as he walked up to him. "Maybe a walk down memory lane is in order, but the furniture wasn't what I wanted to get reacquainted with. Did you?" He reached up to slowly stroke the back of his hand down Justin's left cheek, watching in fascination as the golden-colored eyelashes fluttered slightly in reaction to his touch.

"No," was the honest whisper.

"I didn't think so," Brian replied just as he grasped Justin's upper arm and slammed his body against his to crash their lips together. Justin gasped through partly-open lips as Brian's tongue took that as an invitation to deepen the kiss, their arms winding around each other to pull their bodies impossibly closer.

"Brian," Justin sputtered out breathlessly as they finally broke apart a minute later. "Did you...?"

"Damn straight I did," he growled as his hands began to slowly caress Justin's back.

"Gus?" he struggled to say; it was hard to concentrate with Brian's hands roaming everywhere at the moment.

Brian nodded with a smile. "I taught the lad well. Remind me to get him another video game for his trouble."

Brian rubbed his cheek up against Justin's like a cat playing with its favorite toy as he felt Justin shiver in his arms. He pulled back just enough to reach inside his pants pocket and produce the half-used tube of lube he had found earlier. "Looks like we have all we need now," he reported huskily, rolling his tongue into his cheek.

Justin blushed as Brian leaned down to kiss his lips briefly once more. "Good thing this shit has a long shelf life." Not able to wait any longer, he began to rapidly unbutton Justin's shirt. "Time you gave me my shirt back, Sunshine," he growled, not interested in the least in making sure Justin returned it. He merely wanted it off him - NOW.

"Not here..." Justin unexpectedly said to Brian's dismay. He frowned before Justin hastened to explain, "Bedroom..."

Brian smiled down at him tenderly in relief then, not questioning why he didn't indulge in his sudden notion to just tear Justin's clothes off and take him right then and there while he bent him over the couch. Fuck knows he wanted him - more than anyone he had ever wanted before - but his previous notion that they would barely make it into the carriage house before he fucked him senseless on the floor was somehow being transformed into something deeper, something more meaningful, something more powerful. He wanted Justin to know not only how much he wanted him, but also how much he cared about him and cherished him; how much he wanted this to work this time.

He nodded then as he took Justin's hand and pulled him toward the stairs going up to the loft bedroom on the top floor. He flipped on the switch to the upper floor just as they started to ascend the stairs, but he unexpectedly stopped all of a sudden.

"What?" Justin asked breathlessly, his pulse racing. "Brian..." he said a little apprehensively.

"I'm not letting you go this time," Brian vowed gruffly as he abruptly scooped Justin up into his arms and started to forcefully carry him up the steps.

"Brian!" Justin half-protested in embarrassment, but he secretly didn't mind one bit, especially when Brian leaned in to steal another kiss. He expected his ex-partner to put him back down as soon as they arrived upstairs, but Brian apparently had meant what he said, because he didn't release him until he had bodily carried him over to the bed.

Lowering his lover down onto the mattress with surprising gentleness, Brian took a moment to admire the man lying there. How many times had he dared dream about this moment? Did he think it would ever happen, though? He had wished, but he had just about given up on it...

"Brian," he heard Justin say then as he blinked to stare down into amused but impatient eyes that were boring into his. "Quit analyzing everything; come here."

Justin held his arms out as Brian promptly fell into them; they began to kiss furiously now as if a dam had been broken. Hands and legs entangled as Justin held Brian's head firmly in his hands while his lips were ravaged, bitten, sucked, and licked over and over again. He received a thorough tongue washing as his own tongue came out to mingle with his lover's before he managed somehow to flip Brian onto his back. Breaking off their kiss, Justin braced his upper body on his elbows as he stared down into the darkened eyes of his lover's, his heart catching in his throat at the look of unveiled vulnerability as well as obvious love present there. He knew that Brian could see the same sort of look on his own face as he felt the sting of tears prickling his eyes.

Brian frowned; that hadn't been the reaction he was expecting. "What is it?" he whispered as he reached up to tuck a lock of soft, golden hair behind Justin's left ear.

Justin shook his head as if to dismiss it, but Brian cupped his hand over his cheek to stop him. "Tell me," he insisted, his chest heaving and his breath coming out in soft pants. "No more keeping anything from each other, remember? What?"

Justin licked his swollen lips and swallowed the lump in his throat as he admitted, "I didn't think this would ever happen again. I pushed it out of my mind because it hurt so much, Brian. I never thought you and me - and the girls..." His voice trailed off as the emotion threatened to overwhelm him.

Brian gazed up at him tenderly, his heart melting, as he moved his hand to place it over Justin's lips. "I know," he whispered. "But here we are, Justin. We did it. And we're going to come out stronger because of it." Justin nodded as Brian softly chided him, "Now will YOU stop analyzing everything?"

Justin smiled at him sheepishly and nodded as Brian grabbed his arms and turned him onto his side before gently pushing Justin down so he was face up on the bed. He rose up onto his knees as he began to unbutton Justin's jeans, hearing a sharp intake of breath as his knuckles brushed against his lover's hardening cock. Smirking in the only way that Brian could do, he urgently told him, "Help me out here," as Justin obediently raised his ass so Brian could more easily pull his jeans and briefs down his legs; he licked his lips in anticipation as one of his favorite parts of Justin's anatomy was displayed to his admiring gaze. His and Justin's eyes met as he saw the faint glimmer of pink on his ex-partner's cheeks as he pulled off Justin's socks and shoes, throwing them onto the floor haphazardly before tugging off his pants and underwear. Having already unbuttoned most of the shirt that Justin had commandeered earlier at the cabin after the thunderstorm, it was a simple matter to unbutton the one, last, remaining button as Justin lifted his torso off the bed to have it removed.

Brian sat there for a moment as he straddled Justin's legs, admiring the contrast of Justin's pale skin against the darker color of the bedspread. The vibrant, dark red pillows cradled the spill of blond hair dramatically as his breath caught at the beauty splayed out below him. The years had been quite kind to his ex-partner; he was absolutely magnificent. Slightly more muscled now, he had the same, smooth, flawless, creamy skin that Brian could never stop exploring, touching, worshipping. "Fuck, Justin," he couldn't help saying aloud as the memories came flooding back and Justin's face turned red. Brian didn't have to tell him what he was thinking; he knew it was readily apparent to him.

He reached down to lightly draw his fingers across his chest, seeing Justin's pec muscles ripple in response. His hand slowly traveled up instead of downward to finally trail alongside Justin's neck and jawline before the pad of Brian's fingers brushed against the full, slightly parted lips. Justin stared up at him, entranced, as Brian shook his head almost in disbelief that at last they were here, together, with no one or nothing to stop what they knew would happen from the first day they had seen each other again.

Never taking his eyes off his beautiful lover, Brian slowly slid both his hands down Justin's shoulders and then down his arms to his hands, his light touch both tantalizing as well as ticklish. Justin huffed in pent-up desire and frustration, astonished that Brian of all people was slowly and methodically - dare he say it? - _making love to him_. "Brian...Please..." The entreaty came out as almost a whimper of unsuppressed desire.

"Shh," Brian scolded him, however, and shook his head as he placed his left hand on Justin's thigh; Justin hissed softly at the hot touch of Brian's palm against his skin, even though his body already felt like it was burning up.

"We've got all night now, Justin." At last, Brian's other hand reached to grasp the velvety, hard shaft as Justin moaned at the touch that was so welcome and still so familiar; it was even better than he had remembered, though. "Fuck, do you know how long I have wanted to taste you again?" he murmured low and deep as Justin squirmed beneath him. "All this time, all this fucking time," he continued quietly as he began to slowly slide his palm up and down the thick cock, pausing on the upstroke to flick his thumb across the leaking head. "You know, you have a taste like no other. And there's never been anyone else that made me feel the way that you do."

"Brian...Fuck..." His lover's words and his sultry tone of voice, more than his actions at the moment, were setting Justin's body aflame. He reached out to try and pull Brian's head down into another kiss, but Brian captured his hands instead in one of his larger ones and held them against his chest. "No," he demanded sternly. "I've waited ten years for this, Justin Taylor; you can wait just a big longer. But if you want me to take the edge off first, I think I can take care of that right now..."

His eyes raked hungrily over Justin's body for just a moment before he gripped Justin's cock possessively with his free hand and bent down to promptly engulf the purplish, aching cock in his mouth; his lips constantly traveled over the smooth, silky flesh as Justin gasped in reaction, his pulse racing like a thousand, winged butterflies held in captivity. Brian finally let go of Justin's hand as he placed it down on his thigh to try and keep his lover still, providing Justin with the opportunity to clench one hand in Brian's dark hair as he grasped a bunched-up part of the sheet with his other.

Brian murmured an appreciative 'mmm' against his cock, and the vibration of his lips made Justin's toes curl in exquisite agony, his entire body stiffening as he felt Brian's tongue swiping the underside in a slow, languorous, methodical, up and down motion before his lips clamped back down on his shaft

Justin's death grip on his hair made Brian chuckle as he felt his ex-partner about to explode. Even though it had been a long time, he knew he was extremely close. He lifted his eyes just enough to stare into a pair of almost inky-blue, penetrating ones before he resumed his sucking in earnest; a few seconds later, Justin's body drew into a tight coil and, with a loud guttural cry of release, he promptly exploded into Brian's waiting mouth.

Brian closed his eyes as Justin's come hit the roof of his mouth and his throat; memories of so many times before instantly springing to mind. Whether it was the fact that he never envisioned this would ever be possible again, pheromones at work, earthshattering sex or just plain love he didn't really know, but when the milky substance hit his mouth, he thought it was more delectable than the finest wine he had ever tasted as he labored to swallow every drop.

He finally raised his head to peer up at Justin; there was a fine sheen of sweat on his pale skin as his chest heaved up and down in the aftermath of his climax, and his hands were flopped out to either side of his body in exhaustion, but fuck, he looked absolutely incredible.

Crawling up Justin's body, he felt his neglected cock, heavy and hard, lying between them as he swooped down to capture his lover's mouth for another deep kiss; he knew he would never grow tired of the way kissing Justin made him feel. From that first day they had shared their first kiss after all those years, he knew deep down he was lost and would never be able to escape Justin's pull on him; nor would he ever want to.

As he reluctantly broke off their kiss, he stared into Justin's eyes, so vibrantly blue, receiving a lazy sort of smile in return that made his heart flutter. His lover caught him off guard just then as Justin tangled his legs with his and, with surprising agility and strength, quickly turned them over so he was sitting on top of him now.

"That was amazing," Justin murmured as he grabbed Brian's hands and in a blink of an eye sat up on top of his thighs.

"Better than you remembered?" Brian had to ask.

"Considering I've been jacking off to dreams about this for years now?" Justin confessed. He stared into Brian's eyes for a moment before he admitted softly, "Yeah, it was. And now...It's my turn," he whispered sexily. "Let me express my appreciation by taking care of _you_." Freeing up one of Brian's hands as he continued to gaze into the darkened, almost black pupils, Justin boldly reached down to grasp his lover's cock and give the hard, hot flesh a firm squeeze. Brian grunted in appreciation as Justin slowly began to stroke it with a deliberate, smooth motion as he began to deliberately grind his ass against Brian's body.

Unable to stand it any longer at that point, Brian pulled his hand away from Justin's to grab Justin's ass cheeks with both hands; his fingers dug into the warm, smooth flesh, causing Justin to moan softly in response as he continued to grope Brian's cock, his tempo increasing with each stroke. "Justin..."

"God, you feel so fucking good," Justin murmured as he braced his hand against Brian's chest, palm down, while he continued to determinedly push Brian toward his climax. Even after all this time, he knew precisely what to do to make Brian crazy with desire.

"Justin, stop," Brian growled as he felt his body begin to clench with the telltale signs of pending orgasm. He reached around to still Justin's hand with his own as the golden eyelashes lifted innocently to meet his. "Little fucker," he stated with a mock glare as Justin smirked down at him; the man knew exactly what he was doing. "No," he said a little louder as a pout almost broke out on his lover's full lips. "Shit, Justin," he confessed. "I need to be inside you."

Justin nodded as he gave the steel-hard shaft one more squeeze as his lover's hips rose slightly off the bed in reaction. "All you had to do was ask," he whispered huskily. He reached over for the condom package that Brian had somehow managed to mysteriously place next to them on the bed, holding it up briefly in front of Brian's darkened eyes before he ripped one corner with his teeth and blew the paper out between his lips. His eyes bored into his lover's as he retrieved the latex and began to deftly slide it over Brian's cock, his fingers making Brian's body tingle with barely-controlled arousal.

Brian watched under hooded eyes as Justin then reached for the lube and, flipping the top open with his thumb, squeezed some onto his fingers before rubbing it teasingly up and down Brian's cock, making his ex-partner inhale a sharp intake of anticipation. "You like that?" Justin murmured seductively as Brian reached out and grabbed his wrist in an almost death-like grip.

"Fuck, you know I do," Brian growled back at him. He abruptly tugged on Justin's wrist so strongly that he pulled him down on top of him; his cock was achingly hard by now. He tangled his legs in Justin's to allow him to roll Justin over onto his back as his lover smirked up at him.

"Subtle as ever," Justin responded dryly as their eyes locked on each other's.

Brian couldn't help grinning down at him before he stole another kiss briefly. Bracing his body on his elbows, his face transformed into something more intense; a look so powerful that it made Justin's breath catch in his throat. "I could get lost in your eyes," Brian whispered with such heartfelt emotion as he cupped his hands around Justin's face that it quickly grew warm at the unexpected sentiment.

Once more, Justin found himself intrigued by how much Brian had changed. The differences were both elusive but also profound. "Brian..." he whispered, his voice choking on his words as his heart threatened to explode with love for this man. "Make love to me."

Brian swallowed hard; how long had he waited for Justin to say that? And how long had he wondered if he ever would hear it at all? He nodded, leaning down to pluck one more kiss from his ex-partner's plump, soft, pink lips, before he rose up onto his knees. In silent accord, Justin raised his legs to link his ankles around Brian's waist as Brian took his hand to line up his cock with Justin's hole. He reached over to grab the tube of lube that Justin had discarded back onto the mattress, but his lover's hand on his arm made him stop and look down at him as Justin shook his head.

"No, we've waited long enough," he told him firmly as he shifted impatiently underneath him. "I'm more than ready now. Please, Brian."

Brian held his gaze for a few seconds before he nodded; his heart pounded as he laid the tube back onto the bed. Licking his lips in anticipation as he leaned forward slightly, his eyes never left his beautiful lover's as he gripped his pulsating, throbbing cock and, finally, finally, pushed in slightly as Justin's body rose to envelope him further. "Ahh," he half-grunted, half-hissed as he felt the old, familiar heat engulfing him. Nothing, nothing had ever felt like this before Justin came into his life, and he knew that nothing ever would. "Justin..."

He pushed in a little more, unwilling to pull back out as Justin grasped his upper arms and raised his hips to coax him in even further in a kind of well-choreographed ballet. He heard Justin suck in a breath suddenly as he thrust in deeper, however, causing him to stop, even though his body was crying out desperately for release. "Justin? You okay?" he asked breathlessly as he strove to catch his breath.

Justin bit his lip; he knew after not bottoming for such a long time that the initial burn would be somewhat painful. He hadn't counted, however, on it being quite this excruciating. In a way, it was sort of symbolic, because it was similar to their 'other' first time, way back when he was still just a virgin teenager. But it didn't help to ease the physical pain he was feeling now.

Brian frowned as his fingers dug into Justin's thighs. "Justin? Talk to me."

"I'm not in the mood to 'talk,' Brian," his lover grunted out as he fought to keep his breathing even. He didn't want his ex-partner to know how much this was affecting him. Besides, if he could just endure a few moments of pain, he knew it would all quickly transform into something exquisitely amazing. It always _had_ with Brian; tonight, though, he suspected it would be so much more than that. He noticed all of a sudden that Brian was still kneeling there, staring down into his troubled eyes. He licked his lips to moisten them as he urged him in a raspy whisper, "Go on."

"But..."

"Brian, please," he struggled to reassure him as he gripped his lover's arms tightly. "Do it; I need you inside me. It's been so long..."

Brian frowned, his motions stilling as a hopeful epiphany began to take flight. "Just how long _has_ it been?" he asked softly as he pushed in slightly and was met with a wince and a gasp, serving to apparently verify his suspicions.

"Brian..."

"No, Justin, I have to know," he insisted to his lover's chagrin. "How long has it been since you've bottomed for someone? Surely you - and that asshole..." _Or did he? _

To his delight, however, Justin harrumphed in irritation as he admitted what he had been hoping he would say: "I never bottomed for him, Brian," he told him with a twinge of embarrassment that his ex-partner was bringing that up now of all times. He sighed. "Not for him - or anyone else," he admitted softly as his eyes locked onto his and he bit his lip awkwardly.

"Never?" was the soft query. When he noticed Justin avert his eyes, Brian reached down to grasp his chin to gently turn it and force him to look at him. "Justin?"

Justin's eyes glistened as he hoarsely whispered, "Never." He rolled his eyes impatiently. "Now will you please stop with the analyzing again and get on with it? You're driving me crazy here, Brian! No more stalling now. Fuck me."

Brian opened his mouth, about to argue that he needed to prepare him, but the look on Justin's face caused him to shake his head as he stared into the bright, darkened eyes of his lover. "No," he said to Justin's surprise before he explained, "There's not going to be any fucking tonight." And although he couldn't come right out and say what it would really be, Justin knew what he was trying to say nonetheless as he felt Brian slowly push inside farther in response.

Brian watched as Justin contorted his face in discomfort, knowing the last thing he wanted was for him to stop. So taking a brief moment for his lover to adjust to his girth, he waited until he felt an almost imperceptible squeeze on his upper arm a few seconds later before he thrust in further, leaning over now to angle his body to heighten the pressure and press through Justin's pain.

He knew the moment he had succeeded when he watched Justin's eyes widen in realization and darken in lust several seconds later, the tip of his tongue darting out in arousal like it always did as he let out a pleasurable gasp this time when Brian hit his sweet spot. Justin not having bottomed for anyone since they had parted made the sensation almost too much to comprehend; Justin was so tight, almost impossibly tight, even after all this time, and it made his body feel like it was on fire.

"Yesssss," Justin moaned out as Brian bent him in half and plunged deep inside, rocking back and forth as he thrust in and out of him, the hot, constrictive channel now generously coated with lubrication. His cock began to slide smoothly in and out as he continually kissed Justin on each down stroke, unable to get enough, to _ever _get enough.

"More," Justin urged him as he dug into the muscled flesh of Brian's arms and snapped his hips in time with Brian's thrusting. "Yes, right there," he murmured in a haze of desire a few seconds later as Brian deftly angled his cock to hit him squarely in his prostate each time. He felt dizzy, elated, and exhilarated all at the once as he blindly held on for dear life when Brian grabbed onto his legs and pressed them even tighter together as he thrust back in and then back out. His strokes, however, weren't savage or brutal; they were slow, deliberate, and carefully timed to provide him with the utmost in pleasure.

Brian couldn't help staring into the set of mesmerizing blue eyes that had haunted his dreams for so long as he pushed in smoothly and then back out with a soft grunt on each down stroke, his body quickly tightening with a delicious sort of torment. His memories of how incredible they had been together before were nothing compared to this moment, to this reality. As he swooped in to kiss his lover's waiting, ravaged lips once more, swiping his tongue inside briefly to reacquaint himself with Justin's unique taste, he was in awe of how this made him feel, how he suddenly felt alive, and how his heart was pounding so rapidly in excitement. At that moment, no words would have been adequate enough to express his emotions as he realized he was quickly heading toward a point of no return.

Justin could feel the sweat trickling down his forehead as Brian continued to make love to him, but he didn't care; he was too lost in the emotions flowing through them, in the memories that were quickly resurfacing, and by the weight that had suddenly lifted from his heart. He watched, entranced, as Brian's eyes continually changed while his body rippled fluidly in and out of him; first they were dark green and gold, then more of a chocolate brown color, and then, as he approached his climax, more of a molten, dark lava hue. He could feel Brian's body tensing under his touch, as well as hear his lover's groans and grunts becoming louder and more guttural, signifying that he, too, wasn't going to last too long this round.

"Brian," he breathed out raggedly as their eyes locked on each other. "So, so damn good. I'm...I'm..." He couldn't even vocalize it as all the emotions boiled up inside of him.

All it took then was for Brian to whisper those words that he so rarely had uttered before; a husky, heartfelt "love you so fucking much," before Justin's body tensed and he promptly exploded in uncontrollable desire. Shouting out a hoarse, throaty cry, his body tightened like a coil before he spewed his seed all over Brian's chest without Brian even touching his cock.

A few seconds later, Brian pushed in one, last, deep, time before his mouth opened wide and his face contorted into uncontrollable pleasure as he, too, joined his lover in kind, falling down heavily on top of him as they lay there sprawled together in a tangle of limbs, sweaty, spent and exhausted, Brian's head resting in the crook of Justin's neck and shoulder as their chests rose and fell in exertion.

Brian remained there immobile, his eyes closed as he listened to Justin - his lover, his soul mate, his everything - breathing softly beneath him. He felt Justin's hands lovingly caressing his back in an up-and-down motion as a rush of memories flooded his mind of so many other times before when they had made love and held each other much like they were doing now. He wished he could lie there forever, just savoring this feeling and this incredible moment. But he knew that wasn't possible; they still had some issues to work through and some concerns to address.

What he DID know, however, was that he was never letting this man go again. It was going to be difficult enough to just say goodbye for a few days when Justin returned to Chicago. At least this time, though, he knew he would be back. He had no doubts now that Justin did love him and wanted to be with him. That made it a little difficult, though, knowing that when he returned he wouldn't be waking up with Justin in his arms each morning. But if he had anything to say about that, their temporary living arrangements would quickly become just that - temporary. For he wanted nothing more than to go to sleep with Justin in his bed every night and wake up with him in his bed each morning - every fucking day for the rest of their lives. For now, though, this was a promising start.

"Hey," he heard Justin say as he lifted his head to peer into the expressive, blue eyes. He smiled softly at his lover and brushed some plastered hair back from his forehead as their lips met for one more kiss before he reluctantly twisted his body off Justin's and, removing the condom, tied it and dropped it down onto the floor beside the bed. Lying on his back for a moment, he turned over onto his side to face his ex-partner, no, he thought, _partner _now, reaching over to take his hand in his as Justin's fingers curled over his palm in response.

Justin's heart swelled with so much love at that moment; it was almost surreal in a way. He had dreamed of this day for so long in the dark of night, in the most private of places in his mind, but he still could never be sure that it would ever happen. To be lying here now with his hand clasped in Brian's, gazing into his face again, experiencing his touch, his taste, his smell; it was almost overwhelming but oh, so wondrous. "I...I wasn't sure this would ever happen," he finally acknowledged aloud as he gazed into Brian's eyes.

Brian pulled Justin's hand to his mouth and kissed the knuckles tenderly as he briefly cradled it against his cheek. "Me, neither," he admitted softly as he slowly caressed Justin's hand with his thumb. He smiled back at him, a smile that was so open he made Justin's heart skip a beat. "But I'm so glad that it did." He sucked in a breath before confessing, "Fuck, Justin; I've missed you and Kaylee so damn much."

Justin's eyes watered. "Not as much as I've missed the two of you," he told him in a choked up voice. Not caring at the moment how sticky or scummy he felt - treating it, rather, as evidence that this was, indeed, really happening and it wasn't a dream - he laid his head on Brian's chest as he felt Brian slowly feather the hair at the top of his head. He felt Brian's heart beating strongly against his ear, so reassuring and solid as he wrapped his free hand around Brian's torso and pulled him closer, trying to burrow more deeply into his lover's body as their clasped hands lay together against Brian's chest. He looked at their twined fingers, one tanned hand and one lighter in complexion, and thought they fit together perfectly.

Brian idly caressed Justin's hair as he confessed, "I've always loved your hair. I'm glad you've kept it longer. I think it's hot." He gave it a slight tug, causing Justin to lift his head to peer up at him. He smiled before leaning in to steal yet another kiss.

As they broke off their kiss, Justin reached up to place a couple of fingers against Brian's lips. "You're pretty hot yourself," he murmured as Brian smirked and waggled his eyebrows, just like he figured he would. "You're the sexiest dad I've ever seen."

Brian grinned. "I am, aren't I?" Justin laughed before his lover's face grew serious and he added solemnly, "Justin, promise me going forward that you will tell me if I do something that bothers you."

"I don't think I've ever had a problem with that," his ex-partner pointed out.

"No," Brian admitted with a smile. "Being able to speak your mind and stand up for your convictions is one of the things I've always admired in you. But if I do something to really piss you off, let me know sooner rather than later, okay? If it takes another ten years for us to reconcile, I may not be such a sexy dad then."

Justin tilted his head to stare into his eyes a little better, one side of his mouth quirked up in amusement. "Okay. But only if you do the same."

Brian eyed him intently before he nodded. "Deal." Justin smiled as he nestled his head into Brian's chest, just before he heard Brian make a sort of sniffing smell. He turned his head to peer up into his ex-partner's eyes. "What?"

Brian crinkled his nose as he told him, "You smell like a strawberry daiquiri, Sunshine. A _cheap_, strawberry daiquiri. For someone who's supposedly doing well in the art world, you still have bargain-basement tastes when it comes to shampoo."

Brian was afraid for just a moment that he had made Justin angry when his lover abruptly rolled off him and stood up to face him by the side of the bed. He didn't look angry, though, as Brian's eyes slowly trailed down his body to linger on his cock, which he noticed was beginning to rise to the occasion once more. He smiled over at him smugly as Justin informed him in a seductive tone of voice that left no doubt about his intentions, "Well, then, maybe you should let me use some of your expensive shit. I happen to be feeling really, really dirty at the moment. How about it?"

Brian grinned as he, too, twisted to roll off the bed and stand beside him; there was no doubt that Round No. 2 was about to commence. "Yeah, I'm feeling downright filthy myself."

* * *

><p><em>The Next Morning...<em>

Justin smiled in his sleep, reliving his magical night with Brian all over again in his head. Of course, he had just gone to sleep a few hours ago; his and Brian's period of 'reacquainting' themselves had wound up lasting most of the night by the time they had finished. If it hadn't been for Brian managing to obtain only two condoms from Gus, too, there would have been a lot more fucking in between the blowjobs and the hand jobs in the shower and in bed. But in their haste to get to the carriage house, Brian had informed him that he had neglected to run upstairs to Gus's shaving kit to get more supplies, so they had had to make do with only two sessions for now. Even so, it had been a glorious night; even better than he had remembered, and it had made for some quite pleasurable dreams afterward.

From his place by his side, Brian watched Justin sleeping, wondering, hoping that the enigmatic smile on his lover's face was for him. His heart fluttered as his gaze lingered on Justin's face, so relaxed in slumber. A brief flicker of guilt crossed his mind as he wondered how many nights Justin had slept fitfully over what he had done before and all the years they had lost, but he forced himself to push that unpleasant thought aside. As both of them had stated before, they could not turn the hands of time backward, only go forward. He wanted to concentrate, instead, not on the past that they couldn't alter, but on the future - a future that promised to be a happy and fulfilled one. Because now he realized that he couldn't bear the thought of not having both his daughters - and Justin - in his life forever. The other alternative was simply not acceptable to him, so he would work relentlessly to make sure that never happened.

He knew he should let Justin sleep - he had to be as worn out if not more so than he was after last night - but he remembered his partner's whispered request before he fell asleep to wake him up when he got ready for work so he could get an early start on his trip back to Chicago; so he had no choice but to honor that request. That didn't mean he couldn't make the fulfillment of that request a pleasurable one, though. Pulling back the thin sheet covering Justin's lower body, his eyes slowly traveled down the beautiful, unblemished face, down to the pale, smooth, slightly more-toned chest, and then toward the cock that he had teased and tasted last night to distraction that was now lying half-erect against Justin's belly. He had tormented that particular part of Justin's anatomy relentlessly last night until it had driven his lover wild with desire, and he had enjoyed every bit of it, as well as everything else they had done. He couldn't wait until the day when he could have Justin in his bed on a regular basis, and not just because of the sex; he realized now that it meant so much more than that.

He turned over enough so he could lie half-on, half-off Justin's body as his hand reached out to slowly brush his fingers across the slightly dry lips. He watched as Justin's tongue slid out to wet his lips as his smile slowly deepened in realization that he wasn't dreaming any longer; as soon as his mouth parted, Brian used it to his advantage as he gently pushed his fingers inside to be greeted with a hot, wet, tongue washing. His own cock stirred in response as he slowly withdrew his fingers, feeling the cool breeze blowing over them, as he watched Justin's eyes slowly flutter open in reaction. His heart lurched at the tender, loving smile that appeared on his face as his eyes met his.

He couldn't help smiling back at him as he whispered, "Good Morning, Sleepyhead."

"Morning," was the drowsy reply as Justin stretched his body to try and wake up. "What time is it? And don't say..."

Brian grinned. "Okay, I won't," he assured him as his eyes traveled down to Justin's neglected cock, which seemed to be getting distinctly harder. "But I would be more than happy to help you with that."

Justin blushed, such an endearing trait even now, Brian decided, as he replied softly, "I might just take you up on that offer, but it will have to be in the shower. I really need to get ready for my trip."

"Does it have to be this morning?" Brian pressed as he trailed his hand lightly against the side of Justin's face, not caring if his question sounded needy or he appeared vulnerable. He hated the thought of Justin being away even for a short time, but he knew that ultimately it would be a good thing, because the sooner he took care of his old life, the sooner they could start their new one together. That didn't mean he wouldn't miss him like hell in the meantime, though. At least when any doubts resurfaced, however, all he had to do was look at both daughters there in the house with him, and it would reassure him of Justin's love and his intention to return.

Justin reached up to grasp Brian's hand in his and place it against his chest. "If I don't leave this morning," he confessed, "I might not leave at all."

"And that's a bad thing?" was the response as Brian's eyes bored into his, making his skin warm.

Justin gazed at his gorgeous lover, the man who had stolen his heart so long ago and had never returned it, as he admitted, "Well, of course not; not in a way." He smiled. "Especially after last night." Brian rolled his lips under as Justin added, "But I have to tie up all the loose ends back home before we can move ahead, you know that."

"Will that ever change?" Brian asked quietly as he took his free hand and slowly caressed Justin's shoulder, feeling him trembling slightly beneath his touch.

Justin frowned as he peered over at him. "Will _what_ ever change?"

"You thinking of Chicago as home; I was hoping that _Britin_ was your home." Brian didn't understand why that was so important to him and why it hurt a little - after all, it was just words - but he realized that it did anyway.

Justin hadn't missed the slightly wounded look that had flashed across Brian's face or the look of pain that had flickered in his eyes just then, and it made him feel momentarily guilty. He hoped that both of them were done with lying to each other, though, and he wasn't about to start that anew now. He stared up into his lover's eyes; it did feel wonderful being back in his arms again, but it wasn't enough - for now. "Brian, it's been years since I lived here," he pointed out. "It's going to take a while for me to get used to it again. And Kaylee; she's lived practically her whole life in Chicago. She's much more of a city girl than a country girl. I almost had to drag her to camp. She's going to have an even bigger culture shock than I will moving out here."

Brian's hand stilled on Justin's shoulder. "You don't think this will work?"

Justin gazed up at him, surprised by how unsure Brian sounded. Normally Brian was one of the most confident, assertive persons he knew; or at least _used_ to know. "Brian...after last night, how can you ask me that?" he chided him gently as the hazel eyes shifted downward. He reached over to place his fingers under Brian's jaw. "Look at me, Brian."

Slowly Brian turned his head and lifted his eyes to stare into a pair of resolute blue ones as Justin told him, "I told you that I forgave you, and you told me the same thing. And we both still love each other. I have every intention of making this work. Don't you?"

"Of course I want this to work!" Brian growled, his eyes flashing. "I love both you _and_ Kaylee, Justin!"

"I know you do," was the instant reply as Justin slowly stroked Brian's cheek soothingly. "I've never had any question about that. So you need to trust me now that everything will work out. There has to be an adjustment period for all of us, though. Okay?" Silence reigned as Justin sighed. "I said...Okay? Brian?"

Brian finally nodded. "Okay," he agreed grudgingly, still not quite reassured by the whole conversation. "It'd better," he told Justin firmly as he stared into his eyes. "How long will you be gone?"

"Probably just a couple of days; just long enough to gather what I need, meet with a realtor to have the condo listed, and arrange to have some things brought down here."

Brian frowned. "I thought you had decided to just sell the condo turnkey? Wouldn't that make the most sense? There are more than enough furnishings in the house."

Justin nodded. "Yeah, for the most part. But I do have a few things I want to make sure I keep, mainly for sentimental reasons. You don't mind, do you?"

Brian began to caress Justin's shoulder again as he stared intently into his eyes, wondering just what he meant by 'sentimental.' But he decided he had to trust him on that. "No," he finally decided. "Not as long as I get to keep YOU and Kaylee."

Justin had to grin at that statement. "That sounds equitable; I think that can probably be arranged."

Brian smiled finally. "Good. Well, then, I say we seal the deal with some good, not-so-clean fun before I have to go to work and you have to head out." He leaned in to brush his partner's lips, the kiss quickly deepening as their mouths blossomed open and tongues came out to intertwine. Brian turned over to drape his body over Justin's as they embraced and their legs tangled. It would be several minutes before they finally rose from the bed to head toward the shower.

* * *

><p><em>AN: As always, I am grateful to my beta, Boriqua522, for her support and her 'eagle eye.' Thank you, my friend.:)_


	29. Pressing Ahead Into the Future

_One Hour Later..._

Justin held both daughters against his side as he looked wistfully over at Brian; he knew it was silly. He was only going to be gone for a few days - a week at best - but it almost felt like he was abandoning them. He knew this time, however, he would be back. There was bound to be an adjustment period upon his return, but going forward his life was here now - with Brian and both his daughters.

"I'll be back just as soon as I can," he promised them as he hugged them hard against his body and his eyes bored into his partner's. He smiled, trying to make light of the hard lump that had settled in his throat. "You won't even know I'm gone," he joked.

"Yes, we will," both girls said in unison as they sniffled against him.

"We don't want you to go," Katie told him as she and her sister peered up into their father's beautiful face. Normally the stoic one, she found her resolve faltering now that her father was once more leaving her, even though her brain told her it was temporary; her heart was another matter, however. "Stay," she whispered fervently.

"Katie, you know I have some things to wrap up in Chicago," Justin murmured as he placed his cheek against the crown of her head and wrapped his arm around her slender shoulder. "I won't be gone long. And I'll miss both of you like crazy until I return." He kissed Katie, then Kaylee as he whispered, "Somebody has to take good care of your father while I'm gone." He lifted his gaze to stare over into Brian's eyes, noticing a flicker of apprehension there. It would have been barely noticeable to anyone else, but he had no problem recognizing it as the same look of separation anxiety that he himself was experiencing at the moment. He didn't want to leave Brian so soon, not after last night and not after they had just reunited, but it was a necessary part of their progression as a family.

He reluctantly let go of the two girls as he picked up his small satchel and placed it in the backseat of Vic's old vehicle; Gus had volunteered to drive his mom back home and then take him on to the airport, meeting Brian later for lunch. Debbie had volunteered to stay at Britin with the girls until Gus returned later that afternoon. Everything was being taken care of and he was doing what he had to do. As he closed the back door and turned to face his family, though, he couldn't help thinking, _damn; then why is this so hard? _

He glanced up as he heard the front door open and his mother and Gus emerged, headed down the sidewalk toward the car. "I guess this is it," he told the small group, even though his gaze was frozen on his partner. Brian's eyes bored into his as he stood there hesitating.

"Yeah," Brian replied softly as he stepped a little closer; the heat between the two of them, their bond, was strong as ever as he stood a few inches away. He reached over to lightly brush the tips of his fingers against the discolored skin where Justin's cheek was healing from his not-so-accurate punch the other day. He grimaced as he recalled his actions, still regretting hurting his partner physically, even if it HAD been an unfortunate accident.

"Brian, it's going away," Justin murmured, knowing instantly what he was thinking. He placed his own hand to rest on top of Brian's for a moment, before he linked their fingers together by his waist. Brian tightened their grip, not wanting to let go but knowing it was inevitable.

"Sure you can do all that packing alone?" _Sure you WANT to do it alone_? he should have asked instead. All Justin had to say was one word, give him one sign, and he would be traveling with him to Chicago in a heartbeat.

Justin nodded. "I'll be fine, knowing that the girls are being taken good care of. And besides, you can't just up and leave Kinnetik without any prior planning. I know how important your company is to you."

Brian shook his head. "Not as important as you - and the girls."

Justin's throat constricted at the sincere tone in his partner's voice. "I know. But I'll be okay," he assured him as he smiled tenderly at their two girls. "You've got a couple of angels watching over you."

Katie huffed at the sweet moniker as both men laughed over her insulted expression.

"Maybe I didn't phrase that right," Justin conceded with a grin. He reached over to affectionately ruffle his daughter's hair as she rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean," he told her as her lips slowly drew into a smile.

"Daddy, don't forget the most important thing," Kaylee spoke up from beside her sister.

"Your drawer full of cosmetics that would rival a department store's?" he asked with a gleam in his eye.

"No! YOU know...!"

Justin dropped Brian's hand to kneel down and cup his daughter's face. "Yeah, I know. Don't worry, Sweetheart; I'll be bringing your babies back with me," he told her as her face lit up at the prospect of being reunited with her two beloved pets again. He peered up at Brian as his partner grimaced back at him. "Even if your dad isn't crazy about the idea."

"You got THAT right," Brian muttered as the other three smiled in amusement. He was about to mention that there would have to be some game rules set up regarding their newest additions to the family when he was interrupted by Jennifer and Gus walking up to join them.

"Ready to go, Justin?" Gus asked as Brian clamped a hand on his son's shoulder. "We'd better get going; security can be a real hassle nowadays."

"Yeah," Justin told him as Gus nodded.

"See you at lunch, Dad," he reminded his father as Brian nodded back at him. He opened the door and slid into the driver's seat as Jennifer gave Justin a quick peck on the cheek in greeting and told the girls, "Your Grandma Deb is looking for you two in the kitchen; she's got breakfast ready for you, and it's getting cold."

"Better get going, then," Brian told them. "I'll be along in just a minute."

"Okay, Dad," Kaylee and Katie answered together; it seemed the more they were around each other, the more frequent these 'synchronized responses' were becoming.

They turned to Justin, identical looks of sorrow on their faces, before they both flung themselves at their father and he held them tight. He took turns giving each of them a kiss on the cheek before he told them gruffly, "Go on, now. You're making this hard enough as it is. We don't want to get your grandma all hot and bothered because you let her breakfast get cold."

They sniffled again a little before he let go of them and, with one last look and sagging shoulders, they walked hand in hand back toward the house, leaving the two partners alone by the side of the car.

Brian brushed his hand through his hair restlessly; the pang of separation already setting in, even though Justin was still there. "Call me if anything comes up and you need something," he told him as Justin nodded silently. He let out a deep breath as he walked closer to him and placed his hands on Justin's upper arms. "Hell, what am I saying? Call me anyway. I want to know what's going on and when you'll be back." _Back at home, back in my arms and back in my bed,_ he thought fervently.

Justin smirked. "So bossy," he murmured with a grin before his face grew more serious. "I'll call you when I get up there." His voice lowered to a sort of sultry tone as he added, "And maybe later, when I'm in bed all alone jerking off while I'm thinking of you and me and what happened last night..."

"Shit, Justin!" Brian hissed as Justin grinned back at him impertinently. He slid his arms around Justin's back to hold him tight, making sure he knew precisely what that sort of talk was doing to him. "That's not a good way to say goodbye."

Justin swallowed. "There IS no good way to say goodbye; not to you."

"Well, until we can be together again, this will have to do." And with that Brian slowly lowered his head to stare into his lover's eyes before he fastened his lips onto his, his tongue pushing to gain entrance to his partner's mouth. Justin sighed as he willingly parted his lips to deepen the kiss, his own arms winding around Brian's body to press them closer together.

Brian's left hand came up to cradle Justin's head firmly as he angled his face to ravage his lover's lips until the sharp toot of the car's horn startled them apart.

Gus slid the window down and stuck his head out with a sigh. "Daaaaaad," he protested. "Are you planning on keeping him here permanently? He has a flight to catch, remember?"

"I think that's the idea," both men could hear Jennifer exclaim wryly from the passenger seat as Gus smirked.

"Well, it's not going to work," Gus told them firmly. "The sooner Justin leaves, the sooner he comes back. Now let him go, Dad!"

"Never," Brian whispered before with great effort he did just that. He rested his head against Justin's forehead for just a moment before he took a deep breath and let it out, his lips still tingling from their kiss. "Go and do what you need to do," he told his partner. "The girls and I will be here when you get back."

Justin nodded, his eyes glistening as he turned and opened the driver's side passenger door and slid in behind Gus. Closing the door shut, his eyes fastened on Brian's as Gus started up the car and they slowly pulled away, Justin's hand pressed up against the coldness of the glass as if he didn't want to let go.

Brian stood there for several seconds watching the car disappear into the distance until Katie stuck her head out the front door. "Dad, come in and eat!"

His promise to watch over their two girls until Justin returned fresh in his mind, he called out, "Be right there!" before he turned and went back inside.

* * *

><p><em>Mid-Afternoon, Chicago<em>

"Justin!" Mrs. Bailey shrieked in delight as she opened the door to see her neighbor peering back at her through the screen door. "You're back! Come inside before the kitties escape!" she told him as she reached over to open the door and lightly tug at his sleeve to pull him in.

Picasso and Dali immediately scurried up to him and meowed loudly for his attention, brushing up against the legs of his jeans as he laughed. "Yes, yes, I know; it's been a while," he admitted as he scooped up Picasso first and rubbed his fur against his cheek as the cat rumbled appreciatively. He gently laid the cat back down, running his hand over the cat's upraised tail as he stroked the other one that was clambering for equal attention. "Poor baby," he cooed with a chuckle. "Don't worry; I've finally come to take you both home."

"They're certainly glad to see you," Mrs. Bailey observed with a smile as she wiped her hands on her half-apron and had a chance to look at Justin a little more intently. She frowned in concern as she noticed the residual of what appeared to be a bruise on his cheek. Instantly, her previous conversation with Justin's boyfriend rose to the surface. "What happened to you?" she asked in alarm as she reached out her hand toward his face.

"Oh, it's nothing," Justin assured her with a smile. "Just an accident."

Mrs. Bailey eyed him dubiously as she dropped her hand to her side. Isn't that what everyone said about their abuser to cover up what really occurred? She wondered what had happened regarding Alex, also. Had he found Justin in Pittsburgh? And if he had, had he been too late to prevent more violence between her neighbor and his former partner? Perhaps Alex had been right. She was dying to ask, but chose to proceed with caution as she nodded before asking, "Where's Kaylee? I would have thought she would have rushed over here the moment the two of you got back."

"Actually, she's not with me, Mrs. Bailey. She stayed in Pittsburgh."

The older woman frowned. "Oh? She's coming home later?"

Justin shook his head, wondering how much he should tell her. He supposed she would soon find out anyway, once the 'for sale' sign went up in the yard. "No, she's staying there; actually, it's in West Virginia, about thirty minutes out of town." He took a deep breath as the two cats continued to mew softly at his feet and weave in and out of his legs. "I'm just back for a day or two. I've decided to put the condo up for sale and move back to my home town. I want to be closer to my other daughter and to my partner."

The woman's eyes grew large with worry over the mention of his partner. She noticed that he had called him 'partner,' too, not 'ex-partner.' "_Other_ daughter? Partner?"

Justin nodded. "Yes. Brian. The man who was with me in the limo that day. But you already knew who he was, didn't you?" He had to admit; the thought that Alex had managed to pry that information out of his neighbor was a bit disconcerting to him, despite all the kindness this woman has bestowed on his daughter. But he knew how persuasive his former boyfriend could be, so he supposed he couldn't blame her for what she had done.

His neighbor's expression changed to one of remorse as she admitted, "I saw you leave with another man that day, but I didn't know it was him at the time."

"No, I guess you didn't," Justin told her. "But Alex told you about him later, didn't he?"

She had the decency to look ashamed as she nodded; at least that answered one question. "He talked to you?"

"Yes, he did," Justin told her tersely. "I know he can be very charming, Mrs. Bailey," he conceded. "But I wish you hadn't told him where I had gone. He wound up confronting me at my home with my partner and daughters present, along with my partner's son, and it was very awkward."

"I'm so sorry, Justin!" she exclaimed in horror as her hand flew to her mouth. "But I was afraid for your safety; otherwise, I would have never told him. And now you have that bruise..."

Justin scrunched up his face in confusion. "My safety? Why? I told you this was an accident," he said a little stiffly.

She bit her lip in hesitation before explaining at last, "He...He told me that this Brian used to abuse you, and he was afraid he would do it again. That's the only reason I gave him the information about where you went; you have to believe me."

"What?!" Justin exclaimed in disgust. "That son of a bitch," he growled. He took a deep breath before saying, "Mrs. Bailey, Brian and I have had some difficulties in our relationship, but he has NEVER abused me and never would! That was just some bullshit that Alex made up to pry the information out of you." He shook his head in irritation. "Brian would never lay a hand on me. My God, I can't believe him!" Now, even more than before, he knew he had made the right decision in dropping Alex and returning to Brian. It could have happened eventually, anyway; who knows? But he now knew to what depths Alex would have gone to prevent their reunion - and just what a nasty, conniving bastard the man really was.

"I'm so sorry, Justin!" she exclaimed, her face contorted in apology. "I was just doing what I thought was best."

Justin sighed, letting the anger dissipate as he reassured her, "I know you did; I don't blame you. It's okay; he's out of my life now," he told her. "And besides; I have much more pleasant things to think about now." He couldn't help smiling a little at the thought, which did not go unnoticed.

"You do seem happy," she observed as she stared over at her young neighbor. "I'm glad that he was wrong," she told him, making up her mind. She sighed. "I'm going to miss you and Kaylee. And the cats, too," she admitted as she glanced down at the animals who had provided her with so much companionship while their owners had been gone. "I don't suppose...?" she asked hopefully.

Justin shook his head sympathetically, quickly realizing what she was about to ask. "No, I'm sorry. You know how much Kaylee adores them. She would kill me if I went back to West Virginia without them. She's constantly been telling me how much she misses them. And while I know you've taken wonderful care of them, I'm sure they miss her, too; you know how it is."

Slightly crestfallen, Mrs. Bailey nodded. "I know. I just feel so lonely since I had to say goodbye to my own cat." She reached down to stroke Picasso's fur as the car meowed softly in reaction. "I'm going to miss you guys," she murmured as she straightened back up. "And I'm going to miss you and your daughter, too, Justin. I've become very attached to her, too."

Justin smiled. "I know; and I appreciate everything that you've done, Mrs. Bailey. You were a godsend when I needed someone to watch over her and the cats. You know, you are more than welcome to come and visit us sometime in West Virginia. It's a beautiful place, and there is lots of room." _Boy, is THAT an understatement,_ Justin couldn't help thinking.

The woman's countenance brightened as she replied with a smile, "I'd love that! I just may take you up on your offer. In the meantime, I'll think I'll be visiting the humane society. I think it's time to get a new cat. He won't replace Mr. Peepers, but he and I can take care of each other."

"Mr. Peepers?" Justin asked in amusement.

She nodded as she explained wistfully, "He was the most beautiful black-and-white cat; he looked like he had rings around his eyes like he was wearing glasses, so I named him Mr. Peepers."

Justin nodded back at her as he slowly edged toward the door. "Well, I think that's a great idea," he told her politely. "I'll be right back, then. I have to go get the cat carriers from next door, and then I'll be meeting with the real estate agent in a couple of hours to put the place up for sale." His mother had already arranged for a meeting with one of her contacts here, which made things a little easier. He paused momentarily as he saw an unspoken question on the woman's lips.

"Uh, could you...?"

He quirked an eyebrow at her. "Yes?"

"Why don't you come get them after you're done with the real estate person? I can watch them a little longer."

Justin grinned in understanding. "Okay. Sounds good; thank you." He bent down once more to pet each cat briefly as he told them, "I'll be back for you soon." A few minutes later, he was headed out the door, over to his own condo to begin figuring what he wanted to keep and what would remain with his residence.

* * *

><p><em>Later that Evening...<em>

Justin lay back on the bed with a groan, his back stiff and sore. He had spent the better part of the day after listing his condo, scooping up cherished mementos and photos to wrap them carefully and place them in boxes to be taken back to West Virginia in his SUV. He did not trust the movers to pack them meticulously enough to avoid having them damaged, and they were all too precious to him: framed photos of him and Kaylee, along with others of Katie and Brian that either were taken several years ago or his mother had taken and forwarded on to him so he had some more recent shots.

The other items were related more to his art: numerous awards - trophies and plaques - that he had received at art shows and exhibitions, in addition to framed articles in several art and cultural magazines where he had either been interviewed and photographed, or his works had garnered attention. He was unwilling to part with any of these treasured memories.

All the other items - with the exception of several larger paintings and his grand piano - could be left with the condo to help it sell. Brian had more than enough furniture already at Britin - and in the carriage house - that there was no need to incur the added expense of shipping them back there. He was a little leery of movers being in charge of some of his most important works, but he had found a local moving company that specialized in transporting valuable and fragile items through the art gallery he worked with, so he was somewhat confident that his artwork - along with his piano - would arrive back at Britin in good condition. The smaller pieces that would fit fairly easily in the back of his SUV he decided to wrap in bubble wrap and take with him personally.

Now, as darkness descended upon the room, he sighed in relief. Most of what he needed to do was finished, even earlier than he had expected, so if all went well he should be able to start loading up the boxes into his vehicle tomorrow and begin heading back to Britin sometime in the morning. He figured it might take a couple of hours or so to pack all the boxes and smaller paintings into the SUV, but then he could at last say goodbye to his current home and start planning his new life with Brian and the girls.

He found himself with mixed feelings about that, to his surprise. Yes, he was definitely eager to return to his partner and their daughters, but he had enjoyed his time here in Chicago. It was where he had put down roots for him and Kaylee, and where he had made a name for himself. He had made contacts here and become friends with other artists and important patrons and sponsors. He had proved to himself, also, that he could strike out on his own and be successful. He hadn't needed Brian's financial assistance or his wherewithal to do that. It had provided him with an inordinate sense of pride in his accomplishments.

A niggling ambivalence in the back of his mind threatened to encroach, but he pushed it back. It was nonsense to think that he couldn't continue his success back in the Pitts. Yes, it wasn't Chicago and certainly not New York, but he had established himself firmly in the art world. Brian had a state-of-the-art studio waiting back at Britin for him where he could paint to his heart's content and continue his success. With the spate of instant technology at his fingertips and the ability to travel to and from New York and Chicago as the need warranted, he would be just fine. And now he had the added inspiration of being able to paint with his daughter beside him - and be reunited as a family again. That more than made up for any smidgen of insecurity on his part. No, things would work out, both professionally and personally. It just had to; there was no other option this time.

The ringing of his cellphone brought him back to his present situation - and also caused his pulse to quicken in anticipation. It could be anyone - his mom, the real estate agent, Daphne, Emmett, any of the group of art gallery owners he dealt with. But at that moment, there was only one person he hoped to speak to as he reached over to peer at the incoming call information. Smiling in realization, he brought it up to his ear.

"Hey."

"Hey, yourself," was the silky response, causing him to reach down and begin to unzip his jeans. He had been so tired that he hadn't even bothered to get undressed. "How are you? Get everything taken care of?"

"Well, _almost_ everything," Justin responded as he reached inside his briefs and slowly slid his hand down to grip his cock. Just the mesmerizing sound of Brian's voice was enough to make him begin to harden. He slowly began to stroke himself in preparation as he huskily explained, "There's one little problem I hadn't had a chance to take care of yet. But I'm about to."

Brian chuckled deep in this throat. "Well, don't start on it just yet," he warned him. "I have a couple of girls who would like to talk to their father first."

"Oh!" Justin exclaimed, red-faced and heart thumping as he immediately pulled his hand out of his briefs as he heard Brian saying in the background, "He's on now. Go ahead, girls."

"Hi, Daddy!" both daughters exclaimed into the phone. "We miss you!"

Justin took a deep breath in hopes he didn't sound quite as breathless as he felt as he told them, "I miss you, too. So much. I can't wait to get back home to all of you." He realized it was the first time in a long time that he had called Britin _home_. It still sounded a little strange tripping off his tongue, but he found that it didn't seem quite as odd now that he was returning there and leaving his old life behind.

"When will you be home, Daddy?" Kaylee asked him. He had finally discovered that Kaylee has a slightly different inflection in her voice when she spoke; that was the only way he could tell them apart by sound. Strange how he had never figured that out before, but then again, he hadn't known there were two of them at the time, either.

"How about tomorrow night sometime?" he told her as both girls shrieked in surprise.

"Really?" Katie interjected. "That soon?"

"Yep," Justin told her with a smile. "I got the condo listed earlier today and most of what I need to bring back is already boxed up; I just need to put them in the back of the SUV. I should be able to start back around mid-morning, so it might be pretty late when I get there. But I should be home sometime late tomorrow."

He held the phone back from his ear as both girls screamed in delight. "Girls, girls, quiet down," he could hear Brian say with a laugh. "I want to talk to your father for a while; why don't you say goodbye and then head up off to bed, okay? You'll see him tomorrow."

"Okay, Dad," Justin heard Katie say as she spoke into the phone.

"Can we paint when you get back, Daddy?"

Justin smiled. "You bet, Princess. That's one of the first things on my list. I can't wait."

Katie beamed as she told him, "I can't, either. I love you, Daddy. Have a safe trip home."

"I love you, too, Katie," Justin replied, his voice hitching slightly. Until he heard their voices, he hadn't really realized just how much he missed them, too, even though it had only been less than a day. Tomorrow night couldn't come soon enough for him. "I'll see you soon."

"Okay. Here's Kaylee. Goodnight, Daddy."

"Goodnight, Princess. I'm sending a kiss your way."

"Me, too." There was a brief pause before Kaylee came onto the phone. "Daddy, are the cats coming with you?"

Justin grinned. "Of course, Sweetheart. They were glad to see me, but I can tell they really miss you. I'm bringing them with me tomorrow, though, so it won't be long before you're all together again."

"Yes!" Kaylee shouted out as Brian covered his ears to protect himself from the noise. He shook his head in amusement as Kaylee added, "Better bring their cat food and their treats, Daddy. Dad has no idea how to go pet food shopping yet."

"Hey!" was the protest as Justin laughed.

"Don't worry, Kaylee," he told her. I'll be bringing plenty of that back with me. There's no point in leaving it here. They'll be more than enough for them before we need to go to the grocery and educate your father on the differences between wet food and canned."

"Good, because he's going to need it," Kaylee reported as Justin heard Brian huff in mock insult. "Dad's wanting the phone," she advised. "I love you, Daddy. Get here quick, but don't speed and get a ticket."

Justin grinned. "I won't. I love you, too, Princess. Have a good night; I'll see you tomorrow."

"Night, Daddy," was the soft reply. "See you soon." There was a slight rustle as Justin heard Brian giving what sounded like a kiss to each girl and wishing them goodnight and instructing them not to stay awake too long in their beds before he returned to the phone.

"Okay, the two tornadoes are off to bed," he reported wryly. "I hope I didn't interrupt anything before," he snickered, his lips rolled under knowingly.

"What do YOU think?" Justin growled as his hand once more snaked inside the front of his briefs to begin stroking himself. "You could have warned me," he scolded him as his breathing slowly began to quicken.

"I tried," Brian reported as he closed and locked the door to his bedroom and walked over barefooted to the bed, turning off the light to bathe the spacious room in moonlight. Cradling his cellphone in the crook of his neck, he sat on the edge of the mattress to tug his jeans and briefs down his legs to kick them off before pulling his tee shirt over his head. Sinking down onto the mattress to lie on his back, he continued to hold onto his cellphone between his neck and shoulder as he murmured, "Well, they've gone off to la-la land now, Sunshine, and we're all alone now. How did your day go?"

Justin sighed as he continued to fondle himself, his cock slowly hardening as Brian whispered to him. It didn't really matter _what_ Brian was saying; his voice alone was enough. "Okay. Tiring. Boxing up all that shit to bring back there was exhausting. My back's fucking killing me right now."

"I thought you weren't bringing a lot back with you?" Brian replied, languidly stroking his own cock as he savored the sound of Justin's voice on the other end of the phone. How long had he dreamed of a moment like this? He longed to have his lover back home and in his bed again, but it was almost surreal, talking to him like this. It hadn't been too long ago that he had practically given up hope of ever seeing - or hearing him - again.

"I'm not," Justin assured him as Brian brought his attention back to the present. "But there're photos and some art awards I just couldn't part with. And obviously whoever the new owner winds up being, he won't be interested in any of it. I certainly wasn't going to throw it away. I have to bring it with me, along with some smaller paintings that I'm able to fit into the SUV."

"Of course," Brian said softly as he continued his leisurely pace. He found that he wanted to make this last. The longer he held out, the sweeter it would be. There would be time for some frenzied lovemaking when he and Justin were reunited tomorrow night. And he had no doubt of that; Justin might be planning on living in the carriage house for now, but he didn't plan on sleeping alone in his bed very much. Not if HE could help it. "You always were the sentimental twat."

Justin snorted as his fingers squeezed and kneaded the swollen flesh while he imagined Brian's hands working their magic on him. "And I suppose you kept those photos of me and Kaylee because you didn't believe in spring cleaning."

"Something like that," Brian murmured in response, his eyes closed as he imagined Justin lying in bed beside him. "I can almost feel you right now," he revealed, his voice low and velvety. "I can feel you stroking me, slow and easy. I can feel your hot breath washing over me as your mouth opens up to take me in, all the way to the back of your throat."

"Yesssss," Justin breathed out as his breathing grew shallow. He continued to pump his cock, building up speed as he held his cellphone in his left hand and closed his eyes to imagine Brian lying beside him, his hand curled possessively around his member as his thumb flicked playfully at the pre-come now oozing out of the tip and he nuzzled his neck before working his way down to the erect nipples on his chest to tease and torment him. "I would wrap my warm lips around your dick, using my tongue to brush against your silky skin. I always loved the way you smelled and how you tasted, Brian, and how soft your skin is, but so muscled and strong..."

"Ah, Justin," Brian groaned, his previous vow forgotten as his fingers flew over his cock faster and faster while he imagined Justin sucking him off in only the way that he could do. "So good," he murmured as he fantasized about last night and how they had worn each other out making love after being apart for so long. "What then?" he urged, concentrating on his body's reaction to his lover's voice as he breathed the words out.

"Then after you came and I swallowed every drop," Justin continued sensuously, his own pace quickening as he struggled to speak, "I would slide up your body as our dicks tangled together to get you hard again while I kissed and licked every part of your chest. Then I would bite down hard on your shoulder to mark you and make sure that everyone knew that you're mine again before I tongue-fucked the shit out of you."

Brian moaned even louder in response, his chest heaving up and down in the throes of passion as he admitted, "I was always yours, Justin. Always...Fuck, I wish you were here in this bed right now."

"Brian," Justin whispered, his chest rising hard up and down in time with the strokes of his hand, feeling the impending climax coming. "Always you, too..." he managed to say just before his body clenched and his face contorted as he exploded, no longer able to hold back.

His lover's familiar, hoarse cry of release was all it took for Brian to follow him immediately afterward, his fingers becoming coated with his sticky seed as his body erupted, his mouth forming a large 'O' as he, too, came with a vocal cry. He bit his lip to keep any further moans from escaping for fear their daughters would hear as he collapsed, spineless and sweaty, onto the much too large and lonely bed.

Several seconds passed before either man could speak, their lifeline still clutched tightly between them as Brian held the phone to his ear and listened to Justin's ragged breathing as he, too, tried to regain a regular rhythm.

"Brian?" was the eventual, throaty whisper as Justin finally slowed his breathing down enough to speak.

"Yeah?"

"I'm ready to come home."

Sweat trickling down his face and his hair damp and plastered to his forehead, Brian had to smile lazily at the word _home. _"I'll be waiting, Sunshine," he whispered back. "Get some sleep."

"I'll try," was the soft response, although Justin wondered how easy that would be, lying in his old bed and feeling particularly alone now. Talking to Brian was both heaven as well as hell. "Good night, then; I'll see you tomorrow."

Brian blinked the moisture back from his eyes. _It's just sweat, _he told himself. _...Right. _"We'll be waiting for you. And, Justin...?"

"Yeah?" was the sleepy response; he could hear his partner slowing succumbing to his tiredness, the strenuous events of the day slowly catching up with him.

"I...uh..."

"I know," Justin assured him; certain of that now. Perhaps he always had been. "Me, too, Brian. Later."

"No," was the unexpected response.

Justin frowned, about ready to hang up when Brian had spoken. "No, what?"

"Let me say it," Brian explained as silence permeated the other end as Justin held his breath. He took a deep breath. _It's not that hard, Kinney. Just fucking say it already_. _It's not the first time, and it definitely won't be the last. _ He inhaled one more deep breath before he let it out. "I love you; come home soon."

Justin smiled as his eyelids struggled to stay open. "I love you, too, Brian Kinney," he whispered before he quietly disconnected the call and fell asleep.

* * *

><p><em>Early the Next Morning - Chicago<em>

Justin groaned as he placed his hands at the small of his back and leaned backward to stretch; he was even stiffer this morning than he had been last night when he had spoken to Brian. "And not in a good way," he murmured with a smile, figuring what Brian's response to that would be. He sighed; at least he only had a few more boxes to go, and then he and the cats could finally get going back to West Virginia.

He pushed the living room curtains aside to stare at the "For Sale" sign now prominently displayed on his front lawn. It felt odd to see it there; almost out of place. He took a deep breath as he turned around to survey what had been his residence for so long. The movers would be coming shortly to pick up his piano and the oversized paintings he couldn't fit into the SUV, along with a few miscellaneous boxes. Other than that, he was leaving his condo in pretty much the same condition as when he and Kaylee had lived in it. It had been a perfect home for them; warm with old-world charm and in an established, friendly neighborhood, close to the park and to all the galleries he frequented. It had been the springboard for his career as well as the place where he had raised his daughter. So many memories had been crafted here.

But as he stood there in the place he had living in for so long, he found that he wasn't regretting his decision; it was time to move back, to work on creating a new life with the man he loved and with their daughters. It was also time to rekindle his friendships back home, to reconnect with those he cared about. It was scary in a way; yes. Leaving your comfortable cocoon always was. But it was also exciting and promising. And it felt _right. _He looked all around the room one more time as if memorizing it before he picked up the last, remaining box to be fitted into the SUV and walked over to the door to open it, hearing the cats meowing in protest from inside their cat carriers. Picasso and Dali detested being caged up, but he had placed a couple of toys in with them to keep them occupied, along with some food and a small water bottle, so they would be comfortable enough on the way to their new home. "I know," he concurred with them sympathetically. "But it'll be worth it," he assured them softly. "It'll be worth it for all of us."

Smiling, he opened the door and stepped outside; his back to the front yard as he closed the door behind him, he didn't notice someone walking up the sidewalk, but his body stiffened as he heard a familiar voice - one that he never thought he would ever hear again.

"So you really did it, didn't you? You went back to that asshole."

Justin slowly turned around to confront his former boyfriend, his lips pressed firmly together in irritation. At that moment, he didn't know if he was angrier over Alex's showing up unexpectedly or the derogatory name that he had just used for his partner. "What I do or don't do is none of your business."

Alex shook his head in dismay as Justin continued to clutch the box, almost like a shield of armor between them. "How could you, Justin? He's not worth it; he's so beneath you."

Justin smirked. "No, normally it's the other way around."

Alex's mouth hung open in disgust. "Don't you realize what he's doing, Justin? He's manipulating you! He's using - what's her name? Katie. He's using her to get to you! Once he has you back where he wants you and gets tired of you, he'll move onto someone else and throw you away like yesterday's garbage! How can you trust him? I know men like him; he's a player! He likes the thrill of the hunt, and once he's gotten what he's after and gets his fill, it'll all be over and you'll be left out in the cold, without your daughters and without your home!"

Justin rolled his eyes. "Oh, please; don't be so melodramatic. It doesn't become you."

Alex looked at the "For Sale" sign, remembering all the times he and Justin had spent together there. "So you're just dropping everything and moving back in with him. Just giving up everything you worked for and doing whatever he wants. I thought you had more sense than that."

"Shut up, Alex!" Justin erupted, his face red with fury, as he dropped the box at his feet. "You don't know shit about Brian or me! We have something that you will never understand!"

Alex shook his head sadly. "Justin, you're so much better than that egotistical jerk. Don't make the same mistake twice."

Justin crossed his arms over his chest, his body language all too clear as he told him firmly, "I won't." He thought he detected just a bit of smugness on Alex's face before he clarified what he meant. "_This_ time Brian and I are going to make it work." He walked up closer to his former lover to look him directly in the eyes, his own flashing a deep shade of inky blue as he told him with deadly calm, "You don't have the right to talk about Brian at all, because you don't know shit about him. Not the way that I do. And one more thing - if you EVER show up again at our home or come anywhere near my daughters, I will take out a restraining order on you so fast you won't even have time to turn around before I knock your ass to the ground and drag you over to your car. Do I make myself clear?"

"Justin," Alex gasped out. "You can't be serious. Even if you don't want us to get back together..."

Justin laughed in derision. "Are you out of your mind? That's _never_ going to happen. I mean it, Alex; leave my family the fuck alone; ALL of them. Got it? GOT IT?" he repeated when Alex just stood there, stony faced.

Finally, the other man huffed out, "Yeah, yeah, I got it, Justin. I still think you're making a big mistake. But if you're that dense, then maybe the two of you deserve each other. I guess I never really knew you at all." He shook his head as he turned to go. Just before he left, however, he turned to eye him sadly. "I really did love you, you know. But then I never had your heart from the start, did I?"

Justin stared over at the man he had thought he knew well. There WAS a time when he had cared for this man; at least, the man he thought Alex was. But after the way he had treated his daughters, especially, the man he thought he had known had turned out to be an imposter. Had he really known him, then? Well, it didn't matter now anyway.

"No," he finally told him honestly. "You didn't. And you never would."

Alex nodded. "I didn't think so." He paused for a few moments to study the man he somehow knew he would never see again. "Goodbye, Justin." Silently he turned around and headed down the sidewalk.

Justin watched him for a few seconds until, taking a deep breath and squaring his shoulders in determination, he picked up the box he had dropped and proceeded to take it over to the SUV. When Alex's car started up and the man slowly pulled out into traffic, Justin never gave him a second look.

* * *

><p><em>Chapter End Notes:<em>

There will be another part to this posted very soon.:) Thank you as always to my beta, Boriqua522, for her assistance.


	30. Renewal

_Justin returns home to Britin; the girls and Brian prepare for his arrival. _

* * *

><p><em>Earlier that Morning...<em>

Brian gulped down the last of his coffee, along with one remaining bite of his whole wheat toast as he set the china coffee mug down on the counter next to the sink. He smiled; he hadn't used his '_Best Dad in the Whole, Wide, World' _mug in a long time. Gus had purchased it for him several years ago as a Father's Day gift, and while he had made a point of using it whenever his son has visited Britin after that, he preferred just the plain but sturdy, off-white china mug that he normally used. Today, though, as he helped prepare his daughters' breakfasts - egg white omelet for Kaylee and some blueberry pancakes dripping in syrup for Katie - and they awaited Justin's return from Chicago, he thought it was an appropriate time to take it out and use it again.

"Ready?" he called over to the girls as they finished up their meal. Both girls were clad in comfortable attire for 'Operation Sunshine' as Brian had dubbed their mission earlier. They were finally beginning to assert more of their uniqueness between them now rather than highlighting their multitude of similarities, he noticed, as he peered over at them. Katie was wearing a pair of unadorned, form-fitting, purple running pants tied with a drawstring at the waist and a dark purple tank top, while Kaylee, ever the girly-girl, was wearing a looser fitting pair of emerald green capris with lace at the cuffs and a matching tee-shirt with eyelet lace at the collar.

"Ready, Sir!" They both responded as they looked over to him with twinkling eyes and gave their father a mock salute, both giggling between themselves conspiratorially like they were hiding some big, deep secret. Ever since Brian had asked them earlier if they wanted to help him prepare the carriage house for their father's arrival later this evening, they had been giddy over the thought of their mutual 'secret mission.' Of course, after conducting covert maneuvers for the past several weeks to help bring both fathers back together, Brian figured this was right in their area of expertise anyway. Truth be known, he was quite proud of himself for thinking of it in the first place. Not that he couldn't actually do 'romance' when he wanted to, but after witnessing his and Justin's daughters in action down in the wine cellar that day, he figured they would be more than happy to help take care of the more sentimental aspects of his plan in addition to helping to spiff the place up. Calling Cynthia on her cell earlier to inform her that she would have to reschedule his clients today or get Ted to cover for him, he had the entire day now to carry his plan out. While he had meant every word about allowing Justin to adjust to being back at Britin, that didn't mean he couldn't do his best to help make him feel more 'comfortable.'

Wiping his mouth off with his napkin, he placed it down next to his coffee mug. "Okay, then, soldiers; dirty dishes in the sink and then it's off to the battlefield!" The girls chortled over their father's silliness as they slid off their counter stools and rushed over to the sink; plates, silverware, and glasses clinked raucously together as they hurried to join their father by the back door a few seconds later.

"What exactly are we going to do, Dad?" Katie asked, a little suspicious all of a sudden as she noticed what appeared to be cleaning materials propped by the back door: a couple of brooms, a plastic carrying bin filled with various cleaning items, and two pairs of small-sized gloves. "You're not giving us latrine duty, are you?" she pressed, hands on her hips.

Brian laughed as he reached over to affectionately ruffle her thick hair; only now was it starting to grow just a bit longer, and was now down to her just above her shoulders. He knew, however, that she wouldn't permit it to grow much longer than that, or it would interfere with her sports. Unlike her sister, Katie despised having to style her hair. She was - and always had been - a 'dry and go' kind of girl.

"Daaaad," Katie whined as she pulled away in reaction. "Do you mind?"

Brian grinned. "Sorry, Your Majesty," he told her with a bow as Kaylee giggled beside her.

Katie glowered at her before she turned back toward her father. "You didn't answer me, Dad. I love Daddy, and I would do almost anything for him. But I draw the line at toilets."

Brian laughed. "No latrine duty," he reassured her with a smile. "The carriage house is pretty much all set to go. I just thought we could just do a little touch up and add a few things to make your father feel a little more at home there, that's all."

Katie squinted her eyes up at him in curiosity. "What _sort_ of things?"

It almost seemed like her father appeared uncomfortable with her question as he hesitated slightly. "Well, uh, you know," he stumbled a little. "Maybe some fresh flowers from the rose bushes out back. And we'll need to go into town to the grocery store so we can fully stock the kitchen. And I imagine he'll be hungry when he gets here, so maybe you girls can help me with a crockpot recipe of some kind. You know your father," Brian added as he looked at them.

"Yeah, Daddy's _always_ hungry," both girls replied in unison as if they had rehearsed it.

Brian shook his head in amazement. "I don't know how you do that," he marveled. "But you're right; your father is never one to turn down a good meal, especially when it includes dessert." He clapped his hands. "So let's get going, troops! Operation Sunshine has now commenced!"

"Yeah!" Both girls grinned and gave themselves a 'high five' as their father slid the back patio door open and, picking up the variety of cleaning supplies waiting for them, they all ambled along the winding pathway leading toward the carriage house, all three of them anxiously awaiting the one missing link in their newly-reformed family.

* * *

><p><em>Later that Evening...<em>

Brian surveyed the spotless carriage house with a pleased eye: thanks to their daughters' efforts, the space had been completely dusted and vacuumed. The polished, hardwood floor gleamed in the glow of the candlelight flickering on top of the modest-sized dining room table, and yellow and red roses were grouped together in vases throughout the combination living/dining great room, providing a fragrant aroma that rivaled the most expensive perfume. In an odd way, it actually complimented the smell of the Beef Bourguignon currently warming in a crock pot on the kitchen counter over by the stove.

"Only for you, Sunshine," he murmured softly as he recalled his choice to contribute one of his most expensive bottles of Pinot Noir to the recipe, having discovered earlier in the day that he and the girls had forgotten to pick up a cheap bottle of wine at the small grocery located in town. "Shit, am I so fucked," he muttered as he realized it was well after his normal cut-off time of seven o'clock for eating anything heavily carb-laden. Of course, he shouldn't be surprised; from the first moment he had met Justin, his partner had managed to make him break many of his typical rules. Why should this be any different? In an odd way, it was actually comforting and provided him with hope that the two of them at last were on the right track.

He had to give their girls credit, too; instead of insisting on sticking around to wait for Justin's return, they had readily agreed to wait back up at the house for him with their grandmother and Gus to welcome him back and give their father a chance to greet him privately afterward. Now all they had to do was wait - impatiently - for the 'guest of honor' to appear.

Having talked briefly to Justin about two hours ago and unable to wait any longer to hear his voice again, Brian keyed in Justin's one-digit phone code and waited impatiently for him to answer. The phone rang twice before finally he heard it connect.

"Hey."

"Where are you?"

Justin laughed softly. "Well, hello to you, too. I'm about two hours closer than I was the last time we talked."

"Asshole. You know what I mean."

"Such a romantic," Justin growled, but there was no sting in his voice, only amusement. "If you had waited about ten more minutes, you could have talked to me in person."

Brian's heart quickened in excitement. "You're almost home?"

"Yeah," Justin smiled at the thought. "I'm almost home." He knew the word wouldn't be lost on Brian, either. "I'm just now driving by the grocery store."

Brian couldn't help smiling in response. He was within a few minutes, then. He couldn't fucking wait to see Justin again, and to start them back on the road to a permanent reconciliation - with the help of two dearly-loved daughters, that is. He knew he would have their full support. "Just don't stop on the way by," he teased his partner as he heard Justin laugh that magical laugh that he had missed for so long.

"Damn," Justin played along as he drove on by. "And I was craving Moose Tracks."

"You can track your moose later," Brian told him as Justin laughed. "Get your ass back here. I know two girls who are missing you like crazy. And one father, too," he added softly in admission.

"Brian..."

"They're up at the house with your mom and Gus," Brian added before Justin could continue. "Go up there first and say hello."

"_First_? Where _are_ you? At the stables?"

"Why?" Brian couldn't help asking, his lips curled under. "Wanting to do a little 'riding' when you get home, Sunshine?"

Justin rolled his eyes as he felt his face warm at the thought; Brian could almost 'hear' his reaction as he responded a little to his disappointment, "Sorry, Mr. Kinney. No 'riding' right away. I'm pretty bushed at the moment after the long drive. You didn't answer my question, though, by the way."

"I'm out at the carriage house; I wanted to make sure everything was in order before you got home."

Justin turned onto the highway heading toward the house, the night slowly encroaching and turning the horizon a delightful shade of pale purple and pink as the sun began to set. "Everything seemed fine before," he pointed out.

"I just wanted to air it out a little," Brian vacillated; after all, it wouldn't be a surprise if Justin knew the real reason.

"Oh," he responded, seemingly accepting Brian's explanation to his partner's relief. "That was a good idea; it did smell a little musty before. Give me about five more minutes, then; I'm about a mile away now."

"Okay, but go up to the house first so you can see the girls, and then come on back." Brian paused for a moment. "I've missed you."

Justin smiled. "I've missed you, too. Stay where you are. I'll be there as soon as can. "

"I'll be waiting," Brian told him softly as he disconnected the call. Taking a moment to be grateful that Justin was, indeed, back home for good this time, he slowly looked around to make sure everything was ready. "That'd better be a quick hello," he decided with a vow as he got to work setting the table for their candlelight meal.

* * *

><p>Justin could feel the tension starting to leave his body as he pulled up the long, winding driveway of the estate. The cats mewed softly in the backseat, almost as if they were aware that they would soon be reunited with Kaylee as he slowed down to a stop in front of the entrance to the house and turned off the motor. He barely had time to unlatch his seatbelt and open the car door before the front door burst open and two excited girls rushed down the sidewalk toward him.<p>

"Daddy!" both girls squealed as he reached out and grabbed onto them, giving them both a big bear hug.

"Welcome home, Daddy!" Katie told him, her face lit up with exhilaration.

"Hey, girls!" he greeted them with a big smile of pleasure as he kissed first one girl and then the other on the cheek before pulling back a little to look at them. He grinned at Kaylee, who turned around to peek through the back window, her hands cupped over the glass so she could see a little more clearly. "Someone wants to say hello to you," he told her as she let out a shriek of excitement and flung the back door open to crawl inside. The cats immediately responded to her voice by meowing loudly for attention, no doubt excited at being reunited with her and wanting to get out of their confinement after having been in their cat carriers for far too long.

"There're my kitties!" she cried out in joy as she opened the first door of the carrier holding Picasso and reached in to pet him. "I've missed you both so much!"

"Be careful," Justin reminded her. "You don't want him to get out just yet. Let's get them inside and then we can get their litter boxes and everything set up, okay? You want to hand Picasso's carrier to your sister and get a hold of Dali's?" he suggested. He noticed Katie shrinking back a little from the car. "Katie?"

"They don't like me," she reminded him as she bit her lip apprehensively and eyed the green, glowing eyes staring back at her from the carrier. "I'm afraid they'll bite me. Do you know what happens if a cat bites you? You get rabies and die."

"Katie," he gently advised her. "Both cats have had their rabies shots, so you wouldn't get rabies. But you are smart to be a little cautious until they get to know you better," he agreed. "Cat bites can get infected. But I'm sure once they get to know you, you'll be fine. They're actually quite lovable."

"I'll take you word on that," she answered dubiously as she stood back from them. "But they growled at me before," she recalled all too well.

Justin nodded, remembering clearly the odd reaction both cats had had to his daughter, back when he assumed it had been Kaylee with him in Chicago. He sighed. He could tell all of them - human AND feline - were going to have an adjustment period here. Perhaps that was one more reason why it was best he and Kaylee start out in the carriage house for now. "I remember," he told her as he peered inside the backseat. "Kaylee, hand me Picasso's carrier and you can take Dali's in, okay? And we'd better keep them in the carriers until we can get them out to the carriage house. Until your sister and father are more accustomed to them being around, we'll have to be careful."

She nodded, a little disappointed that the cats wouldn't have free reign to go wherever they pleased. But she supposed she could understand that. She handed the first cat carrier to her father and then scooted back out with Dali's in her hands. "They would never bite you," she assured her sister, but Katie wasn't convinced as she stood aside to let her pass, giving them a wide berth in the process.

"I'll hold off judgment on that," she told her sister as Kaylee softly scoffed. To her, the cats were almost a physical extension of her; the thought of being afraid of them was ludicrous. But then she thought about how she still was nervous around Eton and Ceres while Katie was so comfortable perched on top of them, and she thought better of making light of it.

* * *

><p>A few minutes later, both cats had been led out on leashes to the backyard to relieve themselves and, with freshly-replenished food bowls and water, they were presently roaming around unfettered with Kaylee in the downstairs rec room where their father had temporarily rested after his ankle sprain, Justin surmising that Brian wouldn't be too thrilled about him bringing the cats with him to the carriage house just yet.<p>

He smiled as he came up from the basement, a little relieved that the door leading up to the main floor was unlocked - and open - this time. Finding his mother sitting at the kitchen counter nursing a coffee mug, he walked over to briefly sit next to her. "Quiet for a change," he observed as she nodded, enjoying the relative solitude as well.

"Katie and Gus are in the library," she told him. "They're looking at art books."

Justin laughed. "Art books? I would have expected that from Katie, but Gus? Not him; maybe playing one of his video games or listening to music. Gus doesn't seem like the artsy type, even though he could wield a mean crayon when he was younger."

Jennifer grinned. "He's not," she verified. "He does love sports, though; that's one thing he and his sister have in common. But she's good at wrapping him around her finger. He's doing it for her; well, for_ both_ of you. She's looking for ideas on what to paint with you tomorrow." She smiled at her son affectionately. "She's so happy that you're back, Justin, and she's extremely excited about the idea of getting to paint with you."

Justin nodded. "So am I," he told her sincerely before his smile faded just a bit.

Jennifer frowned. "What?" she asked softly.

Justin sighed. "Nothing really. It's just that when you mentioned how Gus was more into sports than art, and how Katie wraps him around her little finger, it just made me realize how much I don't really know about either one of them. About how much time has passed since we were all together. It worries me, I guess."

Jennifer's brow creased. "Worries you? How?"

"Mom, it's been over a decade since Brian and I were together with the girls as a family, and Gus wasn't too keen on the idea at first of us getting back together."

"I thought the two of you had patched things up since then, though," she pointed out as she cupped her hands around the warmth of the china mug and eyed her son thoughtfully.

Justin nodded. "We have," he confirmed. "It's not really that. It's...," he struggled to explain. "I don't want anything to happen this time around that tears us apart again. I've invested my heart and soul into making this work; Brian and I BOTH have. For our sake - as well as for our daughters - I can't afford to fuck it up this time."

Jennifer reached over to place her slender hand on top of her son's lower arm. "Justin, might I remind you that you 'didn't fuck it up,' as you put it, on your own? I'm convinced that Brian wants this to work just as much as you do; maybe even more. He loves you, Sweetheart. And I know you've never stopped loving him. And the girls? My God, they're over the moon just at the thought of all of you being a family again!"

Justin let out a deep breath between his lips. "I guess that's what scares me the most," he admitted to his mother. "Do you know how devastated they will be if this doesn't work out? That's why I want Kaylee and me to live in the carriage house first, so we can slowly ease into this. The girls have to come first, then Brian and me. At least that's one thing that I'm sure both Brian and I agree on."

Jennifer smiled with a nod as Justin's cellphone buzzed, signifying an incoming text message. "Speaking of Brian..." Something told her that someone was getting impatient. She knew she was correct when she noticed her son blush as he read the message left for him.

"Yeah, someone's looking for me," he told her as he slid off the counter stool and turned his phone off before his mother had a chance to see the photo Brian had just sent to him with his text. "I'd better go say hello."

Jennifer laughed. "Well, tell Brian I said 'hello,' too...but not in the same way."

"Mom!" Justin protested as his face flushed an even darker shade of pink as he turned to go. "Will you let the girls know where I am?" His mother nodded as he added, "Oh, and...will you tell them that we'll come up and wish them good night before they go to sleep?"

"Are you sure about that, Justin?" she asked with a knowing smile.

Justin nodded. He knew how 'persuasive' his partner could be - and what an enormous temptation he was just by being in his presence - but he was determined to hold his ground this time. "Yeah, I'm sure," he told his mother. "They've been going to bed around 11, I think. Tell them we'll be up to wish them good night before then." He peered over into his mother's eyes as he explained, "I want to take things slowly this time, Mom. That means actually TALKING things out, not falling back on our normal operating procedure."

She raised her eyebrows doubtfully for a few seconds before nodding, silently pleased with her son's decision. "I'll take care of rounding them up, Honey. You go ahead before someone comes looking for you."

Justin grinned, nodding as he opened the sliding glass door and walked out, closing it behind him. Jennifer stared after his quickly retreating figure before she retrieved her mug and walked over to place it in the sink. "Good luck," she murmured as she watched her son through the window overlooking the pathway that headed back toward the carriage house.

"Grandma! Come and see! I found the perfect photo!" Katie called out to her as her musing was interrupted.

"Be right there, Honey!" she yelled back as, with one last look, she turned and headed off toward the library.

* * *

><p><em>Carriage House - A few minutes later...<em>

Justin stood at the door to his and Kaylee's new home; his heart fluttering in his chest like a million, winged butterflies. He had been eager enough before to see Brian again, but once he had sent him that text with the brief message - _see what you're missing, Sunshine _- and that photo of him standing in front of the bathroom mirror, clad in a pair of hip-hugger jeans with the fly open as he stroked himself - the adrenalin had rushed through him and promptly settled in his dick. He took a few deep breaths before turning the handle, knowing the door would be unlocked, before he slowly pulled the door open and took a peek inside.

What he found was totally unanticipated. He had fully expected Brian to revert back to his old modus operandi and be standing there, naked as the day as long with only a wide smirk on his face and a shot of Beam in his hand as they came face to face. But instead, from the sound of things, his partner was in the kitchen; he could hear a tinkling sort of sound like glasses being banged together, and then the distinctive popping noise of a bottle being opened as he quietly closed the door behind him.

He remained frozen to the spot as he surveyed the softly-lit space; a single, plain pillar candle stood in the middle of the wooden, rectangular table, the flame creating intriguing patterns on the simple china table settings. What appeared to be a basket of some sort of bread sat off to the side. The table was nothing fancy, befitting the space that surrounded it, but he could tell that Brian had taken some time to carefully place the table settings in order, stacking the smaller salad plate on top of the dinner plate and setting water glasses near the silverware. He walked over closer to the table to examine it, smiling as he noticed a couple of small, white seating cards placed next to each plate. He could clearly recognize Kaylee's handwriting on the one that said "Daddy;" the other card was written in a bolder style, probably Katie's, and said "Dad." Each one had "XOXO" written underneath. He shook his head in amusement; apparently Brian had enlisted some accomplices when it came to his table design.

"Hey," he heard softly behind him then as his heart began to pound. Justin slowly turned around and, despite his conviction to take things slow this time, his breath caught in his throat at the sight of his barefooted partner standing quietly a few feet away, a canning jar full of wildflowers clutched in his hand as he gazed over at him. He was actually surprised to see that instead of being undressed, Brian was clad in a well-loved pair of worn jeans - he recognized them as the same pair he had so tantalizingly left unbuttoned earlier when he had sent him the photo - but to Justin's relief, they were now buttoned back in place. A form-fitting, black sleeveless tank top completed his ensemble, making him look particularly dangerous and attractive.

"Welcome home," Brian murmured. He appeared a little embarrassed at being caught in the act as he curled his lips under and walked over to place the jar of flowers down in the middle of the table. "The girls, uh, they couldn't find a vase earlier. So I found this under the sink and thought it might do the trick." He poked his tongue into his cheek impishly at that last part as Justin peered over at him and rolled his eyes at the double entendre.

He stared at the beautiful array of diverse colors and types arranged in the greenish-blue glass container. "Are these from the flower garden?" he asked softly as he reached out to touch a silky, yellow lily petal, remembering how much he used to admire the vibrant display of flowers that always grew out back by the fence. The girls had always delighted in picking their own bouquets to bring him each day as they toddled in from the backyard with Brian, holding out their treasure proudly to him, even though some of the flowers they picked were invariably interspersed with a healthy dose of dandelions and wild clover. Despite his allergies, though, to Justin those flowers offered from chubby little hands were the most exquisite treasure he could ever have hoped to receive.

Brian nodded as he watched Justin stare at the flowers, his own memories flooding back in much the same manner. "Yeah," he told him as he stood next to his partner. "It was the girls' idea to go pick them and bring them to the table; they said it would be..._romantic._"

Justin laughed softly at the disdainful tone in Brian's voice as he tripped over the last word; it was somewhat akin to someone finding a dead rat. "Somehow that doesn't surprise me; still playing matchmakers, I see."

"Yeah," Brian replied as he stared over at the older but strikingly beautiful face of his partner; he still took his breath away, even after all these years of separation. He suspected that would always be the case, no matter HOW old they got. And he fully intended on growing old with this man.

Justin must have felt the heat of his stare, because he turned to look over at Brian and flushed in reaction. He cleared his throat. "Something smells good," he commented with a smile. "Did the girls do that, too?"

"No," was the surprising reply as Brian shook his head. "They helped," he admitted. "But that was _my_ idea. Beef Bourguignon," he told him proudly. "Used the crock pot...and some of my most expensive Pinot, too."

Justin laughed. "Wow...I'm flattered. You didn't exactly have the most wonderful experience the last time you were down in the wine cellar. Neither one of us did, actually." He sniffed the air. "I have to admit, though - it does smell incredible." He twisted around slightly to look over at the counter where he could see a crockpot sitting next to the stove, its lid condensed with steam as the meal simmered inside. He was finding it hard to believe that Brian had done something so 'domestic.' He grinned as he turned back to him to say, "This I have to see."

Before he had a chance to move, however, Brian walked closer to capture Justin's wrist as he brought his hand up to hold it against his chest; he could feel his partner's heart beating rapidly in time with his own as he reminded him, "Justin, that's the advantage of using a crockpot; it will stay warm until we're ready to eat. Are you really in the mood for food right now?" He began to carefully knead the elegant, pale fingers with his hand, using his thumb to slowly rub across the knuckles as Justin lifted his gaze to meet his.

"No," he heard his partner croak out in a low, throaty voice, the novelty of Brian's actions quickly being pushed aside for more immediate matters. Justin quirked one side of his mouth up to stare into his eyes. "For once I'm not that hungry - at least not for food, anyway."

Brian smiled smugly, pleased, as he leaned in to steal what would no doubt be the first of several kisses that evening, only to have Justin stop him by placing the fingers of his other hand against his lips. "What?" he asked softly, both concerned as well as disappointed. He could see hesitation in Justin's face, and for just a brief second his insecurity flared to the surface. It was an emotion he was not normally accustomed to feeling, but Justin seemed to bring that out in him somehow.

Justin reached up to place his hand against Brian's neck reassuringly as he told him, "We promised to not keep secrets between us anymore."

Brian nodded, his brow furrowing in confusion. He was dying to ask what was going on, but held his tongue.

Justin peered over at him as he explained quietly, "I just thought you should know that I had an unexpected visitor earlier today when I was taking some boxes out to the SUV."

Brian's grip on his partner's hand tightened involuntarily as he pressed, "Who?" The leaden feeling in his stomach, though, somehow told him what Justin would say before he verbalized it.

Justin took a deep breath before he verified what Brian had already figured out. "Alex." He could feel Brian's hand squeezing his almost painfully tight, and he instantly noticed his lover's pupils darkening in anger and probably some other element of vulnerability that he would likely never acknowledge aloud. "Brian..."

Brian pursed his lips tightly together as he fumed. "What the hell was he doing there, Justin? Did he try something again? How did he even know you would _be_ there? Has he been fucking _stalking_ you? That son of a _bitch_!" Up until that moment, Brian had mistakenly thought he had pushed his partner's former boyfriend completely out of his mind, unworthy of any further consideration. Now, however, he realized he had just been deluding himself. He turned slightly to grasp Justin by the neck, not painfully but in a way that told his lover that he wasn't letting him go this time.

Justin brought their clasped hands up to his mouth and brushed his lips against his partner's fingers as Brian stared into his eyes, silently seeking reassurance as he breathed heavily in and out.

"Brian, calm down. Everything's okay," he whispered soothingly to him. "I don't know how he knew I would be there. Maybe it was just pure, dumb luck. Maybe he was just driving by and happened to see my SUV parked there. Or maybe you're right," he conceded. "Maybe he'd been going by there all the time, just hoping to catch me at home and confront me. But I took care of it."

"How?" Brian asked as he placed his thumb under Justin's chin to force him to look into his eyes; he wanted to make sure he was getting the whole truth from him, and he knew there was no way his partner could look him in the eyes and keep something that might be unpleasant from him. "And what do you mean by _confront_?"

Justin sighed as he wriggled his fingers to free his hand from Brian's, who was close to cutting off his circulation; it was on his damaged hand, too, which meant that his partner must be quite agitated. Of course, he didn't need to feel his vise grip to know that; all he had to do was look in his steely-looking eyes. "Brian, he didn't touch me," he reassured him as he reached up to cup his hand against his cheek, secretly pleased in a way that he was so worked up merely over the thought. "And I made it clear to him that if he ever came anywhere near you, me, or the girls, especially, I would take out a restraining order on him - AFTER I dragged his ass back to the car and threw him inside."

Brian curled his lips under at the thought; his fingers caressed the slightly stubbly skin under his touch as he replied, "You really told him that?"

"Damn straight I did," was the firm reply as Justin smiled over at him.

He received a smile of relief in return as Brian observed dryly, "I don't imagine he liked that answer too well." He lightly rubbed his thumb over Justin's lower lip, his eyes changing slightly from an angry, dark hue to a warmer one as they focused on the blue eyes boring into his so intently.

Justin smirked. "No, he didn't." He face dissolved into something more serious as he told his partner, "But I think he finally got the message."

"And the message was...?" Brian asked softly as he continued to idly stroke his lover's cheek.

Justin reached up to grasp Brian's hand to pull it down his body and place it over his denim-clad cock. "The message was - that my life is with you and the girls."

Brian smirked this time with the lopsided grin that always made Justin's heart lurch. "Was that the _only _message?"

Justin smiled broadly as Brian kneaded his throbbing shaft with his fingers. He couldn't help gasping at the sensations coursing through him, his heart beginning to pound in anticipation. Just one day away from him had been too long; way too long...he could feel his convictions wavering.

He barely managed to eke out a wisecrack of, "Well, maybe not the _only_ part," before Brian grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and promptly crashed their lips together.

Brian heard Justin groan slightly from the fierceness of their kiss as he forced his tongue in between his lips; at last, he stole a taste of what he had been craving from the first second Justin had returned home as his partner's mouth opened to accept the intrusion. Both their bodies reacted to the heat being generated between them as Brian wantonly ground his cock against Justin's to heighten their desire, the stiff fabric of his jeans causing an unbearable friction as he reached behind to the small of Justin's back to pull him even closer and grabbed onto his buttocks for leverage. He couldn't get enough; their strenuous bout of reunion lovemaking the other night, along with their phone sex last night, had merely served to enflame his thirst even more.

After several seconds of attacking the lips and mouth he knew so well but had been deprived of for far too long, he finally broke apart just enough to growl, "Fuck, Justin! How much willpower do you think I have? Keep that up and I'll drag your fine little ass up to the bedroom right now!"

Justin fought to control his own breathing as he huffed out in protest, "I didn't start it!" He gripped the muscled flesh of Brian's biceps tightly; he had always thought it was ludicrous to think that someone could swoon over a kiss, but he could have sworn at that moment that he was feeling unsteady on his feet. Damn, but the man could kiss! His lips tingled and he felt like they were two times their normal size after Brian had just plundered them like a pirate seeking treasured bounty.

Brian replied with gruff honesty, "Sunshine, you started it the minute you walked back in here." His left hand played with the longer length of Justin's hair at his neck as he stared so intently into Justin's eyes that it made him blush.

"Brian..." He took a deep breath to steady his nerves; Brian feathering his hair or looking at him like he was right now always made him crazy with desire; doing both at the same time, while continuing to squeeze his hard-on through his jeans, was unfair - and almost impossible to resist. Using every ounce of fortitude he had - and remembering his promise earlier to the girls that he AND Brian would come to see them tonight before they fell asleep - he reached down to grasp Brian's hand and pull it away from his cock. He could detect a flash of both surprise as well as disappointment flicker across Brian's face before he hurriedly covered it up.

He let out a long breath between his lips as he continued to hold Brian's hand, realizing this 'trial' separation was going to be even harder than he had imagined. But he had to look at the big picture here; he had not only him and Brian to think about, but two girls back at the main house that they both loved dearly. "I told my mom that we would come back to the house to tell the girls good night before they went to sleep. She thought it would be a good idea for Kaylee to stay there just for tonight with Katie."

Brian groaned slightly in frustration; he didn't mind both girls staying at the house. And it wasn't that he didn't understand - and even love Justin even more for thinking of the girls first. But he wasn't ready to part from his partner just yet. "Okay," he agreed reluctantly as he concentrated on the feeling of familiarity and warmth of the hand resting in his. "I think that's a good idea, actually, since you've had a long day and I'm sure you're tired. There's no reason why Kaylee can't stay at the house tonight. And I think it's important to provide them with a comfort zone after everything they've been through."

He sighed in resignation. "So we will both make an appearance at the house to say goodnight to them. But what does that have to do with _now_, Justin?" He glanced over at the kitchen clock displayed on the microwave, noting the time. "It's only 7:45. I don't think the girls will be going to bed until, what? 10:30, 11:00? We have plenty of time before that, and you already said you weren't ready to eat yet." He pulled Justin closer, noting that his partner wasn't putting up much of a protest over his actions. "Fuck, I want you," he whispered, his voice a silky octave lower as he unclasped Justin's hand to reach over and begin slowly unbuttoning his shirt, his eyes never leaving his lover's. "If you don't want this, tell me to stop," he dared him, but he knew Justin wouldn't; his own lust was clearly reflected back in his partner's eyes as Justin whispered back, "I can't."

Brian dispatched Justin's shirt with alacrity, pushing it off the slender shoulders as his partner dropped his hands to his sides just long enough to allow the fabric to drop to the ground in a heap at his feet. As soon as his skin was revealed - an intriguing color under the inspection of the flickering candle nearby and the soft glow of the muted light elsewhere - Brian lips descended upon the side of his neck, his touch making him shiver as Justin grasped the soft, auburn hair in his hands; the errant strands felt ticklish against his skin as Brian nuzzled the silky flesh with wetness and warmth.

Justin moaned in his throat at the contact, savoring the feeling pouring through him. It was like the feeling one experienced when rushing down the highest hill on the steepest rollercoaster, or the adrenalin of reaching the apex of a mountain. "Brian..." he whispered in surrender as he reached out blindly to locate the hem of his partner's shirt to snake his hands beneath the cotton to feel the muscled smoothness of his chest. The sleeveless shirt Brian was wearing was quickly bunched up around his pecs as Justin slid his hands up to feel the familiar expanse of flat skin at his fingertips. At last, he angled his head so that his and Brian's lips fused together, and their passions immediately flared anew once more.

They stood there for several seconds, lips and tongues probing and arms roaming everywhere over bare skin, until at last Brian slowly began to push Justin backward toward the couch, unwilling to take the time to walk up the steps to the bedroom. Both of them, however, knew where this was leading, and both knew neither wanted to stop it.

Their dinner was promptly forgotten as Brian slowly lowered Justin down onto the couch, pausing for a moment to gaze down at the flushed face of his partner and the dark-blue eyes blazing with desire for him, before he reached down to pull at the flaps of Justin's jeans. "Lift up," he commanded breathlessly, his heart pounding as Justin braced his upper body on his elbows as he arched his hips up just enough to enable Brian to pull both his jeans and his briefs down in one fluid motion. His shoes and socks were quickly removed before the pants followed suit onto the ground nearby, leaving him shivering slightly in the coolness of the air, even as Brian's intense gaze threatened to make him combust.

"Come here," he urged Brian, holding out his hands toward him in entreaty. Brian held back just long enough to shred his shirt and unbutton his own jeans to slide out of them, Justin noticing he had on nothing underneath. Not surprising, though, considering the provocative pose that Brian had sent to him on his phone earlier. At the time, Justin had had no idea how he had managed to even reply intelligently to what his mother was saying to him after seeing that, but as Brian stood there now in much the same condition, his desire for him blatant and so readily discernible, the fact that he could cause such an impressive reaction in this man made Justin speechless once again.

Brian climbed on top of him, stealing one more kiss before his lips traveled from Justin's mouth, down his neck to his collarbone and then onto his left upper arm, trailing a hot, wet path down his skin like he was being marked and branded. His legs tangled with his partner's, their cocks brushing against each other and the friction causing him to gasp at the feeling as Brian's hands grasped his sides while he traveled lower, lower, until at last he found his target.

A few seconds later, he arched off the couch as Brian's mouth latched onto his cock, and, with his lover's left hand gripping the base of his shaft, he felt him quickly going to work with his lips and tongue as Justin held onto the top of his head, his fingers tightly clutching a thatch of soft but thick strands of hair as he uttered vocal but not-so-intelligible words of appreciation in response.

"Mmmm," Brian hummed against his inflamed skin as he licked the underside, making Justin suck in his breath as the vibration raised his arousal to a fevered pitch. His free hand reached for the couch cushion, gripping it painfully for support as Brian tightened his grip on his cock and then deep-throated him all the way to his pubes. A few seconds later, his entire body clenched and he spiraled out of control, climaxing explosively in Brian's mouth as waves of pleasure roiled through him and he called out Brian's name like a victory shout.

Breathing through his opened mouth to try and regain some sense of normalcy several seconds later, his heart threatened to burst through his chest in reaction as he lay there with Brian still draped over him, his partner's face lying sideways on his belly as he reached down with both hands to cradle Brian's head and turn it so he could meet his gaze.

Brian licked his lips suggestively with a pleased sort of smile as he slowly lifted his head to stare into the expansive orbs of blue, his love for this man openly displayed for his perusal and causing Justin's face to warm. "Come...Come up here," he managed to say at last.

Brian crawled up his body, his own needs painfully obvious as he finally came face to face with his partner. They met for a brief but intense kiss as Justin reached down between them to grasp Brian's erection and give it a squeeze, hearing Brian moan under his breath, a whisper of air blowing on his face through the parted, wine-colored lips.

Brian reached to wipe some sweaty hair away from Justin's face as his partner continued to stroke his cock, but he didn't want his needs met this way. "Justin..." He reached down to grab his wrist and hold it still. "Not like that..."

Justin gazed into his eyes, noting the restraint Brian was fervently trying to maintain written all over his face as he nodded in understanding. "Okay." God, he hated to ask right then, but he had to... "Brian, you did remember...?"

"Hell, yes, I did," Brian instantly replied as he lifted himself off Justin's smaller frame and reached down to slide his hand under the couch. Sitting up on his knees in between Justin's legs, he pulled out the needed supplies as Justin laughed softly in amusement.

"An entire box, Brian?" he chided as Brian dropped the small tube of lube onto the couch and hurriedly tore open the lid of the jumbo-sized condom box. In his haste, several condoms spilled out onto Justin's stomach as he shrugged back at him.

"I was going to be prepared this time," he told him with such intensity that Justin flushed at the tone of desire and longing in his voice. "We have a lot of making up to do, Justin," he explained as he plucked one of the condoms off Justin's belly and brushed the others aside, keeping them on the cushion for later. "And there are plenty more where these came from."

Justin shook his head with a smile as he reached up and wordlessly snatched the condom package from Brian's hand. In a ballet that had been performed countless times before, he held it up in his hand meaningfully as Brian reached for the tube of gel. Opening the tip to squeeze a generous amount of the self-warming liquid into his hands, he waited with barely-concealed impatience and anticipation as Justin tore the package open with his teeth and pulled the latex out. Their eyes met for a moment before Justin reached over and deftly slid the material onto Brian's cock, his hardness making the task easy, even though his hands were shaking slightly the entire time. His task accomplished, he lifted his gaze to stare into his lover's face, the moment briefly held in a sort of suspended animation as Brian slid the slippery fluid onto his shaft to prepare himself.

Grasping Justin's thighs in assistance, his partner slid his feet around his waist to lock them in place behind Brian's back and gripped his arms for support. He held his breath and nodded slightly in encouragement as Brian smiled down at him lovingly. "Come on," he whispered urgently, his own cock stirring once more in attention merely at the thought of Brian being inside him again.

Brian bestowed a satisfied, lop-sided grin on his face before his expression evolved into something more emotion-laden. "You are so fucking beautiful," he murmured almost involuntarily, receiving a surprised but pleased look from his partner over the atypically romantic words. A few seconds later, he lined up his cock and, his eyes fixed on Justin's face, he slowly slid the tip inside the hot, tight space, pressing his lips together as the sensation of being together again threatened to overwhelm him.

Just like in the old times - before their separation - no words were needed to convey what Justin wanted as he gripped Brian's biceps hard in an unspoken plea for him to go deeper; Brian was only too happy to oblige as he pushed in harder, unable to avoid uttering a guttural type of sigh as he marveled at how perfectly matched they were in every way. For just the briefest of moments, he regretted being unable to consummate their union unbidden with the latex separating them, but he pushed that aside for now to concentrate, instead, on how it felt to be moving inside his lover again; how right it felt and how even now it made him feel things he had never felt with anyone else. As he withdrew slightly and then plunged back in, hearing Justin moan beneath him in pleasure, he vowed one day that nothing would separate them, emotionally or physically, ever again.

* * *

><p>Several minutes later, the two lovers lay side by side on the couch, their arms twined around each other and both struggling to regain their normal breathing. Brian had disposed of the condom on the floor nearby, and he knew he should get up and find a rag to clean the aftereffects of their passionate encounter with, but at the moment the last thing he wanted was to leave Justin's embrace, so he chose to remain where he was.<p>

Their quickly cooling bodies were becoming chilled in the evening air - the weather that time of year hovering between needing the air conditioning and the heat turned on, and he could feel the prickle of goose bumps on Justin's skin as he caressed his back. So instead of rising, he reached to grab a lightweight, maroon fleece throw lying on the back of the couch to place it over their bodies for added warmth as Justin burrowed deeper into his chest in reaction, sated and content to remain where he was.

"Brian?"

"Yeah, Sunshine?"

"...time is it?" was the mumbled query.

Brian smiled as he kissed the top of his partner's head, realizing why he was asking. "It's still early," he whispered as he pulled Justin closer. "We have plenty of time before the girls need to go to bed. I'll wake you up before then, I promise. Just get some rest." He had forgotten until now that Justin had spent all day packing boxes and driving down from Chicago; not to mention how aggressively they had just made love a few minutes ago. No wonder he was so tired. But he figured it was a good kind of exhaustion - for both of them. "You don't have to go anywhere for a while, okay?" he murmured. _Actually_, y_ou're not going anywhere, period, Sunshine, not if I have anything to say about it, _he couldn't help thinking. He and the girls would do their best to see to that.

Justin smiled drowsily and nodded as he kissed Brian's chest. "'kay," he agreed just before his eyes, heavy with exhaustion, slowly fluttered shut and he soon fell asleep in Brian's arms. Brian lay there on his side, staring over at his partner as if memorizing every inch, before he set the alarm on his watch and pulled Justin tighter into his embrace, soon drifting off to join him.


	31. Little More KissingLittle More Scheming

_Justin and Kaylee get more accustomed to their new surroundings; the girls decide that they need to give their fathers a little 'push' in the right direction..._

* * *

><p><em>Later that Evening...Britin<em>

Brian reached for Justin's hand as they quietly crept up the carpeted steps of the main house together; the grandfather clock situated at the far end of the hallway upstairs was bonging exactly 11 times to denote it was the girls' bedtime. The house should have been totally silent, then - there was no light coming from underneath either Gus or Jennifer's rooms, signifying they had already gone to bed as well - but as they neared Katie's room, both men could hear soft giggles and conversation emanating from inside. They exchanged a knowing glance between them as Brian whispered, "I think someone has ignored their bedtime rules. Why does that not surprise me?"

Justin grinned with a nod as, hand in hand, they walked closer to their daughter's bedroom. The two girls must have heard their light footfalls in the hallway, because as they neared the room they could hear one of them shushing the other and then the room falling suddenly silent just before they reached it.

The room was dimly lit, only illuminated by a small nightlight plugged into the far wall across from the bed and the moonlight seeping in through the sheer curtains over the window seat. As Justin pushed the door open wider, he and Brian could see their daughters lying face up in bed, the lightweight, cotton blanket covering them up to their shoulders as they regularly breathed in and out as if in deep slumber.

"Nice try, girls," he told them softly as he let go of Brian's hand and walked into the room; Brian followed close on his heels as he approached the bed and sat down on the side of it as Brian joined him. "We both know you're not asleep yet; we heard you talking."

Katie sighed heavily as she opened her eyes and turned her head to peer over at her sister. "I _told_ you that you were being too loud!" she hissed as Kaylee, too, opened her eyes and shook her head in exasperation.

"I wasn't the _only_ one talking, you know! It takes two to have a conversation," she pointed out.

Brian placed his hand over his mouth to keep the smile from showing on his face as Justin told them quietly, "It doesn't matter, girls. You both know it's light out no later than eleven."

"But if we had been asleep, we wouldn't have been able to say goodnight to you," Katie told him sensibly as she scooted up in the bed to sit up straight and reached her hands out toward her father.

Justin's heart promptly melted into goo as he pulled his daughter into a snug embrace. "You have a point there, Katie," he told her softly, his chin resting in the crook of her neck as she wound her arms around his back and held on tight. He squeezed her briefly before he pulled back to look into her eyes, so much like his own. He smiled at her as he kept her loosely held in his arms. "I wouldn't have wanted to miss that."

Brian watched the scene before him and couldn't help thinking how surreal it still was. How many times - how many years - had he silently wished for this to happen? Now that it had, it was almost hard to believe. As Katie pulled away from Justin and hugged him in the same manner, though, he knew that thankfully it was definitely real. He hugged her tight and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek as he released her. "Sweet dreams, Chiquitita," he murmured as he gently laid her back down onto the bed.

"Hey," Kaylee protested from the other side of the bed as she sat up against the headboard. "What about me? There's a carbon copy of her over here, you know."

Justin and Brian looked at each other and laughed as they rose from the bed to walk around and sit down next to Kaylee. Brian smiled down at her as he pulled her into his arms. "Good Night, Munchkin," he whispered against her cheek as Justin's eyes watered at the unexpected pet name; a name he hadn't heard in years.

Kaylee crinkled her nose as she broke loose from his embrace to stare up at him. "Munchkin? Isn't that the name for those old, fat, short people from the _Wizard of Oz?" _

Brian chuckled as he peered over at Justin, noticing the sentimental look in his partner's eyes. "Yeah, it sure is," he confirmed softly with a smile as he turned back to look at her.

She frowned. "Why would you call me that, then?" Although in an odd way, it sounded familiar.

Brian smiled as he explained, "Because when you were really little, you used to be fascinated by that movie. And you had these adorable, chubby, little, rosy cheeks; just like those two Munchkins in the movie that wore the suspenders and carried around big, round lollipops."

Justin grinned at their daughter's reaction of horror. "He's right. When you were colicky, watching that movie over and over again was about the only thing that calmed you down." He gazed over at Brian as he added softly, "That...and being held in your dad's arms." He turned to look at Katie. "Now _you_ - you, on the other hand, were scared to death of the Munchkins. Whenever they showed up on the screen, you would hide your face in my chest and not look back around until Toto reappeared. You loved that dog. And you have no idea how far and wide we had to look until we found a stuffed one to give to you for Christmas that year."

"I did not," Katie maintained stiffly, finding it hard to believe she would be afraid of anything. "I see scary movies all the time, and nothing frightens me." Although, she had to admit...she remembered that black stuffed dog well. In fact, she still had it in a cedar chest up in a corner of the attic, too emotionally attached to it to discard it. She could remember sleeping with it until she was at least seven or eight years old. It invariably found its way into her arms whenever a violent thunderstorm broke out, or the house seemed way too quiet at night. She wasn't sure exactly when she had stopped needing it. But it had been an important part of her life - and a sense of comfort and security - for a long time before that.

"You might be a regular daredevil now," Brian told her with a smile. "But you were a lot different back when you were a toddler."

"What about Dali and Picasso?" Kaylee pointed out to her sister. "You're frightened of them."

"I am not!" Katie maintained. "There's a big difference between being scared of something and not liking them."

Kaylee eyed her dubiously. "Uh, huh," she said, unconvinced.

"Well, _you're _afraid of Ceres and Eton," she pointed out, feeling a little guilty over the comparison but unable to help herself. She could remember all too well how worried she had been when her sister had had her recent accident.

"That's different!" Kaylee replied, her eyes flashing in indignation as if reading her mind. "I fell off one of them, remember? You can't _ride_ a cat."

"Girls," Brian admonished them gently as Justin chuckled beside him. "I didn't mean to start World War III. Lay back down; it's time for bed. No arguments," he told them quietly but firmly. "Your father is very tired after his trip and needs to get some sleep."

Kaylee sighed in frustration, but both girls did as they were asked as they slid back down onto the mattress and gazed over at their fathers. Katie voiced aloud the same question that her sister was thinking as she asked hopefully, "Daddy, are you sleeping here in the house tonight?"

Both fathers exchanged a glance; they had expected such a plea from at least one of them, but it didn't make it much easier to answer. Justin replied softly, "No, Sweetheart. You know Kaylee and I will be living in the carriage house...For a while at least, anyway."

"But..."

"Katherine Elizabeth," Brian interrupted firmly but softly. "We've discussed this over and over. Now both of you - go to sleep. I'll be right down the hall, and you will see your father in the morning." He looked over at Justin, who nodded in confirmation. "Hash browns and scrambled eggs with toast and strawberry jam?" he asked softly, reciting Justin's favorite breakfast even after all these years.

Justin grinned, pleased that Brian had remembered. "Yeah...I think I can handle that."

"Wait!" Kaylee beseeched them as they started to rise from the bed. She reached to grasp Justin's sleeve as he sighed a little wearily. "Yes, Honey, what is it?"

"You didn't say goodnight to ME, Daddy."

Justin smiled at her affectionately as he leaned over to kiss her on the cheek, grasping both her shoulders for leverage, before he pulled back and nuzzled her nose briefly, Eskimo-style. "Goodnight, Kaylee," he whispered. "Sweet dreams."

"Goodnight, Daddy," she murmured as she let out a big yawn and stretched. "Love you. We'll see you at breakfast." Justin nodded as he rose from the bed and stood next to Brian, feeling his partner's hand on his shoulder as he gave it a squeeze. Quietly they walked over to the doorway and, with one more peek at their daughters Brian softly closed the door behind them, leaving it slightly ajar in case they should need him for anything during the night.

"So..." he began as he turned to face Justin, and found himself drowning in the fathomless, blue eyes peering up at him. He knew this moment was coming, but he fucking hated it. He wanted so badly to just drag Justin down to their master bedroom and remind him of exactly what both of them would be missing by him adhering to his principles and returning to the carriage house tonight. But he also knew he wouldn't do that; he had to look at the bigger, more rewarding picture here. He still felt a little bit like someone saying goodnight on a first date, however. "Will the cats sleep with you in bed tonight, Sunshine?" he asked softly in jest as he grasped his partner by the upper arms and curled his lips under playfully.

Justin smiled back at him as he placed his hands, palms down, on Brian's chest. "I imagine that's where they'll end up," he admitted, knowing he wouldn't have the heart to keep them confined to their carriers all night. "They were used to sleeping with Kaylee all the time back in Chicago; they'll have to make do with me, though, at least for tonight."

"Lucky cats," Brian replied huskily as Justin's face flushed with heat over the sultry tone of his voice; Brian's eyes lowered to gaze at the inviting pair of lips in front of him, his intentions and his desire crystal clear. "Justin," he whispered, just before he leaned in and the two of them moved as one into each other's arms to kiss, Justin's hands sliding up Brian's chest to twine behind his neck as Brian's hands crept upward to cradle Justin's head between them to angle it so he could deepen the kiss, both men gasping softly in reaction as Brian's tongue swept inside to thoroughly swab the inside of Justin's mouth.

It would be several seconds before they finally broke off their kiss, both men softly panting with exertion as they looked into each other's eyes longingly. "Fuck, Justin," Brian murmured as he leaned his forehead against his lover's, his hands still cupping his face. "I thought being _apart_ for so long was tough; shit, knowing you're going to be in that carriage house and not in my bed tonight is going to be even harder." He sighed as he pulled back to look into Justin's eyes, his fingers slowly stroking across the slightly-stubbled cheek.

"Go," he gruffly replied, knowing it had to be done. "Get out of here before I'm not _able_ to let you go."

Justin nodded, swallowing hard as he slipped out of Brian's embrace and quietly turned to head back down the hallway toward the steps, not chancing a look back for fear his previous resolve would crumble. He had to do this, though; he had to know for sure that he and his daughter were making the right decision. He knew that Brian realized that, too; but it certainly didn't make it easy on them. Somehow, he didn't think he was going to derive quite the same comfort from the two fur balls waiting downstairs for him tonight as he would the man he was walking away from.

"Who am I kidding?" he muttered at the absurdity. _What a stupid statement_. He sighed just before he reached the bottom floor and began to walk down the hallway toward the rear of the house, stopping on the way to enter the basement and retrieve his sleeping companions for the evening. He snorted as he scooped them up and placed them into their cat carriers. As they meowed back at him forlornly, no doubt missing their familiar home, he told them ruefully, "Tell me about it." He shook his head in sympathy; it wasn't _their _fault. "Come on, time for ALL of us to get used to our new surroundings," he told them as he trudged back up the steps and headed toward the back door.

* * *

><p>Unbeknownst to their fathers, neither daughter stayed in their beds for long; as soon as Brian and Justin left the room, they looked at each just long enough to fling the covers back in perfect synchrony and rush, barefoot, over to the slightly ajar door, Kaylee stooping underneath her sister so they could both sneak a peek through the opening to see what was happening.<p>

Both girls' eyes widened in jubilation as they observed their fathers locked in a deep kiss, their bodies plastered tightly against each other as they stood a few feet apart from them. They were obviously too caught up in their activity to pay them any mind, as they heard a soft moan escape from one of them while they continued to kiss, their arms wound tightly around each other.

The two girls gave each other a silent high-five and grinned as they watched their fathers become 'reacquainted.' Their beaming smiles of triumph, however, quickly faded as they watched their father lean his forehead against the other and murmur something softly in his ear before their Daddy turned and headed down the hallway away from him...alone. Apparently he was going to make good on his vow to keep his distance.

"Noooo..." Katie whispered in disappointment as they watched their other father turn and trudge down the hallway toward his master bedroom a few doors away. "What is the matter with him?" she complained as they turned away from the door and leaned against the wall.

"Well, he told us that was what he was going to do," Kaylee pointed out.

"I know! But I didn't really think he would go through with it! Did you see the way they were kissing just now? They were practically sucking face."

Kaylee sighed dreamily. "I know," she whispered back as they turned to watch their father enter his room and softly close the door behind him. "Poor Dad. This just doesn't seem...right."

Katie nodded in complete agreement as she turned her head to peer over at her sister. She bit her lip thoughtfully for a moment before she decided, "We have to _do_ something!"

Kaylee's eyes widened anxiously; she had already seen what had happened before when they had tried to 'help.' "But Dad and Daddy told us we can't get involved anymore. Remember the wine cellar?"

Katie huffed impatiently. "Come _on_, Kaylee! This is love and death we're talking about here!"

Kaylee rolled her eyes over her sister's melodrama. "Love and death?"

"Yeah; love between the two of them, and the death of our family, if we don't do something! Besides - we already KNOW they love each other; we're just going to help them along a little, okay?"

Her sister eyed her dubiously. "You don't know what the word _'little'_ means."

"Hmpff," was the indignant reply.

Despite her misgivings, though, Kaylee leaned in closer to her sister and whispered, "I know I'm going to regret this. But what do you have in mind? If we're really going to do this, maybe we should get Gus to help us, too."

Katie shook her head. "No, I think the least amount of people that know about this, the better." She grinned as a particular plan began to formulate in her mind. "Leave it to me," she told her sister, her eyes gleaming as she smiled. "I have everything under control."

"Oh, no," Kaylee groaned, thinking back to Sandra and the honey caper. "That's what I was afraid of."

"Come on." Her sister grabbed her arm as she led her over to her laptop lying on top of the window seat. "We've got some research to do."

* * *

><p><em>The Next Morning...<em>

"Hi, Honey," Jennifer greeted her son with a smile as he shuffled in through the back door. She had gotten up approximately an hour earlier than everyone else and had headed down to the kitchen, determined to have a big, family breakfast ready before the rest of the household was up, noticing with amusement a note written by Brian lying on top of the counter, asking her if she would mind making one of Justin's favorite breakfasts this morning.

She watched from her place at the stove as her bleary-eyed son walked up to her and, after giving her a peck on the cheek, reached to grab a mug lying next to the coffeemaker to pour himself a cup.

"I would ask how you slept last night," she began as she looked over at him. "But from the looks of things, I don't think I really need to do that."

Justin rubbed his face with his free hand and sighed. "I thought with as tired as I was yesterday, I would be asleep before my head even hit the pillow. But I tossed and turned all night long." He took a large swallow of his coffee, not even bothering to put cream or sugar in it as he leaned back against the counter next to his mother.

"Too much on your mind?" she asked him softly. Something told her he wasn't the only one who had had a restless night last night.

"Something like that." He let out a deep breath. "You know...until just a few days ago, I had slept by myself for years. Now, though...it feels weird." He knew why, though, and he imagined his mom knew, too. It had taken him quite a while when he and Brian had separated to get accustomed to sleeping without his partner's warm, familiar body next to him at night, holding him close and making him feel so loved and secure. After yesterday evening, he found the idea now of sleeping apart decidedly cold and uninviting. Yep - righteousness and principles certainly made for lonely bedfellows...

Jennifer nodded, realizing precisely the reason why but choosing not to say it aloud. She had had more than her share of interfering in both her son's and his partner's lives. Despite her desire to see all of them reunited again under the same household, she had finally realized it wasn't her decision to make. What ultimately occurred had to be a mutually arrived-at decision between her son and Brian - and the girls, of course.

"Grab a plate, Honey, while it's still warm," she instructed him as Justin reached up to secure a plate from the cabinet to the right of the sink, heartened as he realized they were in the same spot he and Brian had always kept them in before.

"Hi, Daddy!" A pair of excited, happy voices called out to him as he turned around to flash a tender smile on his daughters entering the room, still clad in their sleeping apparel. "You're here!"

"Of course," he told them as they rushed up to him and he laid his plate down long enough to sweep them up into a big hug against his body. "I told you I would be." He glanced around them toward the hallway. "Where's your father?"

"I think he's in the shower," Katie reported. "We peeked inside his bedroom and heard the water running." Justin nodded, trying hard not to think about what a just-showered Brian typically looked like. He wondered if his partner still liked to strut around with a towel wrapped loosely around his slender hips, hanging tantalizing down right above his pubes area, his hair wet and bedraggled-looking and his chest glistening with droplets of water...

"Justin? Justin!"

He blinked as he looked over at his mother who had been calling his name. "Sorry," he replied somewhat sheepishly as his daughters eyed him curiously. "What were you saying?"

"I said...why don't you and the girls go ahead and start eating before everything gets cold? I'm sure Brian and Gus will be down soon...and you know Brian won't eat most of this anyway. I'll fix him an omelet and some whole-wheat toast. And if you don't start eating now, trust me; once Gus comes down you won't have much to eat once he's finished with it."

"Hey," came the indignant response from the hallway. "I'm not THAT bad!" Gus walked over to kiss his grandmother on the cheek as she grinned back at him. "I would've left at least a pancake or two." He reached over to steal a sausage link from the platter next to the stove before he grabbed a plate and began to help himself to a heaping stack of pancakes, a large scoop of hash browns, and a couple more sausage links before taking it over to the kitchen table to join Justin and his sisters.

Kaylee eyed his plate in disbelief. "You're going to eat all THAT?"

"I'm a growing boy," Gus said with a shrug as he reached over to playfully ruffle his sister's hair. Katie snorted in response as he spread some butter onto his stack of pancakes and then drizzled a large pool of syrup on top before he dug into a large bite of them with relish.

"I see you started this party without me," Brian drawled from his place in the hallway, his arms folded across his chest. His eyes instantly latched onto Justin's as his partner turned to smile over at him.

Jennifer grinned. "Come and join us, _Dad_," she teased him as he walked closer. He smirked in amusement as Katie pushed her plate across the table from her current spot next to Justin and scooted back from the table to stand up and walk over to the other side in a not-so-subtle hint for him to sit next to him. Never one to pass up a good opportunity, he walked over and grabbed a mug of coffee before settling next to his partner.

"I've got an omelet and some whole-wheat toast coming up," Jennifer told him as she scooped the egg mixture up and slid it onto a plate.

"Thanks," Brian told him with an appreciative smile as he peered over at his partner, noticing the fine, wrinkled lines around his eyes. "Sleep well, Sunshine?" he asked innocently.

"No more than you did, apparently," Justin observed dryly as he studied Brian's haggard-looking face. "Insomnia?"

Brian took a big swig of his coffee before muttering, "Yeah...something like that."

"Had it long?" Justin asked as he eyed Brian innocently.

_Little fucker_, Brian silently thought. He smiled over at Justin. "No...Actually, it just started recently. How about you?"

Justin smirked. "Oh, about the same," he told him.

Brian solemnly nodded. "What a coincidence. So...Do you have any suggestions how I could _take care_ of my _condition_?" He peered over at Jennifer when she cleared her throat and flashed him a scolding look. He shrugged. "I just thought your son here might have an idea, that's all. Well, Sunshine?"

Gus snickered from his place at the table as his sisters giggled; Justin's face promptly turned red in reaction.

"Sleeping pills," he finally told him. "They sell them at the drugstore."

He thought he saw just a flicker of disappointment on Brian's face before he nodded. "Well, I was thinking of something a bit more creative...But I'll keep that in mind." Justin nodded back at his partner, finding himself disappointed just a bit, as he picked up his fork and dug into his breakfast.

"Justin?"

Justin held his syrup-laden fork up as he turned to peer over at Brian. "Yeah?"

Brian glanced over at Katie and Kaylee before he asked, "When did you want to contact the court about the girls? I'm assuming you still want to revise the custody agreement."

Suddenly Katie and Kaylee became avid listeners as their ears perked up and they stopped with their forks in mid-air to gaze over at their father. Even Jennifer and Gus stopped eating to stare over at him expectantly.

Justin glanced over at their rapt audience for a moment as he felt his face warming over all the attention before, to the girls' great relief, he nodded. "Of course I do," he assured them and Brian as he smiled tenderly over at the girls. "That won't change no matter what."

Brian nodded in relief as well; he was hoping that hadn't changed. "I know an attorney who is familiar with custody law if you want me to contact him." Actually, he had already been speaking with Kinnetik's attorney while Justin had been in Chicago, so that when he did come back he would have a name readily available that they could confer with. No matter what happened between the two of them eventually, he wanted to ensure that the girls would not be separated again.

Justin smiled. "Sounds good." He took a couple more bites of his pancakes and a sip of his coffee before he informed Brian, "By the way, I think the movers should be here sometime this morning with the rest of mine and Kaylee's stuff that I couldn't fit into the SUV."

Brian nodded. "They should be able to drive back directly to the carriage house to unload."

Kaylee asked, "What sort of stuff, Daddy? I thought you were going to leave most of it back at the condo."

Justin nodded. "I did. But there were a few paintings and some other, more sentimental things that I couldn't bear to leave there," he explained. "So I hired a moving truck to bring it down here."

"Did you remember to...?"

Justin smiled. "Yes, Kaylee," he assured her. "I wrapped up all your cheerleading trophies very carefully and placed them in a box before they loaded it onto the truck. And all of your room decorations as well." Kaylee nodded in pleased satisfaction, her face beaming over her father's thoughtfulness.

Katie, however, scrunched up her nose. "You could have left all those frilly butterflies up there, if you ask me."

"Well, I _didn't _ask you," Kaylee retorted. "I like them; they're pretty."

_"I like them; they're pretty_," her sister repeated her words mockingly as Kaylee promptly stuck her tongue out at her.

"Girls," Brian chastised them as Justin grinned over at his mother in amusement. "Each of you will have your own room; so it shouldn't matter how each one decorates it. If Kaylee wants a _rainforest_ of butterflies in her room, then that's fine...right, Katie?" he asked her, one eyebrow raised in a no-nonsense manner.

Katie shook her head in exasperation. "Fine with me," she decided. "But I still don't see how she sleeps at night with all that going on."

Gus laughed then. "Oh, it's going to be interesting having two sisters around," he decided. "And it'll give Dad someone else to worry about now besides me."

"Don't be so sure, Sonny Boy," Brian told him with a gruff inflection in his voice; it was obvious he was being anything but, though, as he added, "I will _always_ worry about you, too."

Gus nodded back at him with a smile before he scooted back from the chair. "Well, if you will all excuse me, I'm going into town today."

"What for?"

"Daaaaad," he replied as Brian grinned back at him in a _'see?'_ sort of expression. "If you MUST know, I'm meeting a girl for lunch - and then we're going to a movie together."

Brian's eyes widened in a combination of surprise and maybe just a little bit of pride. "A girl? You've been in town, what? A few days? And you're going on a date with someone? I'm impressed, Gus."

Gus rolled his eyes. "Later, Dad. See you, Justin." Justin nodded as Gus walked around to hug his grandmother by her neck from behind. "Bye, Grandma; I'll stop over to see you in a few days."

She nodded back at him with a smile. "Make sure you do. I'll see you little enough when you go back to school."

"Behave yourselves, girls," he told his sisters as he turned to go. "Don't do anything that I wouldn't do."

"That seems like a distinct contradiction," his father dryly observed as Gus grinned before, with a short wave, he headed down the hallway toward the front door.

* * *

><p>Jennifer rose a few minutes later to also announce she would be heading back into town, needing to meet with a potential client to show them several houses she presently had listed on the market.<p>

"Mom, thanks for everything," Justin told her sincerely as she rose to head over to the dishwasher with her soiled dishes. "Don't worry about cleaning up! We'll take care of it. You go ahead."

"You sure, Honey?"

He nodded as she said her goodbyes to Brian and the girls, before she, too, headed upstairs to collect her items in preparation to leave.

At last, the two fathers and their daughters were alone as Justin began to collect the rest of the breakfast dishes and walk over to the dishwasher. Brian's eyes followed him closely as he placed the cups and glasses in the top part, and then bent over to stack the plates upright into the bottom compartment, giving Brian the perfect angle to observe the always-perfectly shaped ass of his beautiful lover. His eyes darkened slightly in reaction as Justin turned around to lock his gaze immediately onto his, his partner's face flushing as he instantly recognized what that look meant.

He cleared his throat as he walked back over to the table. "Well. I think that's all taken care of," he decided. "I'll handle the pots and pans. Girls, why don't you go upstairs and make up the bed and get dressed? Kaylee, I'll need you to come down to the carriage house in a little while before the movers get here to tell me how you want to organize your new bedroom, okay?"

Kaylee appeared disappointed for just a second - knowing that meant that her father was still pressing on with his decision for them to maintain separate residences - but as she recalled her and Katie's conversation last night, she quickly covered her reaction with a smile and a nod. "Okay, Daddy," she told him as Justin smiled back at her. "I'll be there soon."

"Come on, Kaylee," Katie called over to her sister as the two of them rose from their place at the kitchen table and proceeded down the hallway. They, too, had some work to do as well - and it had nothing to do with Katie's bedroom.

* * *

><p><p>

Chapter End Notes:

_I'm working on the next part to this now. I should have it up soon before I move onto the next story in my rotation.:) Thank you to Boriqua522 for being my beta for this story.:)_


	32. Mother, May I?

_Daphne arrives to check on Kaylee as her daughters start to put some plans into action; the boys find out that's it hard to practice self-control.;)_

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen Minutes Later - Stables<em>

Kaylee scrunched up her nose in horror, her expression an exact duplication of her father's when he was normally embarrassed. "You have GOT to be kidding me!"

Katie held the plastic baggie out toward her. "We're in this together, remember?"

"No, way," Kaylee retorted. "I didn't sign up for poop duty."

Katie rolled her eyes. "Oh, for heaven's sake! What's the big deal? You've got latex gloves on. It won't touch any part of your _delicate_ skin."

"I don't care," her sister replied stubbornly as she eyed the pellets of mouse dung sprinkled among the strands of straw on the stable floor. "I'll do anything else to help - but NOT that."

Katie sighed heavily. "You're living out in the country now, Kaylee," she told her sister as she reached down with her own gloves to begin picking through the straw to snare some of the mouse dung and place it into the baggie. "Better get used to things being down and dirty here."

Kaylee harrumphed. "I don't mind a little dirt. But I draw the line at picking THAT up."

"You won't mind if it gets us what we want, though, will you?" Katie countered with raised eyebrows as she zipped the snack-size bag shut and then placed it into a larger, grocery-size bag. "Here," she said as she tied the ends into a knot and held the bag out toward her sister. "You know what to do with this." Kaylee shrunk back a little as her sister shook her head in exasperation. "Come on, Kaylee! I _can't_ do it! You're the one who's living with Daddy, not me!"

"But you look just like me..."

"Uh, uh," Katie said as she walked closer and shoved it into her sister's hands. "We are NOT trading places again. You know where that got us. Now just take care of it, okay? It has to be done at night after Daddy's asleep, 'cause that's when they're normally active. And make sure you put it where mice would be. The top of the kitchen counter's always a good place."

Kaylee looked at her aghast. "Do they really get up that high?" Her sister nodded with barely-restrained impatience. "Oh, my God, I'll never eat anything off the counter again!" she vowed as she gingerly placed the bag into her jacket pocket out of sight, her nose crinkling in distaste. "Okay...I don't like it, but I'll take care of it. What now?"

Katie bit her lip thoughtfully. "Well, the next part of our plan won't work if Daddy's able to get the windows open. So I think the Super Glue is next. We'll have to make sure he's out of the house, though." She pursed her lips together in thought. "I know! We'll ask Daddy to take a swim with us, and then we can leave while he's still in the pool. We'll tell him we're tired of swimming and want to come down here and take a look at the horses or something. That should give us enough time to work on the windows before he goes back to the carriage house."

Kaylee nodded. "Okay. I guess that will work. What comes after that?"

Katie smiled. "Then we put the rest of it into action...Just follow my lead," she told her sister confidently. "Then the real sh...uh, the mouse poop will hit the fan."

Kaylee giggled in spite of her reservations. "It can't happen soon enough for me."

* * *

><p><em>One Hour Later...<em>

Justin glanced up in surprise through his sunglasses as the back door slid open and Brian walked out with his laptop under his arm. "I thought you said you had work to do," he pointed out as he lay on a nearby, padded, chaise lounge chair. He felt a little guilty just lying there, soaking up a little sun, instead of being at the carriage house, unpacking. But the girls had wheedled him into going for a short swim earlier, and as he reclined in the chair he had to admit, it felt good to just rest for a bit. The warmth of the sun wasn't quite as punishing as it would be later, either; a light breeze had kicked up, providing the perfect temperature for a little sun worshipping.

"I am," Brian pointed out as he walked over and placed his laptop down on top of a nearby, glass-topped, patio table.

"In that?" Justin croaked out, his eyes bulging as he studied Brian's extremely unorthodox 'business' attire. He was wearing a thin, white, sleeveless, wifebeater shirt that was unbuttoned, and a pair of matching, white, Lycra swim shorts that clung to his body in all the right places.

"What else would I wear by the pool while I'm working at home, Sunshine?" he drawled.

"Oh, my bad. I thought you were working at the White Party in Miami."

Brian smirked as he sat down right next to Justin's chaise and flipped his laptop open to turn it on, happy that Justin had reacted the way that he hoped he would. He glanced over at his partner and frowned. "Are you trying to turn yourself into a lobster, Justin?" he growled in disbelief as he scooted back from his chair and grabbed a tube of sunblock lotion lying on top of his partner's beach towel on the floor next to the chaise lounge. "You forgot to put this on, didn't you?" It was obvious from the sheepish look on his partner's face that he had. He shook his head as he walked over to him. "Sit up," he commanded as he gestured impatiently with his free hand.

Justin huffed. "I'm not a child, Brian! Just hand it to me and I'll do it myself."

"Well, unless you're a contortionist you won't be able to get to your back," he pointed out. "Now either do what I say or move into the shade." He left no room for argument as he pointedly arched one eyebrow at him.

Justin sighed, knowing he would not win this argument. "All right." He sat up straighter as Brian turned and straddled the chair behind him; Justin squeezed his eyes tightly shut as he felt Brian's cock brushing against his ass cheeks, the feel of Lycra on Lycra doing very little to hide his partner's erection. And the friction from the satiny material as Brian wriggled slightly in the chair was making his own cock began to rise to the occasion...

"Do you have to sit so close to me?" Justin complained hoarsely as Brian scooted even closer and grinned.

He leaned over to whisper in Justin's ear, "You wouldn't want me to miss a spot, would you, Sunshine?" He heard Justin huff in indignation as he squirted some of the white liquid onto his hands and rubbed his palms together in a circular motion to warm it up. He placed his hands on Justin's shoulders as he slowly began to knead the lotion into his skin, savoring his opportunity. "This isn't the lotion I would prefer to use on you," he told Justin huskily as he felt his partner tremble slightly in reaction to his voice. "But it'll have to do for now."

The feeling of Brian's hands sensually roaming all over his back and shoulders was having a distinct effect on Justin as he couldn't help sighing in pleasure. "God, that feels sooo good," he murmured, giving into the moment as he leaned back into Brian's embrace, his eyes still closed and serving to heighten his lover's firm but gentle touch. Brian smiled, encouraged, as he squeezed some more lotion out and slid his arms around to Justin's torso to trail his slippery hands all over his chest and belly, taking a moment to linger over each nipple as Justin sucked in a breath in response. He paused for just a second in his ministrations, inhaling Justin's shampoo and just indulging in having him in his arms again. Did he dare...? He decided that the opportunity was just too good to pass up...

Justin's eyes popped open as he felt Brian's right hand sliding under his royal blue swim trunks. His cock immediately hardened painfully in reaction. "Brian..." he whimpered in half-hearted protest as his lover curved his hand around his shaft and gave it a squeeze. He moaned softly as his partner flicked the wet, spongy tip with his thumb and began to languidly stroke him.

"You look so fucking hot in these," Brian growled in his ear as he took a nip of the lower lobe. "But not as good as out of them," he decided as his other hand slid in to join the other one and he fondled his balls.

"Oh, God, Brian," Justin moaned, his head lolling back to rest on Brian's shoulder as he turned his head and their lips met for a deep, penetrating kiss. Justin felt dizzy with desire, his previous vow to go slowly with his lover quickly faltering as their tongues dueled with each other and Brian continued to stroke his dick and juggle first one ball and then the other. The sensations flooding through him were almost too much to bear. He felt like he was gong to explode any minute. How in the world was he ever going to resist this, even living apart?

"You like that?" Brian drawled as they broke off their kiss. He didn't really have to ask, though; it was obvious. Justin was speechless at the moment; all he could do was place his hands over Brian's arms resting on his belly and nod. Brian chuckled in amusement, the rumble coming deep within his throat as he suggested, "Why don't we take this to the bedroom, Sunshine? Wouldn't want your tight little ass to get sunburned before I have a chance to fuck it." He received a moan in response as he grinned in triumph.

"THERE you are!" was the delighted shriek from nearby as the door slid open behind them. It was as if a bucket of ice cold water had been thrown on them as Brian yanked his hands out of Justin's swim trunks and Justin's eyes flew open, his heart pounding at the sound of the unexpected but familiar voice greeting them. "Surprise!"

"Shit," Brian growled in total frustration as Justin quickly tried to push his hard-on back into his trunks just before Daphne walked over to join them. Brian didn't move, however, but remained seated behind Justin; only this time, his hands moved slightly upward to rest at his stomach instead.

Justin's face turned beet red - and not from the sun beating down on them - as Brian drawled, "Well, if it isn't Aunt Daphne coming to call on us."

Daphne surveyed the two men sitting quite intimately together with interest. She had talked to Justin recently about Kaylee - and he had briefly filled her in on his and Brian's reconciliation - but to see them sitting there so cozily together was an amazing sight to behold. So was her friend's impressive woody he was currently trying to hide with his hands covering his crotch. _Apparently some things never change_, she couldn't help thinking wryly as she smirked. Her eyes lifted to meet Justin's as she noticed the pink tint to his cheeks. She chose not to make him feel any more embarrassed than he already was as she explained, "I told you I was coming out to check up on Kaylee and see bpth girls." She decided that she couldn't help one little jibe at her friend as she inquired, "Expecting a big crowd?"

"Huh?" Justin responded.

She smiled. "Well, I thought since the two of you were doubling up on the seating that you needed to conserve space," she teased him as she took a seat next to them in one of the patio recliner chairs.

"Oh, that." Justin felt the heat on his cheeks as he explained, "I forgot to put my sunblock lotion on, and Brian was helping."

Daphne grinned even more. _So much for self-control..._ "Uh, huh. Makes perfect sense," she agreed. "If I didn't know Brian so well." Brian merely lifted an eyebrow at her and smiled back at her innocently in response.

"Where're the girls?" she asked as she peered around, noticing how quiet it was. Normally when she came to visit one of the girls, they would be rushing headlong toward her to say hello. Everyone had long ago decided to call her 'Aunt' Daphne, even though both girls were well aware that she was their biological mother. While she had a cordial, even loving relationship with them, however, she wasn't in their lives enough on a constant basis to really feel she deserved the 'mother' title. And besides, the idea all along had been for the boys to raise them as their daughters, not her. She just hadn't expected that it would take until now for them to get back together again.

"I think they're out at the stables," Justin told her as Daphne nodded. "They'll be thrilled to see you again, Daphne...or should I say Doc?" he teased.

She huffed. "If I don't get some more time off, you can call me dead," she quipped with a sigh. "I would have been out here sooner, but they wouldn't let me off until now. If something really serious had happened to her..."

"I know you would have found a way, then, to be there," Justin told her. "She's fine, Daph," he assured her, knowing how badly she felt about that. "I think it will be some time - if ever - that she gets back on top of a horse again, though. But at least she's able to be around them at the stables; she's been helping Katie feed them in the mornings. So who knows? Maybe one day. She needs to take it a little easy for a while anyway."

Daphne nodded. "I'll take a walk back there and track them down, then. I can't wait to see both of them together!" She smiled at the two men sitting so close to each other, Justin cradled inside Brian's longer frame and their hands intertwined at Justin's waist. She shook her head in amazement. "I never really thought I would see the day," she murmured. "But I'm so happy for both of you. This has been a long time coming."

Justin cleared his throat. "Well, we're taking it slowly this time," he reminded both her and Brian. He had talked to Daphne about their arrangement, and had told her they had decided to try and work things out again. But he had also been clear that they weren't just going to jump back into their relationship. He wanted everything to work this time; and to successfully accomplish that, he knew this was the best course of action to take. He wanted this to last.

She nodded, not quite convinced it would work the way that Justin thought it would. These two were still like a flame with a keg of dynamite - explosive. And what she had just interrupted seemed to add credence to that belief. "Yeah...Right," she said with a knowing grin.

"No, we both decided it was for the best," he insisted, noticing her look of skepticism. "Kaylee and I will be staying in the carriage house, at least for the time being. There's plenty of room for the both of us. And this way, she and her sister - and Gus - can all get to know each other better before we come to a definite decision."

She laughed. "We'll see how long THAT lasts."

"Daphne!" Justin complained as Brian snickered, his breath tickling his ear. "I mean it."

"I know you think you do. I'm just saying when the two of you come together, it's like a type of spontaneous combustion," she told him, her eyes twinkling as she realized what she had said. "Oops! Pardon the pun."

Brian chuckled as Justin promptly turned red again at the thought. "Well, I'm not that naïve, little 17-year-old kid anymore, Daph," he told her just a little defensively.

"You never _WERE _little, Sunshine," Brian whispered in a sultry tone of voice as Justin abruptly pushed himself up from the chair and out of Brian's grasp.

"I'm going for a swim," he told Daphne as he turned to look intently over at Brian, "so I can _cool off_."

"I'll just have to reapply your lotion, then," Brian called after him as Justin huffed in exasperation. He laughed softly at his partner as Justin turned and walked over to the deep end, quickly diving into the pool and disappearing below the surface.

"Brian, this is hard enough on him," Daphne chided him as he looked over at her innocently. "He says he want to take things slowly this time. You need to honor his wishes. Don't you want this to work out?"

Brian's face dissolved into something more serious as he told her sincerely, "Of course I do, Daphne." He watched as Justin came up for air and began to slowly swim across the pool, obviously deep in thought. He imagined his feelings were stirred up right now just as much as his were. He sighed. "You _know_ I do," he told her. "It's...It's just so damn hard, being close to him and not being able to...Well, you know..."

"Surely you're not telling me that the two of you haven't had sex yet since you got back together." Brian bestowed an incredulous look on her as she nodded. "I didn't think so." She paused. "So you'll have to live apart for a while. Look, I know patience isn't one of your strongest virtues, Brian. But you've waited over ten years now; you can wait just a little bit longer."

Brian snorted as he watched Justin continue to swim from one side of the pool to the other, no doubt trying to find an outlet to get rid of the same sexual tension he was feeling at the moment. "No, it's not one of my stronger traits," he admitted to her. He let out a deep breath. "But I can wait. Because he - and the girls - are worth it."

She nodded. "You've both decided to keep them together no matter what happens anyway, haven't you?"

He nodded back at her. "Yeah. In fact, we're going to see an attorney who specializes in custody issues right away to get the agreement revised."

She smiled. "Good. There's never been any conflict about how the two of you feeltoward _them_." She peered over at Justin as she watched her friend climb out of the water and reach for a beach towel to begin drying himself off. She noticed Brian eyeing him intently, not missing the longing look on his face. "It'll all work out, Brian; you'll see. Just give him some time. You _both_ need time to adjust to a new life together. You AND the girls."

He nodded. "I guess. He brushed some hair away from his forehead, averting his gaze away from the sight of a wet Justin wearing his form-fitting pair of blue swim trunks that hid nothing to the imagination. "Damn," he whispered as Daphne giggled.

He glared over at her as she told him, "If you think you can keep your hands off him for a while, I'm going to go find the girls and get reacquainted."

"I won't promise anything," he told her flatly as she grinned.

"Justin, I'm going to go find the girls," she called over to her friend, who nodded.

"Staying for lunch?" he asked her as she nodded back with a smile. "Good. Brian's promised to grill some steaks this afternoon, although I'm not sure about allowing him to play with fire."

"I'm _already _playing with fire, "Brian muttered under his breath as he watched Justin bend over and pick up the towel that he had dropped. He groaned as he was rewarded with a tantalizing view of Justin's ass, wondering if he was doing it on purpose. "Little shit."

Daphne laughed at his discomfort as she told him, "Try to control yourself, Kinney. It's only temporary. I'll be back in a little while - and I'll bring the girls with me for lunch."

He nodded as he watched her wander back toward the trail leading to the stables, deciding it was time to get some work done...if a certain distraction would allow it. Shaking his head as Justin straightened back up and caught him ogling, he rolled his eyes as his partner flashed him an impish grin before he headed over to the grill to begin preparing it for use.

* * *

><p>Kaylee wiped some sweat from her forehead as she pushed down hard on the wooden window and locked it in place. "I think that's the last one," she told her sister as she carefully placed the cap back on the tube of Super Glue. "You really think this will work?"<p>

"Are you kidding?" Katie retorted. "I know what I'm doing."

"You act like you've done this before."

"Well...not this exactly. But I've used Super Glue before. Dad's a real klutz sometimes around the house," she reported with a smirk. "He tries, but he's not really that good of a handyman. So we keep a big supply of this around at all times for emergencies."

Kaylee grinned. "Good thing he's not very mechanical, or he might be able to fix the air conditioning system. Daddy's not any better," she reported. "For someone who's so smart, he always had to call somebody in whenever something went wrong back home."

Katie laughed. "Well, don't worry; it won't be that easy for them to fix. Not after _I _get done with it." She hefted her backpack over her shoulder, groaning slightly at the weight of it. "These tools are so heavy! We'd better hurry up and finish before Daddy comes looking for us."

Kaylee nodded. "What do you want me to do?"

"Just stay over at the window and yell if you see him coming. The last thing we want is for him to know what we're doing!"

Kaylee nodded, wondering how long THAT would last. "Don't you think it's going to be obvious what's going on, Katie? I mean, they know what we did before..."

Katie turned around and glared at her as if insulted. "Of course not! Not if we do this right! Now do as I say, okay? Do you want to help me with this or not?"

"Okay, okay," her sister grumbled as she walked over to the window next to the door and, pulling back the curtain slightly, peered outside, seeing nothing. "Go on!" she urged her sister with a frantic wave of her hand. "The coast is clear so far."

Katie nodded as she hurried toward the laundry room. Without a basement, the air conditioning and heating unit had been housed inside an alcove meant to resemble a large, walk-in closet next to the washer and dryer. Opening up the two, accordion-style doors, she studied the now somewhat-familiar layout of the unit, having researched the online user manual on the web last night. A lot of what it had said was too complex for her, but luckily she had understood enough to know what she needed to do as she located the connection for the cooling refrigerant. Placing her backpack down on the floor beside her, she located the breaker box nestled over in a corner. Smiling to herself, she walked over and, opening up the door, located the correct switch before disabling it. Rummaging around in her backpack a few seconds later, she found the tool she needed. Flashing a triumphant grin, she opened up the front of the unit and carefully propped it up against the nearby wall. Thinking how lucky she and Kaylee were that her father's mechanical knowledge was far less than his basic carpentry skills, she quickly got to work.

* * *

><p>Fortunately, it didn't take long for Katie to accomplish what she needed to do, because no sooner had she replaced the front plate back onto the air conditioning unit and flipped the breaker switch back on did she hear her sister frantically calling her name.<p>

"Katie, hurry up!"

"Is it Daddy?" she called out as she hastily closed the circuit breaker box and slid the doors closed before emerging out into the main living area.

"No, but it's almost just as bad. It's _Aunt Daphne_! And she's heading right this way from the stables!"

"Chill out!" Katie grumbled as she hurriedly hefted her backpack onto her shoulder and walked over to her sister, who quickly closed the curtains back so no one could see inside. "I'm done - at least with that part of our plan."

"But she'll be here any second! What are we going to do?"

"Just answer the door!" she told her as she shook her head. "You're supposed to be living here, remember?"

"But Daddy thinks we're out at the stables! What if he figures out what happened? It'll ruin everything! And now we can't even slip out of the house, because all the windows are glued shut!"

Katie considered that dilemma. Perhaps her sister was right. It might be dangerous to be seen at the scene of the crime, so to speak. "Maybe you're right," she conceded as she pulled on her sister's wrist. "Come on! Let's go upstairs! We'll hide out until she's convinced there's no one here!" The two of them hurried over to the stairs and quickly ascended them, disappearing just in time before they heard the front door handle rattling and then a knock on the door.

"That was way too close," Kaylee whispered as they sat at the top of the steps.

"Yeah."

Kaylee looked at her sister as she told her, "I really want to see her, though." It had been some time since she had seen her biological mother, especially with the two of them living in separate states. She knew her mother had been quite busy with her medical residency, so she must have come here specifically to see them. Would they lose that chance now?

Katie noticed how upset her sister seemed. "You will, don't worry," she reassured her as she reached to clasp her hand and give it a squeeze. "Just wait until she's left and we'll go find her. I'm sure she won't leave until she's had a chance to see us, especially since you had your accident and we're both together now. We can tell her we went for a walk in the woods or something."

Kaylee nodded back at her as they heard their mother knocking once more on the door and then calling out their names. Finally, after no more sounds were heard after a few minutes, they braved walking down the steps quietly to peek out from between the curtains.

They both sighed in relief. "She's not there anymore," Katie whispered as she turned around and leaned her back against the wall. "Let's get out of here before Daddy shows up, too."

Kaylee nodded as Katie unlocked the door and carefully opened it. As soon as they walked outside, however, they both gasped in shock as they observed their mother only a few feet away from them, sitting at a picnic table that had been placed underneath a grove of pine trees. At the sound of the door opening, she turned to peer over them with a mixture of delight and confusion.

"Oh, no," Kaylee whispered as they encountered their mother unexpectedly. "Now we're in for it."

"Shhh," Katie warned her as she innocently looked over at her mother. "Just go along with me." She plastered a big smile on her face as she raised her voice in greeting. "Aunt Daphne! What are YOU doing here?" She shifted her backpack so it was more comfortable, trying hard to appear nonchalant as her mother stood up and walked over to them.

"I came to see the two of you," she told them as she studied them intently, her brown eyes practically memorizing every feature. She frowned. "I just knocked on the door to the carriage house and no one answered."

Kaylee's eyes grew wide with alarm as Katie subtly jabbed her in the side. "You did?"

Daphne nodded.

"Oh! I was letting Kaylee listen to some music on my IPod and we had headsets on - you know, one of those double ones where two people can listen at once?"

Daphne nodded, still not quite convinced, but figuring it was possible. She cocked her head, thinking they appeared flustered for some reason. Her ability to analyze their father when he was younger used to drive him crazy as well, and they seemed to be wearing much the same type of expression that he did whenever he wasn't quite telling her the whole story about something.

Deciding to give them the benefit of the doubt, however, she smiled at them. She couldn't help the tears that sprang to her eyes as she realized how much they looked alike - and how much she had waited for this moment. "I had always hoped for this," she told them softly. "But I never really thought I would see it - at least not until you were a lot older." She placed her hands on either of the girls' cheeks as she leaned down to give each of them a kiss. "I'm just so happy for the both of you," she told them as the girls smiled back at her. "Come over here and sit down with me," she urged them as she led them over to the picnic table and they all sat down. "We can have an all-girl chat and catch up, just the three of us."

Kaylee glanced warily over at her sister. "Where's Daddy and Dad?" she asked.

"They're still out back by the pool," she told them to their relief. "I heard your father is grilling steaks this afternoon, so your Daddy asked me to stay for lunch. Is that okay?"

Kaylee smiled. "Sure, Aunt Daphne. We'd like that," she told her as Katie nodded.

"I would suggest you stay far away from the grill, though," Katie warned her. "Dad tends to get a little carried away when he's grilling. I think it's some sort of macho thing."

Daphne laughed in amusement. "Yeah, that sounds like your Dad," she agreed with a grin. She watched as Katie slid a heavy-looking backpack off her shoulder and placed it down on the ground next to her with a groan of relief; hearing a distinct 'clunking' noise as she set it down. She laughed. "What in the world have you got in there, Katie? Burglary tools?"

Kaylee flashed her sister a look of alarm; that was way too close to the truth.

But Katie smiled at her brightly and, thinking on her feet, told her, "No. Uh...it's just some drawing supplies. I was sketching some drawings of the inside of the carriage house. Daddy said he and I could paint up in the studio, and I was just trying to find some inspiration for it."

Daphne smiled warmly. "Both of you are very artistically talented," she told her as Katie beamed at the compliment. "I'd love to see what you drew," Daphne exclaimed, her eyes alit with anticipation. She always loved seeing Katie's artwork; in fact, she had several pieces back at her condo proudly displayed in the living room and bedroom that always brought a smile to her face.

Kaylee's eyes grew large as saucers as Katie hastily replied, "No!" She immediately regretted her sharp tone as Daphne frowned at her in surprise over the vehemence in her voice. "I mean, not yet. I prefer to let Daddy see it first. You know...Since it will be the first time we've painted together. I don't want to jinx it or anything." She pasted on a regretful look as she told Daphne, "I hope you don't mind. I kind of want the first time painting with Daddy to be special."

Kaylee turned her head away from them and covered her smile with one hand. _She's good_, she couldn't help thinking in amusement as she heard their mother say, "Of course, Honey. I understand completely. Just make sure your Daddy takes a picture of whatever you paint together when you get finished, okay?"

"Sure, Aunt Daphne," Katie told her, enormously relieved. She felt like they had just dodged a big bullet.

Daphne nodded as she looked around the lush grounds. "It is so beautiful out here," she murmured, inhaling the scent of the pine trees nearby and enjoying the warm breeze washing over her. "So peaceful. I really need to make a point of coming here more often - especially now that you'll all be here together." She turned to peer over at Kaylee. "You're going to love it here, Kaylee," she told her as she took a good look at her. "You look wonderful. I wouldn't have even known you had been in the hospital." She pressed her lips together as she studied her, so grateful that she hadn't been more seriously injured. "I was so worried when I heard what had happened. Are you feeling better now?"

Kaylee nodded. "Uh, huh. My head is pretty much back to normal."

"Well, normal size, anyway," Katie teased as her sister smacked her in the arm and Daphne laughed at their antics.

"That's good," She told her warmly. "I'm so relieved that you're okay." She swallowed the lump in her throat. "I'm so sorry I couldn't be here sooner, Kaylee. It wasn't that I didn't want to be. I just couldn't get away from my residency. Your father called me to keep me informed about your condition. And if it had turned out to be more serious...You know I would have moved heaven and earth to be there. Don't you?" She reached over to stroke her daughter's cheek as Kaylee nodded.

"I know," she told her with a smile. "I'm just glad that you're here now."

"Me, too," Daphne replied. She turned to look at her other daughter as she took a deep breath. "By the way, Katie, I'd love to go for a horseback ride with you later this afternoon, if you'd like that." Daphne had grown up around horses when she had been around her daughters' age, and still enjoyed doing some riding whenever she visited.

"That would be great!" Katie told her enthusiastically. "I haven't been riding since Kaylee's accident." She had faithfully walked down to the stables each day with her sister to feed Ceres and Eton their apples, and had been exercising them around the paddock, but she hadn't been on an extended ride with them for a while. She really missed that - and she knew the horses did, too. "Can we go right after lunch?"

Daphne smiled. "Sure," she told her. "You don't mind if we ride for a while, do you, Kaylee?" she asked her other daughter. "You and I can do something when we get back," she promised her.

Kaylee scrunched up her nose. "No, I don't mind; not if you're going riding," she told her. "I'm never getting on one of those beasts again," she vowed as she shuddered at the thought.

"Well, you shouldn't be participating in a strenuous activity like that for a while, anyway," her mom told her as she reached over to brush some hair out of her eyes.

Kaylee nodded, enjoying the attention. "Aunt Daphne?"

"Yes, Honey?"

"Do you think our fathers will work everything out? So we can be a family again?"

She smiled. "Of course; I know they love each other very much. Surely you believe that."

Kaylee nodded. "Yeah...But even they said that sometimes love isn't enough. If it had been, they never would have broken up in the first place." She looked into her mother's chocolate-brown eyes. "You...You know the reason why they broke up, don't you?"

"Do you?" They had never really discussed it at length in the past. Daphne wasn't sure why; perhaps it had to do with them being apart and not being around their other father. She supposed she could understand why it was coming up now.

Kaylee and Katie both nodded. "Yeah," Katie explained. "When Dad came back up to Chicago with Kaylee to see Daddy, they talked about it."

Daphne nodded. "Well, apparently they somehow worked their problems out, though; that's a good thing," she pointed out.

Her daughters nodded. "But Dad...Dad was unfaithful to him. Why would he do that if he loved him?"

_Why, indeed, _Daphne mused. _And more importantly, how does she explain that to two little girls who worship both fathers? _She sighed as two pairs of eyes bored into hers. "Girls...In order to really try and explain that, you would have to know what your Dad was like back then. Until your Daddy came along, he lived a much different life than he does now." She paused and took a deep breath before letting it out. How exactly do you describe a 'pre-Sunshine' Brian Kinney, anyway? "Before your father met your Daddy, he had never been involved in a serious relationship." She smiled. "I don't think he wanted one when he met HIM, either. But your Daddy pretty much fell in love with him from the first moment he saw him. He knew that he was the _one." _

Both girls let out a collective 'aww' at the distinctly romantic notion as Daphne continued. "He was very persistent. He would show up wherever your father was and talk to him or dance with him. He had already met Emmett, Michael, and Ted - and your Grandma Debbie," she explained, "so he slowly became friends with them, too, and they became comfortable having him around." She smiled in recollection. "Your father tried like crazy not to let your Daddy get under his skin. He enjoyed...playing the field. Do you know what that means?" She wasn't about to say that Brian pretty much fucked a different guy - or more than one different guy - every night during that time.

To her relief, the girls nodded as Kaylee replied, "You mean he liked to date a lot."

Daphne sighed in relief as she smiled. "Yeah, that's right. Well, he began to see your father more and more. And eventually, they moved in together." She didn't think it was necessary to tell them that they had gone through that process of 'moving in together' several times. "And after...after something happened at the club your father owned, he finally told your Daddy that he loved him."

The moment those words were out of her mouth, Daphne knew she had made a mistake. "What happened at the club?" both girls immediately asked, just as she knew they would. They had been told that their father had once owned a dance club, but as far as she knew, no one had ever told them about the bombing. This appeared to confirm that.

"It...it doesn't matter what it was," Daphne told them softly as she backpedaled. "Please, girls," she said as they opened their mouths to protest. "Let's just say that it was enough for your father to realize how much he loved your Daddy, and to realize that he wanted a life with him." She smiled. "And that's where the two of you came in. It wasn't long after that before your Daddy asked if I would carry you for them." Her smile broadened as she informed them, "Except they didn't know that twins ran in my family. So they were in for quite a surprise." Her voice softened then as she assured them, "But they were NOT disappointed. In fact, they were thrilled. They were going to have twice as much to love. And they did. They STILL do."

"So what happened then?" Katie pressed, unable to understand even more now. "Why? Why would Dad do that to him?"

Daphne considered that for a moment. "Well...This is just my theory, mind you. I think your father got scared at some point."

Both girls frowned at her, their initial mission temporarily forgotten. "Scared?" Kaylee interjected. "What was he scared of?"

She smiled wistfully. "I think he was afraid that maybe he was _too_ happy."

Katie shook her head. "TOO happy? How can someone be too happy?"

"Well, you both know about your father's parents. How your grandfather died before you born, and how your grandmother has always stayed out of your lives." She had never understood that hateful, old woman. Silently she thought it was best that she had remained estranged from them. She did not want her daughters being exposed to someone so despicable.

Both girls nodded as she explained, "Well, your father didn't have a very happy childhood growing up. When it came to loving someone else - and _being_ loved - he had horrible role models to follow. So when he met your Daddy - and he showed him that he was worthy of being loved, I think the intensity of his emotions frightened him in a way. And I think when the two of YOU came along, it made him so happy that he actually felt like it was all a big dream and one day it would disappear. So he reverted back to his old, familiar, ways." She sighed. "It's hard to explain. Maybe one day your father can explain it better to you." She was silent for a moment, studying her daughters' faces to try and gauge their reaction, before she reassured them, "But I DO know this, girls. He LOVES you; so very much. And he feels the same way about your Daddy. Call me a big softie, but I think they were destined to be together. They're soul mates. They will find a way this time to make this work this time; I know it."

"You really think so?" Kaylee asked hopefully. Her mother nodded. Kaylee smiled as she turned to look over at her sister. "Then maybe we don't _need to_..."

"Shh!" Katie hissed at her in alarm as she shook her head to be quiet, but it was too late.

"What's that, Kaylee?" Daphne pressed, her brow furrowing in concentration. "What won't you need to do?"

"Nothing," Kaylee hastily mumbled, her face turning red as she averted her eyes. "Nothing."

"Kaylee...If something's wrong, I want to know."

"No, Aunt Daphne! She's fine," Katie assured her. "Dad's probably getting the grill ready. Maybe we'd better go back up to the house."

Daphne frowned, sensing there was something going on, but unable to put her finger on just what it was. She sighed. "Yeah, you're probably right." She smiled. "And the quicker we eat, the quicker you and I can get over to the stables." She stood up, unexpectedly reaching over to retrieve Katie's backpack before she had a chance to object. "Here, I'll help you with that," she offered as she began to pick up the heavy object.

"No!" Katie cried out as she made a grab for it, but it was too late. Her mother had already picked up the backpack - and promptly dropped it when she didn't realize how heavy it was. It landed on the ground with a large, metallic, thud as a wrench and a hammer fell out through the open flap.

Daphne reached down to pick up the two tools, along with the backpack, as she straightened up to stare over at her girls in confusion. "What in the...?" She peered at her guilty-looking daughters before her eyes flickered back over to the carriage house and her eyes widened in epiphany. "Oh, no...Tell me you're not doing what I think you're doing..."

"Aunt Daphne, _please _don't squeal on us!" Kaylee wailed.

"Kaylee!" Katie shook her head in exasperation. "Why don't you just keep quiet for a change? Sheesh!"

"Oh, my God! You're at it again, aren't you?" Daphne exclaimed. "What exactly have you been doing in there with these?"

"We told you..."

"Katherine Marie, I want to know what's going on. The truth. These are NOT art tools."

Katie sighed. "I hate that name!" She shook her head as her mother eyed her with a probing stare.

"Katie, you've got to tell her..." Her sister demanded. "She's already figured it out, anyway."

"Arrgh!" her sister growled. "Okay, okay!" Conceding she had no choice, she began to explain her latest scheme to reunite their fathers in the same house. To her relief, when she finished her mother burst out laughing.

"Mouse poop? Super glue?" She couldn't help smiling at them as she unexpectedly said, "Girls, I'm proud of you. I couldn't have done any better myself if _I_ had planned it."

Katie and Kaylee looked at each other in stunned shock before Kaylee had to make sure they understood her correctly. "You mean you're not mad at us?"

"Mad?" She grinned. "No. Personally I think your fathers - especially Justin - need a swift kick in the as...uh, head. They can both be extremely stubborn."

"Especially Daddy," Katie told her as she nodded in agreement. "Dad's more than willing for all of us to live together again. But Daddy doesn't want to."

"Now, Katie, that's not really fair," Daphne said in Justin's defense. "You can't really blame your father for wanting to be careful this time around. If you really want them to be together - and all of you to be one, big happy family again - he needs to make sure he's doing the right thing for both him AND for you." She grinned again. "But that doesn't mean that maybe we can't give them a little nudge and hurry up the process somewhat." All she could think about was..._Poor Justin_. He just wasn't going to stand a chance. Somehow, though, she didn't think he was going to put up too much of a fight.

_"We_? Does that mean you're willing to help us?" Kaylee asked hopefully as Daphne turned to peer over at her.

She quietly placed the two tools back in Katie's backpack before she turned around and hefted it onto her shoulder. Her eyes twinkled as she replied, "Tell me what you else you have in mind."

* * *

><p><em>Thank you to my beta, Boriqua522.:)<em>


	33. While the Parents are Away, the Mice

_Thirty Minutes Later..._

Justin shook his head in amusement as he walked up to stand next to Brian. His partner was tending to several pieces of meat presently cooking on the obscenely-large barbecue grill that he had installed on the back patio; his partner was sporting a white apron that read, _Chefs like a big piece of meat, _while he used a large spatula to flip over several steaks, along with a couple of turkey burgers for Kaylee. He was impressed by Brian's thoughtfulness as he once more marveled at some of the changes Brian had made over the years. He was still Brian, but with a few enhancements that he decided he liked.

"Big piece of meat, huh?" he murmured with a smile, his warm breath washing over Brian's ear. "That seems familiar somehow."

"Of course," Brian replied with a grin as he reached back with his free hand to grope for Justin's cock through the slick fabric of his swim shorts; he gave it a squeeze as Justin grunted before jumping far enough away to elude his grasp. "That's what every self-respecting fag wants."

"Brian..." he scolded as his partner smirked over at him. He sighed; some things never changed. "You think I should send out a posse for Daphne and the girls? They should have been back here a long time ago."

"Well, the steaks and turkey burgers should be ready soon," Brian told him. "I'd say if they're not back within the next ten minutes, maybe that would be a..." He didn't finish his sentence as he heard someone approaching through the trail leading up from the stables. "Never mind; I think they're coming." He glanced over as Daphne emerged with one arm around each girl's shoulders; as they glanced over at him and Justin, they spontaneously began to giggle in which he perceived to be a distinctively conspiratorial way.

"What have you been _up_ to, girls?" He called over to them as the three of them walked over and sat down at a nearby, glass-topped circular table. "Your dad was just about to come looking for you." He glanced over at Daphne, who smiled at him sweetly. He frowned at her; he _knew_ that look, and it did not bode well. "I thought you were going to go get them and come right back."

Justin eyed her suspiciously, also wondering if there was something going on that neither he nor Brian were privy to at the moment, as she shrugged. "We just lost track of time, I guess. You know how it is when we girls get to talking."

"Yeah," Katie jumped in. "We had all _sorts_ of things to talk about." Kaylee giggled with glee, deciding to utter a fake cough to disguise it as she smiled back at her sister. Katie glared at her before elbowing her in the side as a warning.

"Hey!" Kaylee groused. "Watch it!"

Brian and Justin exchanged a curious glance as Justin told the girls, "I'll bet you did. Well, go wash up. Lunch should be ready soon."

As soon as the girls and Daphne had retreated inside, Justin turned to his partner to ask, "What do you think that was all about?"

Brian shrugged. "Who knows? With Daphne as their mother? No wonder they're a little loony."

"Brian," was the gentle reproach. "I'm just glad that they get along so well with her."

"Yeah," he had to agree. "Me, too." He slid the turkey burgers and steaks onto a nearby platter, along with some roasted corn on the cob. "Justin?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't forget we have that appointment tomorrow with the attorney."

Justin nodded as he took the platter from his partner. "I won't."

Brian nodded back at him, relieved that at least they could start the process in motion. "By the way, I wonder if you should call the moving company?" he suggested. "Weren't they supposed to be here by now?"

Justin informed him, "I called them a little while ago; they said they should be here in about an hour."

Brian nodded. "Uh...you're bound to really be worn out by the time you unpack everything you're having brought down here. I think a dip in the Jacuzzi would do you a lot of good. It's very...therapeutic."

Justin placed the meat down on the table nearby as he turned to look at Brian with a smile. "Oh, really? How utterly altruistic of you."

Brian stretched his arms behind his back as he grunted, "Yeah...my muscles are really stiff today, too. Carrying all that meat out here and lifting that heavy spatula really took its toll on me." He curled his lips under as he eyed Justin intently, his eyes sweeping up and down to hover over his partner's bubble butt and cock snugly encased in the tight, blue swim trunks. _Fuck, could he have not changed for lunch? Did he not realize what he was doing to him?_ "I may have to join you later to _relieve the tension_." Although he suspected that would only be temporary; the only way to permanently solve his perpetual hard-on he was wearing lately was to have Justin back in his arms and in his bed on a nightly basis. How soon that would be, though, was still debatable. He was bound and determined not to fuck things up this time; and if that meant that Justin wanted to take things a little bit more slowly and deliberately, then he would have to abide by that. That didn't mean, however, that he couldn't tempt him just a bit. At least Justin wasn't insisting on no sex being part of the bargain, or he really WOULD go out of his mind.

Justin laughed as he blushed over the tone of Brian's voice. "Poor baby; I guess it HAS been a while since you're have time to go to the gym."

Brian snorted as he closed the lid to the grill and walked over to his partner standing by the patio table. "I haven't really missed it; between working around the grounds here and all the horseback riding and camping trips Katie constantly wants to take, I probably get more exercise that way than I ever did at the gym. And it's a hell of a lot cheaper, too."

Justin nodded. "It shows," he said quietly, unable to hide the admiration in his eyes as he studied the firm physique and lightly-defined bicep muscles. "You look amazing. But then again, you always did."

Brian waggled his eyebrows at him as they turned as one accord to stare into each other's eyes and place their hands on each other's chests. "You're not so bad yourself," he told Justin huskily.

It didn't take too long before they came together for a kiss that quickly deepened into a more passionate one. Tongues, lips and hands roamed all over for several seconds until they heard someone clearing their throat from a few feet away, followed by some giggling.

"Didn't anyone ever tell you three about how rude it is to eavesdrop?" Brian quipped dryly as they reluctantly broke apart.

Daphne grinned as she and girls walked up to take a seat at the table. "We didn't know the appetizer had already been served, or we would have come back sooner." The girls tittered at that as Brian rolled his eyes.

"Well, _that_ appetizer was only meant for two," he told them. "Me...And the little work of art over there."

Justin's face warmed as he asked Daphne and the twins, "What do you want to drink? I'll get it."

"Well, I would say I'll have what YOU'RE having, but I think that's not on the menu."

The girls laughed at her as Justin sighed. "Daphne, please; they don't need any more encouragement, trust me."

Daphne grinned back at them, her eyes twinkling as she told her best friend, "Okay, I'll try to behave at least during lunch. And then Katie and I are going for a horseback ride, so you'll get a little respite from us."

"There IS a God," Brian deadpanned as he reached for a bun to hand it to Kaylee. "I grilled a turkey burger for you, Princess."

Kaylee beamed over her father's gesture. "Thanks, Dad!" she told him as he slid one of the turkey burgers onto the bun with a spatula.

Brian smiled as he leaned down and kissed her on the cheek. "Anytime," he whispered tenderly as he sat down and reached for the platter to hold it out for Justin.

Justin's heart melted a little more as he grabbed one of the steaks with his fork and put it on his plate, his and Brian's eyes meeting; the same sort of feeling happened each time Brian showed him what a wonderful father he was to both girls. They say a man's heart is reached through their stomach; with him, it was by the way that Brian was so loving to both of their daughters.

* * *

><p>Lunch passed quite pleasantly for the small party for the next hour, the conversation settling on Britin, Kaylee's newly-decorated bedroom at the carriage house, the horses and cats, Brian's latest clients, and Justin's thoughts about what he might do for a job now that he was back in the Pitts. Daphne was brought up to speed, too, on how Gus was doing in school and speculation regarding Michael's apparent new boyfriend that they had yet to meet, although something told them that now that Kaylee and Justin were back home, a Sunday dinner with Deb couldn't be too far away.<p>

As soon as lunch was over, Daphne made good on her promise to accompany Katie on a horseback ride with Ceres and Eton, and Kaylee was persuaded to go upstairs and lie down in the main house, leaving the two men alone out by the patio as they finished off their drinks.

"I'd better go change before the movers get here," Justin decided as he drank the last of his beer.

"Why?" Brian asked. "You look just fine to me." He reached over toward his partner, only to have his hand slapped away as Justin scooted back from his chair to stand up. "Oh no, you don't!" he scolded him. "Don't start something you can't finish, Kinney."

"Oh, I had every intention of _finishing it_," Brian growled in disappointment. "Come back here and I'll prove it."

Justin laughed at the pout on Brian's face. "I have no doubt you would definitely try; but the movers should be here any minute, and I need to show them where to put everything. I'll be right back."

Brian sighed heavily as Justin turned, watching the tightly encased, perfectly shaped bubble butt cheeks swishing back and forth as he walked away, back toward the carriage house. He rubbed his hand across his face, wondering how much torture he could take. Thank God, Justin wasn't insisting on being celibate while they worked out all the kinks; he knew there was no way he could handle THAT.

Deciding that he'd better follow suit, he stood up and headed toward the back of the house to change.

* * *

><p>Fifteen minutes later, he walked out the front door to hear a beeping noise nearby as a medium-sized white truck slowly backed up the side driveway on its way around back toward the carriage house. He turned to follow the truck, curious to see what Justin had decided to keep from his condo in Chicago.<p>

The truck finally pulled up to the carriage house a few minutes later as Brian emerged from the walking trail; he watched from the clearing as two burly, muscled men opened the doors and jumped down. He could see Justin coming out of the front door, a sort of frown on his face as he propped it open. He wondered what that was all about as he stood several feet away to quietly observe the action.

The movers walked back to the rear of the truck, and after lowering the back gate they soon began to cart items encased in bubble wrap through the open front door. No doubt these flat, square- or rectangular-shaped items were some of Justin's works. A couple, unmarked boxes were next, followed by some small pieces of furniture and some lamps. A couple of what appeared to be wrapped pedestals, followed by two statues of some kind, were taken in afterward.

Brian shook his head; he remembered some of the statues from Justin's apartment, and they weren't exactly what he would want for furnishings. But he supposed there would be some out of the way place they could be positioned once Justin and Kaylee moved back into Britin with him and Katie. After all, the house was monstrously huge. It certainly was big enough to be a museum! He figured that they could easily be tucked into a spare bedroom or something.

He watched as the men walked back out with Justin following along behind them; his partner caught his eye and nodded briefly as he walked toward him. Brian figured the moving men were done, but noticed they returned to the vehicle and just stood next to the passenger side door as if they were awaiting further instructions.

"All done?" Brian asked as Justin walked up to him.

Justin shook his head. "No they have one last item to unload," he told him as he nibbled his lower lip a little nervously.

The gesture didn't go unnoticed by Brian, who narrowed his eyes slightly. "What _sort_ of item, Justin?" He decided that it had better not have something to do with that former asshole of a boyfriend, or it would promptly be heading to a trash dump somewhere - if he didn't burn it first.

"It's my piano," Justin explained tentatively, waiting for the volcano to erupt. He didn't have long to wait.

"Your _grand piano?_" Brian growled in dismay. "That gigantic monstrosity that took up the entire living room back in Chicago?"

"It didn't take up the entire living room," Justin insisted. "Just...part of it. You told me I could bring anything with me that I wanted," he pointed out.

"But a fucking piano? And a grand piano to boot? There is NO way a grand piano is going to fit inside that carriage house!"

"No kidding."

"Then what...?" Brian's eyes widened in realization. "No fucking way, Justin! That is NOT going in Britin. Where the hell would you put it?"

Justin snorted. "Well, I think the studio's out. And I guess the dining room and your bedroom would be impractical if you wanted to eat or sleep. And I imagine it would be a bitch hefting it up the steps...So that only leaves..."

Brian's face turned red in dismay. "NO! That piano is NOT going in my study! Over, done with, end of discussion!" That was Brian's private sanctuary; his place where he could go to either unwind or to get some much-needed work done without being disturbed.

Justin huffed in disbelief. "Where else am I going to put it?"

Brian smiled sweetly. "Don't tempt me, Sunshine... I don't care _where_ you put it! Put in out in the stable where you can serenade the critters! Maybe the cow will give more milk if you play a few bars of "Mooooon River."

"You don't HAVE a cow, Brian," Justin pointed out. "At least you didn't until _now_. Brian, there is nowhere else to put it!"

Brian's eyes flashed as the two movers watched quietly from near the truck, unable to avoid overhearing the energetic discourse taking place several yards away. "Oh, yes there is! You can tell then to haul it right back where it came from, or take it some orphanage or nursing home somewhere. It is NOT going in my study, Justin!"

"So now it's YOUR study? Well, I guess it'll be YOUR bedroom, then, too!" He crossed his arms angrily over his chest and gritted his teeth as he counted to ten. "Fine," he responded much too calmly. "I'll just tell them to take it to my mother's condo. And then I'll drive up there and stay with her. Kaylee can move back into the main house with you and Katie then." He took a deep breath as he told his partner sadly, "I'm not going to live somewhere where I have no say so in what I can or can't do, Brian. I thought it was going to be _our_ home again."

Brian rubbed his face with his hand. "Oh, for fuck's sake! Justin, try to look at it from my side. That is where I do all my work and unwind at the end of the day!" He took a deep breath to try and compose himself. When he spoke again, his voice was a little more normal sounding. "Justin, why is that damn piano so important to you? You can buy a full-size organ or something that will take up a lot less room; that would be just fine. Anything but THAT white elephant."

Justin averted his eyes. "It wouldn't be the same," he insisted quietly. "You wouldn't understand, so don't bother. I'll just go tell the movers..."

Brian sighed as he reached out to grab Justin's wrist just before he could escape. "Wait, Liberace," he told him as Justin slowly turned around to face him, his eyes watering and his chin jutted out in defiance. _Shit. He never COULD handle Justin being upset. _ Justin lifted an eyebrow in challenge as he told him, "Okay, okay. We'll find a place in the study for it somehow. I...I guess we can move out one of the leather recliners or something...Or maybe all the _rest_ of the furniture, too," he muttered under his breath. Maybe he could at least keep his desk in there; that piano was monstrous in size and was going to take up most of the room, despite what Justin thought.

"_We_?" Justin replied. "Now it's _we_?"

Brian pulled Justin closer to him as he told him softly, "It was always _we_, Justin. You, me, and the girls. Don't you know that? I still don't understand your attachment to it, but if having that piano here means that much to you...Then okay. I'll get over it. Just...Don't go; don't even _allude_ to going. We've come too far now to start over again, don't you think?" He took another deep breath before he uttered the last word, still finding it hard to say such things aloud. It seemed so..._pathetic_. But if it meant the difference between having Justin and Kaylee back home, then so be it. "_Please_."

Justin swallowed as he gazed into his partner's anxious-filled eyes, suddenly feeling like an asshole. It wasn't as if he had even told Brian he was bringing the piano here. And he hadn't even asked him about it first. "No, Brian..." he began as Brian's eyes widened in stunned disbelief before he realized what he had just said. "No!" he hastily added. "What I mean is, I should be apologizing to _you_ for not checking with you first. I should have realized it might be a problem finding somewhere to put it in the house." He sighed. "I guess this moving back in business is going to take some adjustment for both of us. If you really don't want the piano in there, I'll call my mom and see if she can find room for it somewhere. Or I can have it put into storage..."

"Justin," his partner answered as he placed his fingers across his lips to silence him. "It's okay; really. He placed his hands on Justin's biceps as he admitted, "Yeah... there will have to be some back and forth here on both our parts. But the end result will be more than worth it." He leaned in to kiss the soft, warm lips briefly before pulling back to shout over at the movers, "The piano's going in the main house! We'll meet you at the front door!"

The movers nodded, relieved to finally get some direction, before one of them walked around to the back to reattach the back door; moments later, a beeping sound could be heard as they slowly backed up the driveway, heading toward the front of the house.

"Thanks, Brian," Justin replied gratefully. He couldn't quite explain why that piano meant so much to him. Perhaps it was partly due to all the photos he had always displayed on top of it with Brian and the girls that he cherished, or the countless songs he had played on it when he was in a melancholy or nostalgic mood and missing the partner he had left behind but had never forgotten. Whatever it was, he couldn't have imagined leaving it with the condo. It would have felt like a piece of himself had remained there, too, and he wanted to make a fresh start now and never think about that particular sorrowful period again.

Brian nodded as he clasped Justin's hand. "Come on - we'll need to show the movers what needs to be rearranged so it will fit in there." Justin nodded with a smile as they proceeded back up to the main house, their previous disagreement now resolved.

* * *

><p><em>On the mountaintop nearby...<em>

Daphne pulled on the reins as her horse came to a gradual stop, deftly swinging herself over the saddle and pulling off her riding helmet as she stared in awe at the wondrous view. "This is just beautiful, Katie!" she murmured as she took in the blanketed mountains of green, the blue sky with wisps of clouds, and the thousands of wildflowers that looked like colorful, kaleidoscopic waves as the summer breeze blew. "It is so peaceful up here! I can see why you and your father would enjoy coming up here so much." She walked over to sit at the picnic table as Katie dismounted and joined her, placing her helmet down on the tabletop.

Katie nodded. "I know...this is my favorite place in the whole world! There's always something amazing to sketch up here, and it's so quiet you can actually hear the wind blow. Sometimes Dad and I even see a bald eagle flying around here. And lots of other wildlife." She inhaled the perfumed scent of pine trees and wildflowers as she smiled, glancing over at her mother. "I'm glad that you came to visit," she told her.

Daphne smiled warmly at her. "I am, too, Honey," she told her sincerely. "It's been way too long. And now you and your sister are finally back together...along with your two dads."

Ceres whinnied softly nearby as Katie replied, "Well, _kind _of together. We still have some work to do there."

Daphne grinned. "Well, something tells me that won't take too long. Your Dads love each other very much. They're both just very, very stubborn and pigheaded, that's all. I think it won't be long at all now."

Katie giggled. "Nothing that a little rat doo and stifling heat shouldn't take care of, anyway."

Daphne laughed. "I do like the way you two girls think! Your father is such a drama queen; I can tell you right now, he will NOT like what you're about to inflict upon him one bit." She turned solemn-looking as she told her daughter, "You and Kaylee should be ashamed of yourself, Katherine Elizabeth." A broad grin broke out on her face as she told her, "I'm proud of you!"

Katie grinned, a look so like her mom's as she asked, "Did you think of anything else about Daddy that might help push him in the right direction?"

Daphne smiled. "No, I think you and your sister can more than handle things from here without my help. I do have one suggestion, though."

Daphne leaned over to whisper in her daughter's ear conspiratorially, even though no one was anywhere around.

As they pulled apart, Katie beamed in delight. "Really? I love to do that, too."

Daphne nodded with a smile. "Good, then it should be easy."

"I would have never thought about that idea, but I love it!" Katie decided. "Thanks. We can probably figure out a way to do it down at the house later, maybe with Emmett's help."

Daphne grinned. "Oh, he'd be ideal for that job! Definitely!" She sighed as she looked around. "I really hate to leave, but it's getting late. It's so beautiful up here."

Katie nodded as she, too, looked out over the wondrous vista in front of them. A wind was rustling through the multitude of cedar trees, creating a gentle whooshing sound as a hawk screeched overhead. "I know what you mean," she told her mother. She turned to smile at her. "That just means that you will have to come back here more often, then. Do you like to camp, Aunt Daphne?"

She nodded. "I don't get to do it much anymore, but yes, I do. My parents used to take me camping when I was about your age. They had horseback riding at this one place, in fact. That's where I learned to ride a horse; so did your father when he went camping with us." She winked at her daughter as she leaned over to gently ruffle Katie's hair. "I'd love to come back here again, Katie. With you AND Kaylee."

Katie winced. "I'm not sure after what happened that Kaylee will ever get on a horse again. That really scared her. It scared ALL of us."

Daphne nodded. "Yeah. Me, too. I guess it's too far from the house to walk up here, though."

Katie nodded. "Yeah. But we _do_ have a couple of ATVs that Dad and I get out every once in a while and ride. Each one will fit two people in them. Maybe she could ride up in one of those with you."

Daphne smiled. "That's an idea! I'll keep that in mind." She reluctantly slid off the bench and reached her hand down to her daughter. "Ready to go, then?"

Katie nodded as she stood up to join her. Impulsively she leaned up to give her mother a kiss on the cheek.

"What was THAT for?" Daphne asked, pleased but also curious.

"Just for being my mom...and for being such a good friend to Dad and Daddy."

She smiled down at her daughter, her eyes glistening with pleasure. "Just don't forget to invite me to the wedding," she teased.

Katie's eyes widened. "Oh, my God! Do you think they would get _married_?" she shrieked in excitement at the thought.

Daphne laughed. "Hold on!" she cautioned. "First things first. I was just kidding. I'll settle for another ride up here with you and Kaylee - and getting your fathers back in the same house again."

Katie's face fell slightly as she faced her mother. "You don't think they ever would?" she asked sorrowfully. The idea of her two fathers getting married sounded so amazing.

Daphne smiled. "I didn't say that," she told her daughter as her eyes lit up hopefully. "Stranger things have happened. Let's just take one day at a time, though, okay?"

Katie nodded, mollified somewhat that perhaps one day it MIGHT occur. "Okay," she agreed as Daphne slung her arm around her shoulder and they headed back toward the horses. "But now I won't be able to get that out of my head." She sighed dreamily as they reached Eton and Ceres and she looked around the mountainside. "Wouldn't this make an absolutely incredible place to get married? It's so beautiful up here, especially right before sunset." She and her father used to sit in the grass on the edge of the mountain, speechless, as they watched the wonderful palette of colors the sun displayed as it slowly sank below the horizon. Up here it was almost as if no one else existed, and as if you could almost touch heaven. She could picture both of her fathers, facing each other as they held hands and recited their marriage vows. She smiled. She could always dream, couldn't she? Maybe one day it would be a reality.

Daphne affectionately ruffled her daughter's hair as Katie turned to look at her. "We'd better get going; I'm sure your Dads are wondering what's taking us so long."

Katie nodded as she and her mother donned their riding helmets and mounted the horses. Taking just a short moment to savor the wondrous scenery surrounding them, they finally turned and headed back down the trail leading them toward the house below.

* * *

><p><em>Early Evening - Britin<em>

"Well, I see you've kept up with your cooking skills," Brian observed as he polished off the last bite of his chicken tetrazzini. "I might even go so far as to say you're improved upon them."

"Thanks...I think," Justin quipped as the girls giggled. Daphne had left about an hour ago to return to Pittsburgh, having an early shift at the hospital tomorrow; Jen, too, was back home, and Gus was still out on his date. That was fine with the girls, though; it would make their espionage that much easier to handle. Although they _did_ have to promise their mother that she would hear all about what happened tonight and tomorrow.

Justin yawned as he swallowed his last bite of dinner. Rising from the table, he began to scoop up the soiled dishes just like he used to do so long ago back at the diner.

"Girls, I think it would be nice if you would take the dishes into the kitchen for your father, especially after he did all the cooking tonight," Brian suggested. He received a surprised, but grateful reaction from Justin as Brian pulled on his wrist to get him to sit back down next to him.

There was some initial grumbling from both daughters, but once they determined they could scheme a little better in private - plus give both fathers some 'alone' time - they decided it wasn't such a big price to pay as Katie gave her sister a signal to follow her into the kitchen and they began to carry the dishes to the dishwasher. With a pretense of heading upstairs to play a video game immediately afterward, the two girls then headed upstairs to Katie's bedroom; or so they said. In reality, as soon as they had left the kitchen, they walked quietly and stealthily out the front door, closing it softly behind them before proceeding around back toward the carriage house.

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen Minutes Later...<em>

"Dessert?" Justin asked as he placed his drinking glass into the sink, Brian following closely on his heels. He turned around to face his partner, finding him only inches away. How had he gotten that close to him so quickly?

Brian smirked as he placed both hands to either side of Justin and his eyes lazily traveled down the denim-clad legs, then up the cabled, dark gray sweater and onto the slightly flushed face as Justin realized the implications of that question. Brian was a little disappointed that his partner had seen fit to go back to the carriage house earlier and change out of the swimsuit, but he had to admit - the clothes fit him well; a little TOO well. They made his blue eyes sparkle, and conjured up all sorts of vivid thoughts about what was hidden beneath them, and how much fun it would be to undress him. "What sort of 'dessert' did you have in mind, Sunshine?" he drawled as he leaned in closer, his palms resting on the marble counter. His breath washed over Justin's face, making it hard for either one of them to concentrate.

"I...forgot; you don't do carbs this late," Justin immediately corrected himself. "So...never mind." His breath was coming out in little pants as he gazed into Brian's darkening eyes. He knew that predatory, lust-filled look...and so did his body, one _part_ of his body in particular as his cock slowly rose to attention.

"That doesn't mean I wouldn't mind imbibing in a little protein, though," Brian huskily replied as his eyes flickered down to the slightly-parted lips, just dying to be kissed. Well, he was only too willing to oblige.

Justin's hands automatically rose to rest, palm down, on Brian's shoulders. "Brian...the girls..."

"...Are up in Katie's room," Brian reminded him. He leaned in closer, almost until their lips were touching as he whispered, "I'm just talking about kissing you, Sunshine; not fucking you...not yet, anyway." And before Justin could say anything else, Brian pressed his lips firmly against his lover's and Justin was lost in the sensation, winding his arms around Brian's shoulders to link around his neck to pull him even closer.

Brian moaned deep in his throat as their tongues tangled together and his arms slid tightly around Justin's back to lock him into place; grinding his denim-clad crotch against Justin's, he let him know in no uncertain terms how aroused he was. It wasn't a surprise that Justin obviously was feeling the same way about him; it never DID take them long to get all hot and bothered when they kissed. Several seconds later they breathlessly broke apart, each panting softly as they clung together for support.

"Justin...Fuck, I want you," Brian confessed as he stared into the flushed face and the dark, blue eyes. "Bedroom..." It was as if he had built up ten years of pent-up need for this man, and now he couldn't get enough of him. "_Now_..." He started to walk backward with Justin still held firmly in his arms, only to have Justin plant his feet on the floor and stop dead in his tracks.

"Brian, wait," his partner managed to reply as he pushed against Brian's chest to try and create a little more space between them. "We...we _can't_," he told his partner with great regret. "The girls...they're upstairs...your bedroom is just down the hall...they would hear us..."

"_OUR_ bedroom," Brian immediately corrected him, wanting him to know that was how he thought of it; how he had _always _thought of it. He shook his head in disbelief; if they were having these problems now, what would happen when they DID move back in together? If Justin thought he would hold back from his vocal 'appreciation' of their lovemaking, he had another thing coming. The girls were old enough to know about the 'birds and the bees,' weren't they? It was either going to be that, or he would be getting a contractor out here immediately to soundproof their room. "Justin...shit...tell me you're kidding."

"Brian, you know I'm right...neither one of us is exactly quiet when we fuck..."

Justin had a point there. Unfortunately. Brian groaned in repressed desire as he grasped desperately at a solution, _any_ solution. "Carriage house, then..."

"Brian, I don't know...The girls...They'll be alone here..."

"Justin..." He huffed in exasperation. He loved his partner for how much he cared about their daughters' safety, but he was killing him here. The more he was around him, the more he had to have him like some unquenchable nectar. He finally slumped his shoulders in defeat and sighed heavily as he placed his forehead against his partner's. "Aaarrgh!" he cursed. "Why did we decide to have kids again?" he asked as he heard Justin chuckle.

The two pulled back to gaze into each other's eyes. "You know you couldn't live without them now," Justin countered as he reached to gently stroke Brian's cheek with his fingers. "They're as much a part of your life I am - and as you are to me."

Brian shook his head in frustration but finally nodded, secretly pleased that at least Justin was thinking that way. "Yeah, I know," he conceded grudgingly. "Shit, though! Here's this obscenely huge house, and what did the builder do? They put all the fucking bedrooms on the _same floor_!" He rubbed his face in exasperation. "I am NOT going to have you back here with me finally and not be able to...to..._be_ with you." He couldn't quite say the words _make love_, but he knew deep down that was exactly what it was. And 'fucking' sounded too mechanical and devoid of emotion; the total antithesis of what he and Justin were doing. "I know! How about sending them off to camp again?"

Justin laughed as Brian finally couldn't help grinning back at him ruefully. "I know you're kidding about that." His face grew sympathetic as he told him, "I know it's not so easy for us to find time together, not with the girls to think about now. But we'll figure something out."

"Well, that doesn't help our current situation very much," Brian maintained, feeling painfully hard at the moment. All that kissing and caressing had just stoked the fires even higher.

Justin nodded. "I know the feeling," he admitted; he wanted Brian so badly he could almost taste it. But, of course, that was the problem; neither man had done anything yet to assuage that hunger and just the idea of 'getting another taste' wasn't getting either one of them off, and only making it worse. "Well, there _is_ a lock on your study door, isn't there?" Justin asked quietly. "And that room's on the main floor." He knew the movers had had to move out both recliners earlier to make room for it - much to Brian's consternation - but the dark, brown leather couch - and the large, plush, area rug in front of the fireplace - still remained.

The side of Brian's mouth turned up into a pleased smile. "I like the way you think, Sunshine. I always wanted to fuck someone on top of a piano; I think it might be the only position we haven't tried yet."

Justin laughed. Leave it to Brian to think of that particular fact. "Well, I might wind up with splinters in my ass as a result," he told his partner, who rolled his tongue into his mouth. "But I guess it's the least I can do since you were so accommodating earlier."

Brian grinned as he turned and began to tug Justin urgently toward the study. "Well, come on, then. Let's go _tickle some ivorie_s."

* * *

><p><em>Same Time - Carriage House<em>

Kaylee stared over at her sister in confusion. "What are you doing?" she asked, watching her sister wadding up a couple of small, brown lunch bags by the kitchen counter. "Isn't it kind of late to be practicing your basketball shots?"

Katie rolled her eyes, placing her hands on her hips. "Don't you know anything? These are for _later_."

Kaylee crinkled up her nose. "What are you going to do with those? They're all crinkled up now."

Katie huffed in disbelief. "For crying out loud, Kaylee! Don't you know what mice sound like? We have to make this real."

Kaylee shook her head, totally perplexed. "No," she told her, totally lost. "I don't make it a habit to be around them. They're dirty and icky and they carry diseases. What do those have to do with mice?"

"Boy, you really ARE a city girl," Katie told her. She walked over and began to knead the balled-up paper, making a crackling sound. "THIS is what mice sound like when they get under the sink and in the cabinets, because they like to chew on things. So I'm going to use it tonight to make sure that Daddy hears 'mice' in the house. NOW do you understand?"

Her sister's mouth hung open. "You want me to take those two wadded-up lunch bags, sit under the kitchen sink and make mouse noises all night?"

"Of course not! Duh! If you sit under the sink, Daddy will open the door and THEN what would you do?"

"Chew on some cheese, squeak and wiggle my nose?" She couldn't help giggling over the idea.

"This isn't funny, Kaylee! Do you want Dad and Daddy back together or not?"

"Of course I do!" Kaylee responded, insulted. "I was just making a joke, that's all! I thought we were in this together!"

Katie rolled her eyes as she held up her hands in surrender. "Okay, okay; we are. What I mean is you're going to come down and unlock the front door after Daddy goes to sleep so I can sneak in and hide in the hall closet, and then I'll sneak out through the secret door. You can wake him up and tell him that it's too hot or something...And then when he comes down to investigate, I'll hear you talking to him and I can start with the paper."

Kaylee's head was swimming. "What secret door? What are you talking about?"

Katie grinned. "Come with me; there's something I want to show you." She walked over to the coat closet next to the front door and opened it to push some of the clothes aside. "Look over there," she told her sister as she pointed to what looked like a door built into the left side.

"What IS that?" Kaylee asked curiously. The 'door' had a small, black knob on the left hand side, and was flush with the wall and made out of the same color wood as the rest of the interior. If the clothes hadn't been pushed aside, she would have never known it was there.

"Daddy doesn't know about this," Katie informed her. "I found it a few years ago, so it would have been after the two of you were gone." She reached over and pulled on the little knob; it was indeed a half-sized door built into the wall. Kaylee could feel a rush of cold air that sent a chill through her bones as her sister opened it.

"That's creepy!" She decided. "What's it for?' She shivered.

"Dad and I did some exploring when I found it. There's a small light switch on the left-hand side of the wall," she told her as she reached over and flicked on the switch, bathing the dark walls beyond the door in a dim glow. There were wooden steps leading downward. "The carriage house doesn't have a basement," she reminded her. "But this leads down to a small wine cellar where the previous owners apparently used it to keep moonshine."

"Moonshine?"

"Booze, liquor, alcohol...when it was illegal. Way, way back in the Stone Age."

"Ohhh," Kaylee murmured. She wrinkled up her nose. "Well, I don't care if it DOES have a light; I wouldn't want to go down there!"

"You won't have to," her sister assured her. "I'll sneak out of the house later tonight after Dad has gone to bed and come back here. I'll send you a text to let you know I'm on my way. Then I'll hide in the closet here until you can lure Daddy back downstairs. And THEN I'll start with my mouse imitation..."

Kaylee eyed her skeptically. "I don't know...You really think it will fake him out?"

"Of course!" her sister assured her confidently. "All you have to do is help him out by pointing out the mouse crap all over the counter, okay? I'll even do the honors and put it there myself so you won't have to let your dainty little hands touch it. What more can you ask?"

Kaylee frowned, but finally nodded, wanting her sister's plan to work as much as she did. "Okay."

Katie nodded back at her. "Good. Now we had better head back before one of them finds out that we're gone. Let's go."

"Yeah," her sister agreed. "This had better work."

"It will," Katie assured her. "We're pros here, remember?"

Kaylee grinned as they high-fived each other. "Yeah. Operation...Uh, what are we going to call this one?"

Katie bit her lip in thought as they walked toward the door. "How about we just call this one Operation Wedding?"

Kaylee nodded with a dreamy smile. "Yeah," he sighed. "That sounds perfect to me. Well, then, may _Operation Wedding_ now commence."

* * *

><p><em>Same Time...<em>

Justin grunted as Brian pounded into him on top of the smooth, white surface. He was too caught up in his lust-filled haze to reflect on how ridiculous he must look, splayed naked on top of his baby grand while Brian fucked the life out of him, or how he figured he would have abrasion burns on his skin from the way Brian was aggressively pistoning in and out of him. It simply felt way too good to worry about aesthetics or future discomfort at the moment.

"Brian," he moaned out loudly, his head turning from side to side in almost unbearable pleasure. "Oh, God..." His legs linked tightly around Brian's waist, he felt his climax quickly approaching as he reached out to start stroking his cock in time with Brian's movements, knowing he, too, was about to come by the loud groans his partner was making.

The sweat trickled down Brian's forehead as he smoothly thrust in and out, his fingers gripping Justin's thighs and turning them even whiter underneath his touch. How he had missed making love to this man! He decided it was an incurable illness; like taking 'E,' but without all the side effects. It was mind numbingly extraordinary, and he just couldn't get enough; could NEVER get enough.

"Justin," he grunted out loudly in warning as he felt his body tightening like a coil. "Fuck, I'm..." he didn't quite complete his thought as he promptly exploded into the condom with a guttural cry, throwing his head back as the quivers of pleasure rippled through him. A couple more strokes of his cock, and that, along with Brian's climax, was enough to send Justin, too, over the edge as he promptly exploded all over their bodies.

Brian promptly slumped over Justin's chest a few moments later as Justin's legs hung over the edge of the piano. It took Brian several seconds before he was able to lift his head to peer into Justin's flushed one before he stated in a raspy voice, "Now THAT was a Grammy-winning performance!"

Justin reached up to smack him on the arm, his face red in embarrassment as Brian grinned down at him. His partner reached down then o wipe some sweaty, blond hair away from his forehead as his face dissolved into something tenderer. "That was...Amazing," he whispered.

Justin smiled softly up at him. "Yes, it was," he agreed. "But you think we can move to the rug for our repeat performance?" he asked as he groaned, this time due to the stiffness in his back. Despite the 'padding' in his ass, he was starting to feel the effects of being fucked on top of such a hard surface.

Brian leaned down to steal a brief kiss from him before pulling back with a smirk. "Pretty sure of yourself, aren't you? What makes you think there will BE an encore, Mr. Taylor?"

Justin rolled his eyes as Brian helped to pull him up to a sitting position. He groaned again wondering how he had let Brian talk him into fucking him on his much-loved and greatly prized piano. He wondered how easy it would be to clean up come stains from the surface of it as he smirked back at him. "Oh, I don't know. Maybe it was the entire box of condoms you brought in here with you before you locked the door?"

Brian grinned as he pulled Justin off the piano to a standing position. "You may have a point there," he conceded as he plucked one more kiss from the soft but swollen lips. He cleared his throat as if he were about to speak to a large crowd. "And now, ladies and gentleman, Justin Taylor will entertain you with his version of _Moon over Miami_ - or in this case, West Virginia_." _

Justin had to laugh before he squealed as Brian unexpectedly grabbed him to fling him over his shoulder, fireman style, slapping him on the butt for good measure as he carried him over to the rug.

Brian laid his partner down onto the soft surface with surprising gentleness as he reached for one of the towels nearby that he had brought in with them earlier. Justin peered up at him silently as he gently cleaned off his belly and chest, his heart hammering over how tender Brian was being. He had to admit that it was times like these that made his certainty over taking things more slowly waver just a bit.

Brian finished what he was doing and, laying the towel down he nudged Justin's knee as his partner spread his legs apart to accommodate Brian's lankier frame. He stared into the darkened, blue eyes as he softly commanded, "Roll over," all pretense of kidding aside.

Justin's heart pounded in expectation as he did as Brian asked, hearing his partner's soft breathing above him in the quietness of the room as he rolled onto his stomach. He pillowed his head on his arms as he waited for Brian to proceed, feeling his body tingling in anticipation over the mere thought.

Brian took a moment to admire his partner's lithe form. As always, the sight took his breath away as Justin lay there, so vulnerable but trusting. It was such a beautiful package: the light blond, fine hairs covering his pale legs, the expanse of unblemished skin, the smoothness of Justin's back, and his shaggy, silky strands of golden hair. And that ass. Good God; it should be a crime to have such a magnificent ass. He couldn't wait any longer to touch and taste that ass again.

Straddling the back of Justin's thighs, he trailed his fingers lightly down the middle of Justin's back, feeling his partner shiver slightly under his touch before he placed one hand on either buttock, squeezing the soft, warm flesh. He heard Justin sigh in reaction as he began to knead the flesh briefly before honing in on his main target: taking his thumbs, he spread the cheeks farther apart to behold the wrinkled pucker displayed for his pleasure.

"Brian..."

"Shhh," his partner softly scolded over his lover's whine; now that the edge was taken off, he found that he wanted to prolong this particular round of lovemaking a little more. Justin groaned beneath him in response as Brian smiled. Before Justin could issue some other type of protest, Brian leaned down to bestow a brief kiss on each buttock before he straightened out his tongue and dove in for a taste.

Justin let out an even stronger groan as Brian began to aggressively tongue fuck him in between licks and nips of his ass; his partner keened in undisguised impatience.

"Brian, fuck..." he whimpered. "Come on..."

Brian pulled his tongue back out to deeply inhale the combination scent of Justin and sex; he could tell by his partner's movements and his needy-sounding voice that he wouldn't last long, but he also knew Justin didn't want him to come without his cock buried deep in his ass. "Okay," he murmured soothingly as he reached over to snag a condom. He knew Justin was more than opened up and wouldn't need any lube this time. "Turn back over," he commanded as he slid it on, his voice raspy with need. "I want to look at you when you come."

He raised himself up just enough for his beautiful partner to roll back over onto his back as they locked eyes on each other. Brian nodded in satisfaction as he grasped Justin's thighs and, lining himself up with his partner's body, he plunged in all the way up to his balls a few seconds later, grunting in pleasure as he sat there, feeling the wondrous sensation fill him, before he began to thrust fluently in and out of the still amazingly tight space.

"Yesssss," Justin hissed out in desire as the two of them started to rock in unison together like a well-oiled machine. Brian reached down to steal another kiss as his tempo picked up speed and Justin's moans grew louder each time Brian pushed back into him.

"Brian...I, I..." Justin couldn't even formulate the words properly, but his lover easily understood how close he was. He reached down to cover Justin's hand with his own as the two of them began to stroke his pulsating cock; it took only a few strokes before Justin exploded all over their hands, the warm, sticky fluid spilling out copiously as Brian continued to piston in and out of him. A few more times and he felt his body tightening up in impending climax, just before he, too, came with a loud cry that reverberated throughout the cavernous space.

* * *

><p><em>Later that Night...<em>

Justin lay in bed, his bed, _alone_. It had taken all of his self-discipline and willpower to remove himself from Brian's arms earlier and get dressed to walk back upstairs to say goodnight to Katie and retrieve their other daughter. Kaylee, instead of being upset as he feared she might be over having to go back to the carriage house, had been inexplicably cooperative instead, almost cheerful, over the whole idea. She had walked downstairs with him to say goodbye to Brian in the study, and as he and his partner's eyes had met across the room, he had nodded at Brian somewhat regretfully before the two of them headed back to the carriage house.

He turned his head to peer over at the clock radio; 2:58 a.m. What a surprise, he thought dryly. How many times in the past several years had he awakened right around 3:00 a.m., even though that silly rule he and Brian had devised so long ago was no longer in effect? He sighed as he lay on top of the covers, wearing nothing but a pair of briefs. Even scantily clad, however, he was sweating profusely. He knew he had set the thermostat to 77 before he went to bed, so it shouldn't feel this sticky inside. Was there something wrong with the air conditioner? The night had promised to be especially humid tonight, so he hated to open a window. But what choice did he have? It already felt like a furnace up here.

Resigned, he rose to walk over to one of the two bedroom windows and, unlocking the latch, gave it a shove upward, but nothing happened; the damn thing wouldn't even budge. It was apparently stuck, no doubt due to the humidity warping the wooden frame. "Shit," he growled in disgust. Walking the few steps over to the adjoining window, he gave it a push as well, only to get the same result. "What the fuck?" he huffed. He thought Brian had told him that he had had the windows replaced recently. A soft noise behind him made him turn around to observe a familiar shadow in the doorway. "Kaylee? What are you doing up, Honey?"

"I couldn't sleep, Daddy," she lamented; she was clad in a lavender-colored, two-piece satin pajama outfit with a spaghetti-strap top and a matching pair of satin shorts. "It's too hot. Can you turn down the air conditioning?" She rubbed her eyes and yawned for good effect as her father walked over to her.

"I was just about to check on that," Justin told her as rubbed her cheek tenderly. "I could have sworn I turned it down to 77 earlier before I came up here. Why don't you try to go back to bed and get some sleep? I'll go check it out. You can open a window in the meantime to get a little circulation going."

But Kaylee shook her head. "I want to come with you," she told him. "I'm afraid up here by myself. Besides, I tried to open the window and it wouldn't budge. I think it's stuck."

Justin frowned; were ALL the windows stuck shut? "Well, there's nothing to be afraid of," he told her. He guess he understood, though, how being in a new place would be intimidating to a young girl. "Okay," he told her with a smile as he placed his arm around her shoulder. "We'll go check it out together, then, since we're both awake."

Kaylee had to fight to keep the smile off her face as she followed her father down the steps; she couldn't wait for her sister to start her performance. "Are you going to check the temperature, Daddy?" she asked aloud as a signal.

Justin nodded as he flipped on the light switch nearby that turned on both table lamps near the couch. "Yeah, let me see what it's set on," he told her as he walked over to the thermostat situated next to the downstairs bathroom in the hallway. As he turned his back to her, Kaylee glanced over at the closet door as her eyes grew wide; it was slowly being opened, just before Katie's head peeked out. Frantically waving her back inside, Katie grinned before she slowly closed the door back. "What's it say, Daddy?" Kaylee called over to her father.

"That's odd," Justin told her. "It's set on 77, all right; but the temperature says that it's 81. No wonder it feels so hot upstairs; since heat rises, it's probably even hotter." He wiped some sweat off his brow. "I'd say we could maybe get by with sleeping on the couch and the loveseat down here for the night, but it already feels awfully humid."

Kaylee looked at her father frantically. Surely he wasn't going to suggest they sleep downstairs! Well, even if he did, once the next part of her and Katie's plan went into effect, that would surely put the kibosh on THAT idea. Sure enough, right on cue, her sister began to crush the paper bags to produce a loud, crackling noise.

"What's that?" she asked loudly as her father turned around to peer over at her.

"What?"

"That noise! Don't you hear it?"

Justin frowned. "Yeah...What the hell _is _that?"

Kaylee looked horrified as an apparent 'epiphany' struck her. "It sounds like a mouse, Daddy! I HATE mice!"

Katie bit back a giggle as she scrunched the paper again right on cue.

Justin grimaced in disgust. "A mouse? Why would you think that? We never had mice back in Chicago, Kaylee. How would you know what a mouse sounds like, then?"

Thinking furiously, Kaylee prayed her former neighbor would forgive her as she told her father a boldfaced lie. "Well, please don't get mad at her, Daddy! But when I used to spend the night with Mrs. Bailey, she used to ask me to bring the cats over, not because she liked them so much but because she hoped they would be good mousers."

"What?! Are you saying that she had mice in her condo next door to ours? And she let you spend the night with her knowing that?"

_Forgive me, Mrs. Bailey..._ "Well...As long as the cats were there, I never had a problem with them. But I used to hear them all the time under her kitchen sink. She used to put a live trap under there and bait it with Cheez Whiz and Pringles. They loved it! They'd go in and out of that trap like a revolving door! She'd catch one and release it outside, and then fifteen minutes later another one would appear just like magic!"

"Great," Justin muttered in disbelief. "I don't believe this."

"Well, she got tired of trying to do that, though, so whenever you were out of town, she always wanted me to bring Dali and Picasso over with me, because she thought they could catch all the mice. But they didn't; they were more interested in playing with their fake mice than the real ones."

"Well, I don't want to 'play' with either one," Justin decided as he slowly crept toward the closet door. "Surely it's not that," he hoped. He wrinkled up his nose in disgust as he walked closer.

Afraid that her sister would be discovered, Kaylee cried out suddenly, "Don't open the door, Daddy! They might escape out into the living room!"

"Kaylee, I need to find out if that's what it is or not," Justin told her. But unbeknownst to him, his brief hesitation gave Katie just enough time to quietly open the trap door and escape through it, moments before Justin slowly opened the door and peered inside, fully expecting at least one pair of beady eyes to be staring back at him from down on the floor. To his relief, though, he saw nothing but some suits hanging in the closet and a couple pairs of neglected shoes. "Well, I don't see anything," he told her as Kaylee sighed in relief; only not for the reason that her father thought.

He closed the door back, wiping his forehead. That little exertion made him even more uncomfortable now. "I'm not convinced that's what it was," he told her, not sure if he was trying to reassure him or his daughter.

"That HAS to be it, Daddy!" Kaylee insisted as she 'just happened' to glance over at the kitchen counter. "Oh, my God! Look!" she cried out as she hurried over to the counter between the sink and the stove. "it's mouse poop! I told you! Look at all of it! There must be an entire nest of them!"

Justin sighed as he walked over to the counter to look at the tiny, rice-sized, black specks sprinkled on top of the surface. "Well, it certainly looks like it," he told her as she walked over to him. He watched her squat down to pull out the drawer at the bottom that held their cooking pans. "What are you doing?" he asked her curiously. "Surely you're not hungry right now."

"Eww, gross!" she exclaimed in disgust as she immediately rose to her feet to turn and face her father. "Look at that!" She pointed down at the pan. "Just as I thought! They've been in there, too! Now we can't even _cook_ anything!"

Justin peered down at his favorite Teflon skillet lying face up in the open drawer; there were more mouse feces there as well. He grimaced. "Great," he muttered. "There goes my favorite pan I just brought down here. Well, I guess that seals the deal, then. We definitely will need to get an exterminator out here right away." He sighed. What else could go wrong?

Kaylee nodded, biting her lip to keep from smiling. She moved in for the kill. "Daddy, I can't face sleeping here in this hot, old house with mice running around everywhere. Can't we go back up to the house and sleep there for the night?"

Justin eyed his daughter with mixed emotions. He hated to march back up to the house after he had just made a big deal earlier about needing space from Brian to think and get re-acclimated. But on the other hand, he knew Kaylee would not be comfortable either sleeping upstairs in the stifling heat or sleeping down here on the loveseat where there could be mice crawling around. And truth be told, he wasn't crazy about that idea, either. It wasn't as if there wasn't plenty of room back at Britin anyway; just because he needed to sleep there didn't mean that he and Brian had to wind up in the same bedroom.

So he finally nodded in agreement. "Okay," he told her with a smile. "Let's go up and grab a few things, and we'll go back to the house for the night." He sighed. "Looks like we'll need to call a repairman to fix the air conditioner tomorrow, too. Good thing Brian gave me a key to the house, or we would have had to wake him up to get in." Justin was at least thankful that he didn't have to do that; the less obtrusive they were, the less likely that Brian would find out that he and Kaylee were back up at the main house.

"Yeah," Kaylee replied solemnly as she turned around. "We'd better go get our stuff." As she began to head upstairs with her back toward her father, her face broke out into a smile of triumph. _Way to go, Katie!_ she silently crowed as she practically floated up the steps on a cloud. "Daddy, are you coming?" she called down to her father eagerly, finding it hard to mask her impatience.

"I'll be right there," Justin told her as he shook his head, wondering if Fate was somehow conspiring against him. Sighing once more, he turned to slowly head up the steps toward the bedrooms. "And Kaylee, no makeup case!"

"Aww...Daddy..."

Justin rolled his eyes. "We're just spending one night, Honey, not moving back in!"

"Okay," Kaylee grumbled reluctantly.

Justin smiled as he turned to walk into his bedroom to begin collecting what he would need for the night and tomorrow morning. He actually didn't own pajamas, so he settled on a pair of sweats to sleep in. Somehow he figured no amount of sleepwear would be sufficient to keep his thoughts from dwelling on a certain, sexy man who would now be sleeping in the same house as he was.

Several seconds later, Katie cautiously opened the closet door and peered outside; smiling to herself, she quietly crept over to the front door and quickly slipped back outside.

* * *

><p><em>Next Morning...<em>

"Hi, Dad," Katie and Kaylee greeted their father in unison as Brian came shuffling into the kitchen, smiling at the image of both his twin girls sitting side by side on counter stools at the kitchen bar as he walked over and poured himself a mug of coffee. It was so reminiscent of when they were a lot younger and used to sit in those exact same spots while he and Justin helped feed them.

Suddenly, he turned around and looked over at both daughters as something occurred to him. _Wait a minute. _"Kaylee?"

His daughter nodded with a smile. "Yeah, Dad?"

"Don't take this the wrong way, Princess, but what are you doing here?"

Kaylee stabbed at her whole-wheat waffle and sliced peaches as she told him matter-of-factly, "Eating breakfast."

"Don't be dense, Kaylee Marie," he scolded her softly. "You know what I mean."

Kaylee stole a quick glance at her sister before she explained matter-of-factly, "I slept here last night."

"Why? Don't you like your room at the carriage house?"

"It's okay," she responded. "But the air conditioner wasn't working last night and then...there were the mice." She scrunched up her nose in disgust.

"Air conditioner? MICE?" Brian walked over and leaned against the kitchen bar, facing his two daughters as he held his mug in his hand, the coffee temporarily forgotten.

She nodded. "Yeah...the air conditioner wasn't working last night, and when Daddy and I went downstairs to check it out, we heard mouse noises."

Brian frowned. "Coming from where?"

"The front closet," Katie helpfully supplied from next to her sister. "Uh...That's what she told me," Katie explained. "No way I could have slept with mice running around! Even if the air conditioner _had_ been working. I don't blame Kaylee one bit."

Brian shook his head. "I don't understand. I had everything checked out from top to bottom before you and your father moved back here. Are you sure it wasn't working?"

Kaylee nodded. "The thermostat was set on 77, but Daddy said the temperature said it was 81."

Brian furrowed his brow; that didn't make sense. "Well, I don't see any way there could be mice in that house, either. We just thoroughly cleaned it, remember?"

Kaylee shrugged. "I know. But there were mouse droppings on top of the kitchen counter and in the pan drawer under the stove," she told him.

"Humph," Brian replied. "I don't get it." He shook his head, mystified. "Guess I'll need to call a repairman this morning, then. Does your father know you're up here with us?" He laughed. "He doesn't like it if it's too hot." At least when it came to the temperature, he couldn't help thinking. Justin loved nothing more than to crank up the AC and snuggle under the covers, preferably with him as an additional body warmer. He bit his lip, thinking he'd better dwell on something else. The thought of a naked Justin under the covers with his warm body spooned up against his was almost too much to bear at the moment. What his daughter said next, however, promptly put that thought back into his mind.

"He knows; he's upstairs asleep. We didn't get here until after three."

Brian's eyes lit up; he was unable to hide his delight as he answered in surprise," he is?" _Three a.m. Just a coincidence? _He wondered.

Kaylee nodded as her father couldn't help smiling over that interesting bit of information. "Uh...Which bedroom is he in?" he asked nonchalantly, trying to sound casual.

Kaylee and Katie bit back a laugh as Kaylee told him, "The last bedroom down the hall, near the attic stairs."

_Little shit; he WOULD pick the bedroom farthest away from my...OUR bedroom..._

Brian put his coffee mug down as he proclaimed, "Well, maybe I'd better go make that call to the repairman and the exterminator. You girls go ahead and finish your breakfast." The twins nodded as he smiled at them before walking out of the room toward the stairs, bypassing both the landline kitchen phone and his cellphone lying on the counter nearby.

The two girls waited several seconds for their father to have time to reach the stairs before they looked at each other and burst out laughing. "He is sooooo transparent," Katie cried out in glee as Kaylee giggled. "Oh, this is working perfectly so far!"

Kaylee grinned, her eyes growing wide as she exclaimed, "You think Dad will try to catch a little beauty sleep with Daddy?"

Katie bit her lower lip before grinning back at her. "I would bet on it." The two girls laughed as they resumed eating their breakfast, both wishing they were flies on the wall at the moment but realizing their fathers needed some privacy to help move their plan along.

* * *

><p>Brian reached the landing in record time, stopping at the top of the steps to slow his breathing down. It wouldn't be seemly to appear too overeager, but just the thought of his partner lying in a bed just down the hall made it hard to exude patience. Taking a deep breath, he quietly trod down toward the last guest bedroom on the left and paused by the doorway, noticing it was slightly ajar. Pushing the door open wider, he stopped to stare over at the sight he thought he would never see: his beautiful partner, nestled under the light brown comforter, his hair splayed out on the pillow like a golden cloud.<p>

His heart pounded as he walked and toward the bed, watching the soft rise and fall of Justin's chest under the bedspread. He was lying on his side with his back to him, totally unaware of his presence. What Brian wouldn't have given at that moment to have Justin lying in their bed down the hall, waking up with him holding him in his arms. Perhaps he could come close, however; the opportunity that had just presented itself was too tempting to resist.

Tugging his jeans down his long legs, he pulled his sweater over his head and, clad only in his briefs, he walked over to the side of the bed to gingerly slide in under the cover. He could smell Justin's intriguing scent now as he inhaled deeply, and it filled him instantly with desire and even a bit of protectiveness, just like it always had, as he scooted closer to the pale, slender body and snaked his arm around Justin's waist. He closed his eyes in pleasure as the memories washed over him of so many times they had lain just like this together. How long would it be before they woke up every morning again like this? He was determined to abide by Justin's wishes, but damn, was it going to be one of the hardest things he had ever done. _Hard_ didn't even begin to describe it, he thought painfully as he felt his hard-on throbbing. Breathing out slowly, he closed his eyes and tried furiously not to think about that as gradually he let the feeling of contentment overtake him and he fell asleep.

* * *

><p><em>One Hour Later...<em>

Almost subconsciously, Justin snuggled deeper into the body behind him, knowing instinctively that it was Brian. He smiled, his eyes still closed, as he reached down to place his hand over Brian's and lead them down to his quite impressive woody, burrowing even deeper into Brian's body that was molded against his backside, feeling his partner's own bulging hard-on pressed against his ass.

"Good Morning, Sunshine," he heard Brian huskily whisper in his ear, his warm breath ghosting against his cheek. He groaned as Brian squeezed his cock, his hand hot and strong under his. As always, it felt indescribable. The feelings Brian engendered always had made him feel that way, though.

"Brian..." he moaned out his partner's name as Brian began to stroke his cock with sure, strong movements, Justin's hand joining his. In his highly aroused but still half-asleep state, it took Justin several seconds until he realized where he was - and whom he was with - before his eyes quickly flew open and he hastily scooted away from his partner. He whirled around to face Brian, his eyes flashing.

"Brian! What are you doing in my bed?"

Brian grinned. "I was going to ask you the same question..._Goldilocks_. What happened to sleeping at the carriage house?"

"The carriage house has no air conditioning!" Justin replied, fuming. "It was fucking burning up in there! You know I can't sleep when it's that hot!"

Brian leered at him, his honey-colored, bare chest making Justin's body tingle. Justin had to restrain himself from reaching out and running his hand down that muscled, flat chest as he clenched the cover in his hand, almost to the point of cutting off his circulation, as Brian advised him huskily, "Well, it's pretty damn hot in here right now, too."

Justin harrumphed over the cheesy line. "Well, if you had stayed in YOUR bed, you wouldn't be suffering right now from heat exhaustion." Brian chuckled over that to Justin's consternation as he reminded him, "Brian, I thought we had agreed to take things slowly this time."

"It wasn't ME that wound up sneaking back into the house," he pointed out helpfully.

"I didn't 'sneak back into the house,' as you so eloquently put it. I _told_ you; it was too hot there! And I didn't 'sneak' back into your _bed_; I'm in one of the guest rooms...or did you get up in the middle of the night sleepwalking, get lost, and just happen to wander in here by mistake?"

"Oh, I got up, all right," Brian quipped as Justin rolled his eyes. "Just as soon as the girls downstairs told me that you were up _here_." He rolled his tongue into his cheek and gave Justin his best, innocent, 'little boy' look.

"Blabbermouths," Justin muttered; there was no sting in his voice, though. "I should have guessed." He sighed as he stared into Brian's eyes. "You, however, are the so-called adult and should know better. And did you know there're mice out there? It sounded like a whole nest of them in that hall closet!" He shuddered at the thought. "And there was mouse shit everywhere, even on top of my best cooking pan."

Brian couldn't help it then; despite his painful condition at the moment, the look of indignation on Justin's face about his skillet was just too priceless as he burst out laughing.

Justin glared at him for several seconds. "This isn't funny, Brian! How would YOU like it?" He stared over at the twinkling, hazel eyes before eventually he couldn't resist returning the smile with one of his own as he contemplated how ridiculous the whole thing sounded. "Well, it isn't," he persisted. "It...It was hot...and I kept thinking about all these beady, little eyes peering up at me when I opened the closet door..."

Brian grinned. "A whole nest of them, huh? Were they all wearing little Mickey Mouse ears, Sunshine?"

"You asshole! I didn't see any when I opened the door!" Justin was fortunately (or unfortunately, depending upon the point of view) within striking distance of his partner as he reached over with the intent of delivering a sound smack on the taut chest, but Brian was too fast for him.

His partner reached out to grasp his wrist and pulled on him so forcefully that he wound up conveniently draped across Brian's body. Even with the snug briefs on, Justin had no problem detecting Brian's desire for him as they lay skin-on-skin, their faces within inches of each other's.

Brian's face turned serious as he stared intently into the expressive, blue eyes. "Justin...Quit fighting me, fighting _this_," Brian pleaded earnestly. "Come back to the house, Sunshine; come back to our _bed_."

"Brian..."

"You want time to think everything through? You want time to find out if we can make a go of this permanently this time? Okay. But it's not going to matter if you're back there in that carriage house or here at Britin. You know you and I are like two fires that are constantly smoldering. You can't stay away from me, and I can't stay away from you. We're certainly not going to be some celibate martyrs while we work through all this; admit it. We've already proven that."

Justin bit his lower lip thoughtfully; he had to admit that Brian was right.

Brian held onto his lover by his upper arms, their legs tangled together as he whispered, "Justin, the girls need to bond some more; they need to be together. WE need to be together. I'll do whatever you say - hell, I'll even take you out on dates! Just..." he took a deep breath. "Just please. No more scenes out of _It Happened One Night_. No more imaginary curtains separating your side of the bed from mine."

Justin let out a deep breath. "Brian...Even if I did move back in here, there's plenty of other bedrooms besides yours..."

"_Our_ bedroom," Brian quickly corrected him. Justin grudgingly nodded. "Yeah, there're more bedrooms here than some hotels have. But even if you DID use one of the guest bedrooms, we both know you wouldn't stay there; not permanently, anyway. We both know we would wind up together, more times than not." It wasn't said arrogantly, just as a simple fact.

Justin opened his mouth to protest, but he knew it was pointless. Brian was right; he had only been home a short while now, and they had made love more times than he wanted to count. And that's what it was. Their love for each other had never been in question.

He finally smiled down at him wryly. "Dates, huh? What _kind_ of dates?"

Brian rolled his eyes. "Well, I'm not sure. But I'm sure it would have to involve food; plenty and plenty of food."

Justin grinned. "And plenty of condoms, too, no doubt." To his surprise, though, Brian shook his head. He frowned. "Oh, come on," he replied skeptically before another thought crossed his mind. "Brian, I already told you, I'm not ready to..."

"I know that," Brian replied just a little defensively. He took in a deep breath and let it out. "What I mean is, that's not why I would take you out on dates. I would do it so we could get to know each other again and make you comfortable with the idea of us being together permanently." He paused for a few seconds. "Would you like that? Just you and me, doing things together? Maybe taking the girls with us occasionally, too? There's an amazing zip line not too far from here that Katie loves to go to; maybe Kaylee would like that, too."

Justin laughed as he stared into Brian's eyes. "A zip line after she just fell off a horse recently? I'm not so sure that's a great idea, Brian." He noticed a slight hint of disappointment cross Brian's face as he clarified, "What I mean is, I think it's a wonderful idea for us to go out on dates - and take the girls with us on occasion, too." He added softly, "We've never really been out on dates before."

Brian nodded, suddenly feeling like a first-class shit. Justin was right; in all the years they had known each other, he could probably count on one hand the number of times he had even taken Justin out somewhere on what could be termed a date. Eating meals at the diner or dancing at Babylon wasn't quite the same thing. They didn't even go out to movies; they always brought one home to watch or ate a carry-in meal. How many times had he actually 'courted' Justin like you would a boyfriend or a partner? Back then, the idea would have seemed ludicrous. Right now, though, it sounded quite appealing to him - and from the sound of Justin's voice, he felt the same way.

"No, we haven't," Brian admitted softly. "But I'd like to change that...If you'll let me." He reached to lightly caress Justin's face. "So what do you say, Sunshine?"

Justin reached up to clasp Brian's hand under his. "I'd like that, Brian," Justin told him softly. "I'd like that a lot."

"Which part?" Brian finally ventured to ask as he held his breath in anticipation.

Justin's smile seemed to warm the room as he replied simply, "Both."

* * *

><p>Thank you as always to my beta, Boriqua522.:)<p> 


	34. First Date

_The girls have some confessing to do before their fathers embark on their first, 'real' date. What does Brian have in store for his partner? A surprise offer results. _

* * *

><p><em>One Hour Later...<em>

Sitting on the edge of the pool with their legs poking into the water, Katie and Kaylee looked up eagerly as they heard someone opening up the sliding glass doors heading from the house; they both turned to each other and giggled conspiratorially as they noticed their fathers walking over to their side, both of them with damp hair and that 'just-showered' look.

"Girls," Brian greeted their daughters pleasantly as he walked over and plopped down onto the edge of one of the chaise lounges nearby, a mug of coffee in his hand; Justin did the same on one of the other chairs. "What is so entertaining?" he asked in amusement.

"You," both of them said together as if they had rehearsed it. That always made Brian marvel at how they seemed to know what each other was thinking. He had never had any experience before with twins, but he was beginning to understand the uncanny connection that could exist between them just by observing his and Justin's two girls.

"Us?" he asked curiously as he peered over at Justin. "Well, I admit we do seem to be the hot topic around you two lately. Dare I ask what we've done now to warrant such a response?"

"Did you just come out of the shower?" Katie asked pointedly with a grin.

Brian looked at her with a smile. "Why, yes, I did just come...out of the shower, I mean," he added as he looked over at Justin, who, just as he thought, was turning red over his remark. He thrust his tongue into his cheek as he added, "Isn't that what most adults practicing good hygiene do?"

"Daddy, did you just take a shower, too?" Kaylee asked Justin, noticing immediately how their father was blushing and finding it quite revealing. She really didn't need an answer to her question then, but she was enjoying asking it anyway.

"Uh..."

"Well, Sunshine?" Brian asked as if he didn't know the answer. "Don't keep our girls waiting."

Three pairs of eyes bored into his as he sighed. "Well...It is morning, and you know that's the first thing I always do when I get up, Kaylee."

He winced as the two girls erupted into shrieks of giggles over his answer. "Oh, for the..." He turned an even deeper shade of red as he rose from the end of the chaise lounge. "I'm going to go get some coffee and grab some cereal," he mumbled as he turned and hurried back toward the sliding door glass doors, disappearing a few seconds later in record time.

Brian chuckled, clearly enjoying himself. It was nice to have a couple, additional co-conspirators in his camp. "Girls, shame on you. I think you scared him," he teased them as they began to giggle anew. His face dissolved into something more serious as he told them, "We're still going to take things a little more slowly. That's what your father wants...And what I think he needs right now. Maybe it's what we _both_ need," he admitted, realizing a lot of time had passed between them - time they couldn't recover. He smiled at the slight looks of disappointment on their faces. He looked over at Kaylee. "But I think it's safe to say that you can count on moving your things into the bedroom upstairs next to your sister's now."

Kaylee's eyes grew hopeful. "You mean...we're moving back into the house?" Brian's smile grew larger as he nodded. "Really?"

He outright beamed now. "Yes...Really."

Both girls bolted up from their seated positions now to stand up as they yelled in jubilation and gave each other a 'high five.'

"Oh, my God!' Kaylee shrieked. "We did it!" She yelled out before she could stop herself. As soon as she realized what she had said, however, she promptly clamped a hand over her mouth in horror as her sister glared at her.

"You did _what_?" Brian pressed as Kaylee looked at her sister aghast, regret written all over her face. "What do you mean...YOU did it?" He waited a few seconds for an answer. "Girls?" he prodded when neither one responded.

"Nothing, Dad," Katie backpedaled for her sister. "You know how much we wanted the two of you to get back together, and we're just happy that we're all going to be living back here at Britin again, that's all." She turned to flash her sister a scathing look, a gesture that was not lost on their father.

"I don't buy that, Girls. Maybe you'd better come clean. Just what did you do NOW?"

Katie sighed. "Kaylee...!" she hissed in disgust as she placed her hands on her hips. "I can't tell you anything without you blabbing!"

"I didn't mean to!" her sister wailed.

Brian furrowed his brow, now knowing that obviously something was up. "Just explain to me what's going on," he asked quietly. "Come over here."

The two girls both glanced over anxiously at the back door, seemingly to make sure that their other father wasn't returning, before they walked over to sit on either side of Brian. He placed his hands around their shoulders reassuringly as he told them, "Okay...Spill, girls. What have you been up to? New house rule: We are not going to keep anything from anybody else any longer. It just makes things worse; trust me. Now just tell me what you did."

Katie huffed in frustration. "Aaargh! Kaylee!" She shook her head at her sister before turning to look up into the curious but kindly face of their father as she sighed. "Okay. It's not that much, really..."

Brian smirked. "Well, you're suddenly less talkative than normal for something that's _not all that much_. Let me be the judge of that."

She nodded. "I assume Daddy told you about the mice at the carriage house?"

Brian nodded. "Yeah...Your father called it a _nest _of mice, actually. Now what would you know about that?" he wondered as he gave his daughter a _you'd better come clean_ look.

"Well...there weren't actually any mice. At least not in the carriage house."

Brian frowned. "Well, your father said he found mouse droppings all over the place."

Katie smiled just a little smugly. "Yeah, he did. But they came from the mice out in the stable. We just spread a little of the droppings around to make it look like they were there."

Brian's mouth hung open before he shut it, unable to keep from grinning, however, over his daughter's ingenuity. "Oh, shit," he said as the girls giggled in relief over his reaction. "Why does that not surprise me?"

"Uh, Dad...There's more," Kaylee told him, emboldened now that their father seemed to be taking it so well.

Brian's eyebrows lifted. "More?"

Kaylee nodded.

"Well, I'm all ears. What _else_ have you done?"

"Uh...It's about the air conditioning..."

Brian groaned; why were dollar signs suddenly popping up in his head? He instinctively knew that Kaylee wouldn't have the expertise to pull off some sort of 'technical sabotage' with the air conditioning system. But someone _else_ he knew would. He turned to look over at his other daughter, one eyebrow arched in question. "Katherine Marie? Something you want to explain to me, young lady?"

Katie pursed her lips together in exasperation as she peered around her father at Kaylee. "You just can't keep your mouth shut, can you?" she growled. "Do you have to tell everything that you know? You didn't hear our mother saying anything, did you?" _Oops_. She immediately realized she wasn't much better at withholding information than Kaylee as she gasped over her slip of the tongue.

"Your mother?" Brian immediately said as he sighed. "That would explain a lot. She always WAS your father's little co-conspirator before. Why should it be different now? You two girls had better explain everything to me...Unless you want to explain it to your other father first."

"No!" Katie and Kaylee cried out together, knowing that would be even worse.

"Well?"

"Okay," Katie replied in defeat at last, letting out a deep breath. "Well, first I went online. It's amazing what you can find out online nowadays..."

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen minutes later...<em>

Brian shook his head over his girls' ingenuity. He wanted to be angry with them - and he should be. But he couldn't help thinking about another individual who had portrayed much the same traits several years before when HE was going after something he believed in. _Justin isn't the only 'clever, little devil,' _ he mused as his two girls looked up at him a little apprehensively.

"That's all of it?" he demanded quietly.

Both girls firmly nodded, Kaylee biting her lower lip nervously while Katie merely folded her arms across her chest defiantly in an _I did what I had to do _type of look.

"I see," Brian told them solemnly as he looked at one girl and then the other, his lips pressed together into a tight line. "Well, then, there's only one thing I can say," he told them as both girls held their breaths, wondering what their punishment would be. After all, they had been told during the 'locked basement' fiasco before not to interfere with their fathers' attempts to reconcile. Obviously they had ignored that directive big time now.

Both girls looked at him expectantly before he couldn't hold it in anymore. He suddenly burst out laughing. "Oh, my God," he deadpanned. "You are just as bad as your father used to be. It's amazing!"

Kaylee and Katie peered over at each other in shock; that was the last thing they expected their father to say. "Daddy used to do these kinds of things, too?" Katie asked in amazement.

Brian nodded. "Well...not exactly. But let's just say he was known to pull a stunt or two when he felt strongly about something, and he didn't let anything - or anyone - stand in his way, either. Let me tell you a story about a man who was running for mayor a long time ago - and what your father did to stand up against him."

He proceeded to tell them about how Justin had waged his propaganda campaign against Stockwell, and about some of the 'slogans' he had come up with. Before he was done, both girls' eyes were big as saucers, in between some fits of giggling over the "Laughing Stock" poster and the thought of their father drawing someone up to look like a clown, in addition to him pasting posters up all over town at night in secret.

"He really did that?" Kaylee asked, not having heard any of this before.

Brian nodded with a grin. "He sure did - and used up a lot of my color ink and paper in the office copy machine, too," he added as the girls laughed, their eyes aglow with mirth. "Your father can be just as stubborn as the two of you are when he needs to be," he told them with a smile. The sound of the sliding glass doors being opened then made all three of them turn their head to peer over at Justin, who was coming back outside, this time with Gus in tow.

"Well, look who decided to get up," Brian deadpanned as Gus glared at him; his son was sporting a wild, bedhead look and wearing a pair of drawstring pajamas as he walked barefooted out to the small group nearby, swinging a pair of flip flops in his hand. "I think we finally have someone who stays in bed later than your father does," Brian declared as Justin walked over and plopped down on the same chaise lounge he had been using earlier. Gus, holding a coffee mug, walked over and sat down at a round, glass-topped patio table, the mug making a loud clunking noise as he placed it down to face them.

"I didn't have to get up early," Gus explained with a shrug. "So I took advantage of it."

Brian nodded in amusement. "Uh, huh. And just what time did you shuffle in last night, Sonny Boy?"

Gus rubbed his eyes. "About two, I guess."

"Eastern or Pacific time?"

"Daaaad," Gus whined like he used to as a little boy, making both Brian and Justin laugh. "I'm not a kid anymore," he reminded him.

"No," Brian said softly, recalling how so many times in the past he would have wished he could have seen his son - and his daughters - growing up. He regretted not having had that opportunity, but he knew there was no going back. At least he would have the chance to partially make it up to his daughters now. And he also knew how much Gus loved him, despite the time they had had to spend apart. "No, you're not," he added as he looked over at his son who had turned into a fine young man, one that he was enormously proud of.

Gus and his father's eyes locked on each other for a moment before Brian cleared his throat. "Girls...I think there's something we need to discuss with your father."

The two girls appeared uneasy as they looked at one another. "Now?" Katie whispered, still fretting over what their father's reaction would be.

Brian nodded as Justin frowned, instantly knowing something was going on. "Yes, now. I told you - no more secrets...Okay?" The two girls reluctantly nodded. "Good. Katie, since you spearheaded this latest scheme, why don't you go first?" he suggested, his voice gentle but commanding.

Katie sighed with a nod as Justin and Gus peered over at her in rapt attention. "Well...It started with the air conditioner," she began.

* * *

><p>Justin rubbed his hand through his hair in amazement. He had to hand it to their girls - they WERE creative. "Super glue?" he choked out in the end. "You glued all the windows shut, too?" Kaylee and Katie nodded timidly as he stared at them in shock. He looked over at Brian, who shrugged. Gus wasn't helping, either. He was clearly amused by the whole thing, maybe even proud of them if he read his expression right. "I don't believe this," he muttered with a shake of his head. He looked over at his partner. "This isn't funny, Brian," he told him as he looked back at the girls. "What would have happened if there had been a fire or something? How do you think Kaylee and I would have gotten out?"<p>

"I was in there, too, you know!" Katie told him. "I was down in the cellar. Where do you think the mouse noises came from?"

"The cellar?" Justin felt dizzy. "What cellar?"

Katie nodded. "There's a trap door in the side of the closet that was used back in Prohibition Days to hide booze. That's where I went before you opened the door."

"I don't believe this..."

Brian let out a cross between a snort and a grunt as he grinned. "Well, you have to admit it's pretty funny, Sunshine. I think you should be flattered that they went to all that trouble."

"But if there had been an emergency..."

"I would have thrown a chair out the window," Kaylee told him firmly. "Or maybe one of your sculptures. Let's face it, Daddy; those things are pretty ugly anyway."

"Hey!" Justin protested as Gus and Brian laughed and the girls giggled, knowing they were getting the upper hand. "Aaargh! Girls...Girls..." He didn't even know what to say. Damn it, they were too cute to stay mad at them for long. He sighed. "What are we going to do with you?" he finally lamented as he grudgingly smiled over at them at last in defeat.

Both girls breathed a huge sigh of relief. "Just love us, Daddy," Katie told him as she got up and walked over to plop herself in his lap, putting her arms around her father's waist as she grinned over at him. "Like we love you and Dad. Speaking of which, when are you moving your things back into the house? Dad said you and Kaylee are moving back in!"

"He did, did he?" Justin asked as he looked over at Brian who gazed back at him innocently.

"Why wait to tell them?" he countered. "Yeah, I told them - and I also told them there would be no secrets anymore. Between _any_ of us. That IS what you want, right?"

Justin nodded his head in defeat. "Yes, you know it is." He leaned over to give his daughter a kiss on the cheek. "Okay, I'm never one to pass up free help. We can move some of the smaller stuff today...and then I guess we'll need some more help for the larger things."

Katie grinned in triumph over at her sister. "Yes!" she cried out as she pumped her arm in jubilation. "I'll race you, Kaylee!"

"Girls...Kaylee! Remember to take it easy, you just got out of the hospital!" Justin shouted after them as he stood up in alarm, but they took off like a rocket. He looked over at Gus beseechingly. "Gus, will you go make sure they don't overdo it? We'll be right there."

"Sure, Justin," he responded. He grinned over at them. "Don't take too long now."

Brian chortled as his son turned and headed down the trail heading toward the carriage house.

"You're really enjoying this, aren't you?" Justin asked his partner as Brian rose to his feet to walk over to join him. "We really shouldn't be rewarding them for what they did."

"No harm done," Brian maintained as he walked closer and slid his arms around Justin's waist, curling his lips under as he told him huskily, "And since it helped to get you back into our bed, I don't have a problem with it at all. And that shower we took a little while ago was quite _stimulating_ as well."

"Brian..." Justin's face flushed over the memory of their lovemaking in the shower earlier. It had been languorous, sensual, and oh, so erotic. Brian had been in no hurry to culminate their encounter, taking an inordinate amount of time to reacquaint himself with every inch of his body as he soaped every part, over and over and over again and kissed him, slowly and deeply. By the time he had finally reached for a condom to put it on and had slid his slick hand between his ass cheeks to prepare him, he was barely able to stand up on his own. God, it had been incredible. Of course, sex with Brian had always been incredible. But after being apart for so long, it seemed even more so now.

Justin's hands automatically slid up Brian's chest as he gazed into his partner's face. His pulse quickened as they came together for another kiss, almost like they were trying to make up for all those years apart. His hands crept further upward to link behind Brian's head as the kiss deepened, their mouths opening to allow each other access. Soft pants escaped between their lips until they finally broke apart, their chests rising and falling.

Brian gently brushed some hair back from Justin's face as Justin smiled. "Ready to head back to the carriage house?" he asked.

Justin nodded. "Yeah...but first, one thing..."

Brian sighed. "You haven't changed your mind."

Justin shook his head to Brian's relief.

"Then what?" he asked softly.

Justin grinned. "I'd like to know when and where we're going."

"I've been wondering that for a while now," Brian quipped before he frowned. "Going where, Sunshine?"

"On our first date."

"Ohhh," Brian replied, his eyes twinkling, secretly knowing what he meant all along. "Well, I guess you'll just have to be surprised, Mr. Taylor, because I'm not telling you. But we have tickets to it for this afternoon."

Justin's eyes sparkled; they really _were_ going out on a date? "We do? Where?"

Brian laughed. "Do you think I'm brain dead? I told you - it's a surprise. But I'll pick you up at 3."

Justin snorted. "Brian, we live in the same house."

Brian grinned as he slowly caressed Justin's back, making his partner shiver over the delicious sensation. "Oh, yeah. That WILL make it a lot easier."

"Just one hint?" Justin pouted as he played with Brian's hair at the back of his neck. "I'll blow you later if you tell me."

Brian smirked. "Well, that IS a very tempting counteroffer. But something tells me you would do that anyway, so the answer is still no." He laughed as Justin smacked him on the chest in retaliation. "Very mature," he teased him as he reached to grab his hand. "Come on; let's get going before you change your mind."

As they walked back toward the carriage house, Brian's laughter could be heard as Justin continued to pepper him with questions about their first date, but he held his ground.

* * *

><p><em>Later that afternoon...<em>

Justin looked at himself in the mirror in the guestroom, feeling rather ridiculous like he was a teenager again. Why was he feeling so nervous? It wasn't like he and Brian didn't know each other already. Could it be because they had never really gone out on a date before? Whatever the reason, his mouth felt like cotton, and his palms were sweaty. He brushed them against his jeans as he heard a noise in the doorway. Turning, he spied Katie standing there, an amused look on her face.

"How do I look?" he asked her as his daughter came walking into the room to stand in front of him. True to his word, Brian hadn't divulged anything more about their 'date,' only that he should dress casually for it. That seemed to dismiss some possibilities like a concert or a play, but it still didn't tell him anything revealing about where they were going. It also made it a little hard to dress appropriately for it, too, so he was doing the best he could. He had chosen a pair of newer, dark-blue jeans and a lightweight, button-down, gray, pinstriped shirt, a gift from his mother last Christmas. He had finished it off with a pair of black loafers.

Katie smiled at him in the mirror as she slipped her arm around her father's waist. "You look beautiful, Daddy," she murmured as Justin beamed back at her, needing that validation.

He turned her in his arms to reply, "Thanks, Katie." He laughed at himself. "I don't know why I feel so nervous," he confessed to her with a bark of laughter. "It's really silly, I know. It's not like we're strangers or anything."

She smiled up at him, the love for him clearly shining in her eyes. "I know why," she told him softly.

He smiled back at her fondly, his hands gently resting on her shoulders. "Why?"

"Because you love him so much, you want to make sure that everything this time is perfect. Just like Dad," she revealed. "He's doing the same thing down the hall."

"He is?" Justin knew Brian had disappeared about thirty minutes ago, telling him he was going to go get dressed in the master bedroom.

"Yeah," Katie told him with a giggle. "Only he's pacing like some peacock, strutting around in front of the mirror. I think he's tried on three different shirts already."

Justin couldn't help giggling back at her as they heard a throat being cleared behind them.

"If you two girls are done gossiping, I'd like to steal my date for a while if you don't mind," Brian told Katie. Kaylee was standing next to Brian, beaming over at her father and sister as they grinned back at her.

"How does he look?" Kaylee asked them. "Oh, wait a minute!" she hastily added as she reached up to fasten a button that had come undone in the middle of her father's shirt. She carefully smoothed down the satiny fabric as he rolled his eyes at her good-naturedly.

"Will you stop that?" he gently chided her as he captured both of her hands in his, although there was a tender smile on his face as he did it. "The next thing I know, you'll be trying to put makeup on me, too."

"I would not!" Kaylee told him a little defensively. She smirked. "He does smell really good, though," she reported to her sister and father. "Come and see for yourself."

Justin laughed as he put his arm around his daughter to walk over to stand next to Brian. The man, as usual, took his breath away. Today, though, it was apparent that Brian had taken even greater care regarding his appearance. His deep maroon, satin shirt was crisply ironed, and he was wearing a form-fitting pair of black jeans that made his long legs seem even longer, worn over a pair of low-cut, Gucci boots. A leather jacket completed the ensemble. As Justin approached him and his daughter, he let go of Katie as he caught a whiff of his favorite aftershave on Brian, the one that always made him highly aroused. Even now after all these years, Brian apparently still had the memory of an elephant when it came to what he liked. It both unnerved him as well as made him feel extremely flattered.

Brian smirked as he arched an eyebrow at him, knowing exactly what he must be thinking. Both girls watched with rapt attention as their two fathers wound their arms around each and held each other close like newlyweds, their bodies touching. "You didn't answer our daughter's question, Sunshine," Brian murmured, unable to take his gaze away from the expressive, dilated, blue eyes. He saw a pink tint creep into Justin's face in response. "I think you look amazing, too, by the way," he whispered appreciatively, both men temporarily losing sight of their girls being in the same room with them.

Justin's heart pounded as he replied, "So do you. I...You...That cologne...You like to play dirty, don't you?" he muttered finally as Brian grinned.

"Oh, you know me; I _love_ to play dirty," he teased as he whispered in his ear so only he could hear. He leaned down to steal a brief kiss from Justin's lips as he finally turned to smile over at their 'dressing assistants.' "Now if you ladies will excuse us, we have to get going. Gus will be around today to keep an eye on you and make sure you both stay out of trouble. And you're in luck; you already know about his cooking abilities, Katie, so I told him to take you both down to the diner to eat in town for dinner so you don't get food poisoning."

"Thank God!" Katie exclaiming, envisioning a chocolate shake, thick-cut onion rings, and a double-decker hamburger. Kaylee scrunched up her nose in the meantime, wondering if there was anything healthy there.

Katie rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't worry," she told her sister, guessing why she looked distressed. "I'm sure they'll have some bean sprouts lying around somewhere for you."

"I eat more than that, you know!" Kaylee groused. "Maybe _you_ should try it sometime!"

"Girls!" Brian shook his head in aggravation. "Let it rest, okay?" He looked over at Kaylee. "They have a vegetarian burger and a turkey burger and salads there," he reassured her as she stuck her tongue out at her sister. He sighed as he turned back to Justin. "You think it's safe to leave them here, even with Gus?"

He grinned. "I'm willing to take the chance just to see what sort of date you're taking me on," he decided. "You're not squirming out of it _that_ easily."

Brian grinned as he let go of his partner. He walked over to place a hand on top of each daughter's head. "Lucky for you I have a hot date today, or I'd be tempted to stay here to supervise. Now try and behave for your brother, okay? And if you're good, your father and I might bring you back a souvenir."

"What kind of souvenir?" Katie asked, her curiosity piqued.

"Yeah, Dad, what kind of souvenir?"

Brian grinned as the girls giggled again. "Nice try, Sunshine. Let's go."

* * *

><p>Thirty minutes later - after an unsuccessful barrage of pleas for any hints about their destination - Brian finally slowed down on the two-lane highway to turn into a gravel roadway. At last, Justin had an inkling where they were going. A wooden sign at the turnoff point indicated they were heading toward something called <em>Nature's Palette Winery. <em> A thick grove of pine trees blanketed both sides of the road as the gravel crunched under the SUV's tires.

Justin smirked. "I get it. You're going to get me drunk and have your way with me. How original."

Brian snorted. "As if I have to get you drunk for that. You ARE quite entertaining when you get blitzed, though. There's a little more to it than that," he said mysteriously as he stared ahead through his aviator glasses. He glanced over at Justin and grinned as he heard a huff of frustration escape the perfect lips. "You'll find out soon enough, Sunshine. Don't worry."

A few minutes later, the trees gave way to rolling hills of fields. Acres and acres of grapevines were growing on the hillsides in perfect formation like nature's soldiers, as far as the eye could see as they drove another mile before coming to a large building with a wide, gravel parking lot. Brian had to circle around slowly before they wound up parking in a grassy, overflow area. As they emerged from their vehicle, Justin could hear the faint sounds of music coming from the building. "How did you know about this place?" he asked curiously, his eyes soaking in the peaceful surroundings.

"I've actually brought Katie here before," Brian explained.

Justin scrunched up his nose. "To a winery? I'm surprised they would even let children _in _here."

"They don't normally," his partner explained. "But on certain afternoons they serve grape juice, instead, when the under-18 set is here."

Justin frowned. "Just what kind of place IS this?"

Brian grinned as he grabbed his hand to lead him toward an arched trellis festooned with climbing roses. "You'll see," he told him as he dug inside his jeans pocket to fish out a couple of tickets. "Come on, class starts in five minutes."

* * *

><p>As they walked inside, Justin noticed it was a huge, renovated barn of some kind. The exposed ceiling was curved, with open beams running crisscross above them. A sign perched on an easel proclaimed something called "<em>Wine and Watercolors<em>." A few other visitors were milling about, looking at several art pieces hung on the walls, or waiting in line to buy a sip of several wines the winery apparently produced. Small, round tables were interspersed throughout the area with baskets of cheese and crackers, and the far end was open, leading to what appeared to be a patio where the music was originating that they had heard earlier.

"This way," Brian told him as he grabbed his sleeve. "You can ogle later - you're going to be late." He led Justin over to the far open end as they emerged into the bustling side patio. "Over here," he instructed him as he led his partner around to the back where several, tall, maple trees were situated. Right in the middle was a round, wooden platform, similar to a dance floor. Only there weren't dancers there; there were people of all walks of life and ages, perched on stools in front of blank canvases, paint supplies beside each station. A lone, middle-aged female - dressed casually but neatly in a pair of jeans, a lavender-colored tee shirt, and a large, oversized, denim shirt, was quietly speaking with some of the participants.

The blond-haired woman - her hair swept up into a ponytail - smiled in recognition as she looked up and noticed Brian and Justin standing there. "Hello, Mr. Kinney. You're here for class today?" she asked as Brian nodded. Justin's mouth hung open as he watched Brian hand over the two tickets.

Brian smiled. "Yes. I brought someone new today, though. This is my partner, Justin Taylor," he told her without a hint of embarrassment or hesitation in his voice, and perhaps a touch of pride.

She nodded, a flicker of something crossing her face before she smiled and extended her hand out to Justin. "Nice to meet you, Justin," she told him warmly as they shook hands. "My name is Marietta McGhee. I'm the instructor for the course, although I prefer the word 'moderator.' You're the last two we were waiting for, so if you'll take your places over there, then, we'll get started."

Brian smiled as Justin hesitated, reaching over to gently grasp his sleeve again to lead him over to the two remaining spots at the far end. "Have a seat, Picasso," he murmured as he slid into the seat next to Justin.

Justin did as he was told as he looked around to see all the other participants preparing their paints. He stared at Brian in amazement. "You're...You're going to paint with me?" he asked in awe.

Brian shrugged. "As long as you don't tell anyone I can't paint for shit. I don't think we'd better plan on using the finished product to generate any substantial, household income. Maybe yours, though," he said with a smile.

Justin couldn't help smiling back at him in delight as he looked at the small, miniaturized photo clipped to each of their easels, depicting a landscape scene. A glass of dark-colored wine was sitting next to each easel, he noticed, now realizing where the "_Wine and Watercolors" _came from. He looked up as the woman began to speak.

"Welcome, everyone, to today's session of _Wine and Watercolors_. This is the perfect place to get to know your inner, artistic self and express your passion. There are no judges here and no pressure, merely pure pleasure. So relax, enjoy the music and the scenery, and let your creative juices take over." She laughed at her joke as the others groaned over her corniness. "Your wine selection today is the newest vintage from our vineyards - a hearty burgundy we call "Ovation." If you enjoy it, don't forget to pick up a bottle later in our gift shop. I'll be walking around during your session to see if you have any questions and to offer any suggestions."

Justin reached to take a sip of his wine, stopping before he did so to clink his glass softly with Brian's. "To us," he whispered as Brian nodded before the two of them took a sip. Soon, both men picked up their brush and, dipping it into their palette, got to work on their creations.

Brian stole frequent glances over at Justin as he worked, more mesmerized by studying Justin than actually painting. It always fascinated him how his lover got so caught up in his work; his tongue would poke out from time to time as his blue eyes darted back and forth between the canvas, the photo, and his paint. His face almost glowed as he worked. When Justin was this absorbed in his work, he was both beautiful as well as sexy as hell - and quite distracting.

Justin was so caught up in his work that the two hours allotted for the class rushed by, and he didn't notice the woman instructor quietly walking up behind him to admire his work. It was clear who the artist in this group was. Justin's work was exquisite, emotional and dramatic. The scene, a landscape depicting the vineyard and surrounding hillside, had been transferred onto the canvas with amazing detail. There was always something that pulled the observer in when studying Justin's works, and this was no exception.

Brian smiled over at his partner, unable to keep the look of admiration off his face. He knew before they started who would command the most attention, and understandably so.

For his part, Justin didn't even notice the woman was behind him until she spoke up quietly, slightly startling him.

"That is amazing," she murmured appreciatively as she studied the impressive painting. Her eyes widened suddenly as she thought back to their introduction earlier and remembered his name. "Oh, my God! I know who you are now! I thought your name sounded familiar to me!"

Everyone's eyes turned to look over at Justin curiously as he felt his face warm. "You...You _do_?"

She nodded. "Before I moved here, I owned a small gallery at the Bridgeport Art Center in Chicago."

Justin's eyes lit up as he smiled. "I know where that is! I had some works on display there."

She nodded. "I know. And they were amazing. I used to walk around that big, old, cavernous space for exercise at lunchtime so I could study all the art work on display; I wound up buying one of your impressionist works. I would have bought every one of them if I had had the money. You are extremely talented," she gushed as he flushed over the attention.

"Thank you," he murmured humbly as he glanced over at Brian, his partner's love and pride showing clearly on his face. He noticed that the woman on the other side of him was taking a not-so-discreet peek at his work as he looked over at her; she smiled a little self-consciously at him over being caught before returning her attention back to her own work.

"So you're here visiting?" she asked politely as the others resumed their painting.

Justin shook his head. "No, I'm actually from Pittsburgh originally. I recently moved back here to be closer to my partner and our other daughter."

She nodded with a smile. "Your hometown always does has a big pull on you, I think, no matter how far you roam," she said as Justin nodded with a smile. "I came back home to help take care of my parents," she explained. She turned her attention back to the young man's painting, observing how Justin had used brushstrokes so expertly to convey movement and fluidity. He clearly had a much sharper grasp of detail and technique than any of the pupils she had ever observed before; perhaps even more than she. Her eyes suddenly lit up as a thought occurred to her. "Mr. Taylor?"

Justin smiled at her, thinking that sounded so 'old.' "Please...Call me Justin."

She nodded. "Justin. When the class is over, could you stay for a few minutes? There's something I'd like to talk to you about."

Justin frowned slightly in puzzlement - wondering what this woman wanted with him, a virtual stranger - before he nodded. Smiling at him politely, she turned her attention back to the other students.

"Another adoring fan, charmed by the Taylor magic," Brian teased as she walked away out of earshot.

"I wonder what she wants?" Justin mused as he critically studied what he had completed so far.

"Maybe she just wants to _talk shop _with a fellow artist_,_" Brian suggested.

Justin observed the woman peering over the shoulder of another pupil several feet away and shrugged. "I guess we'll find out." He picked up his glass of wine and thoughtfully took a sip before glancing over at Brian's work. He grinned. Brian was definitely more of an advertising genius than a budding artist, but he had to give him credit for trying. At least he could identify trees and grass.

"Hey, no fair trying to steal my technique for you to use," Brian told him indignantly.

"Oh, pardon, Monsieur," he told him with a French accent as he giggled. Brian grinned at him before they both turned back to finishing their work.

* * *

><p>Thirty minutes later, the class had broken up, each participant leaving with their newly painted artwork with a gold-colored, star-shaped sticker emblazoned in the corner, identifying them as a graduate of the "Wine and Watercolors" class at the vineyard.<p>

Marietta smiled over at the two men as she finished up a conversation with one of the other participants, nodding a goodbye at the older, rather portly woman before heading over to where Brian and Justin stood near the side patio entrance.

"Sorry," she apologized with a smile as she hurried over to them. "That was Mrs. Evans. She always tries to talk my ear off. I think this is her tenth class so far." She grinned as she stage whispered, "And she's _still_ not improving." Justin and Brian chuckled as she explained to Justin, "I know you're an artist - and a very good one, too - so I was wondering if I could interest you in a proposition."

Justin and Brian exchanged a glance between them as he asked her, "What _sort_ of proposition?"

"Well...I have no idea if you would even be interested in this or not, but the owners here have been inundated with people wanting to sign up for the wine and painting classes. We not only have 'Wine and Watercolors, there're also our 'Painting with Pinot' class on Thursday nights and the new "Juice with Journaling" classes on Saturday afternoons."

Justin laughed over that last part. "Juice with Journaling? What's that?"

She explained, "It's the newest kids' art class the owners created. It's for our junior art students, ages 8 - 17. The children are encouraged to make up an art journal that uses not only words but also visual images to express their emotions, hopes, dreams, and feelings. It's already so popular that it's booked solid for the next six months. The response has been unprecedented."

Justin nodded, his eyes lighting up over the idea. He would have never thought of that. "That sounds very intriguing," he agreed.

"Yeah," Brian told him. "Katie's been driving me nuts to enroll in it. I've promised her to do that; I just haven't gotten around to it. Sounds like a perfect activity for the two of you, though."

Justin smiled in pleasure. "I'd love to do that with her! Can parents participate?" he asked. "I think it's a good idea to cultivate a love of art at an early age. My mom practically thrust a crayon in my hand while I was still in the cradle, and I'm sure that's what fueled my own passion for it."

Marietta considered that idea. "You know, that hasn't been discussed, but I think that's a great idea! I'm glad you like the concept of the class, too...because I'd like to ask if YOU would be willing to be the instructor for it."

"Huh?"

Brian snickered over his partner's lack of speech. "I think she just asked if you wanted to teach the children's class, Mr. Taylor."

Marietta nodded. "It would be such an honor to have an artist of your caliber leading the class. I'm not sure what your current situation is...But would you consider it at least?"

"Teach?" Justin pondered the idea. "I've...I've never really thought about that," he admitted. "But it does sounds intriguing."

Brian clamped a hand on his shoulder as Marietta beamed. "I'm glad you feel that way. The owners are out of town this weekend, but I can have them give you a call. I'm sure they would want to talk to you in person to get to know you a little better, and to give you all the details. Can I give them your name and number, then?"

Justin mulled the idea over. He really didn't need another job in addition to his painting; at least, he didn't in Chicago. Truthfully, he hadn't established himself enough yet back in the Pittsburgh area to rely solely on his income from painting. And the thought of working with children to instill in them a love of art at an early age definitely appealed to him. It wouldn't hurt to speak with the owners if only to get some more information about it. Whether he chose to do it or not, though, he would certainly investigate enrolling Katie in the class. He also owed his daughter a private, one-on-one painting session up in his studio. He finally nodded with a smile. "Yes, I'd like to speak with them."

Marietta's eyes lit up with excitement. "Great! Give me your phone number, and I'll have them call you early next week."

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen Minutes Later...<em>

"What?" Justin asked as he noticed Brian staring at him intently. They were sitting on the back patio at one of the small, round tables, sipping from a bottle of the vineyard's signature Chablis; their hands clasped together over the table. He was feeling a warm buzz now from the wine, and the classical piano and flute music, along with the warm breeze blowing, both relaxed and soothed him.

Brian smiled. "Nothing. I just think that job would be ideal for you. What are your thoughts about it?" he asked as his fingers stroked Justin's hand, causing his partner to shiver slightly. At that moment, it was as if they were all by themselves; they only had eyes for each other.

Justin flushed with pleasure, not only because of the sensations Brian's fingers were creating, but because Brian was actually asking HIM for his opinion, rather than trying to push him into it. That alone made him fall even deeper in love with him. "I want to think about it," he told him as Brian nodded. "But I would love to work with children and encourage them to develop a love of art. I think it would be very rewarding. And to be able to enjoy it with Katie here, too; well, that would be a big incentive."

Brian smiled as he took a sip of his Chablis. "She would love that, Justin," he told his partner softly. "But I agree; I would suggest you wait until you talk to the owners and find out more about it first. You know I'll support you either way."

Justin smiled gratefully. "I know," he told him fervently. "And that means the most of all to me."

Brian tilted his head back enough to drink the remainder in his glass before putting it down. "Well, you can't make a decision today, so I suggest we continue the rest of our date for now."

Justin's face lit up. "There's more?"

Brian grinned as he stood up and tugged on Justin's hand. "Come on and I'll show you."

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen Minutes Later...<em>

"If I didn't know better, Mr. Kinney, I'd say you're trying to get me smashed," Justin mused as they sat side by side on the same side of a wooden table. Brian had led him about 1/8 of a mile down a dirt trail to find a canoe anchored at the lake's edge, furnished not only with oars but also a picnic basket stocked with another bottle of the vineyard's signature wines, a place setting for two with glass goblets, and various crackers, cheeses, and grapes.

After paddling around a curve in the lake and finding a sheltered cove, Brian had beached the canoe on the water's edge near a picnic table set up under a grove of cedar trees, apparently placed there for trips such as these.

Brian grinned. "Well, it IS a vineyard," he commented dryly as Justin rolled his eyes.

"So why aren't you drinking as much as I am?" he asked.

"Duh. I'm the driver, remember? I'm _always _the driver."

Justin snorted at the double entendre. "So responsible." He polished off the rest of his glass of Sauvignon Blanc. "No more," he told his partner as he pushed the bottle away. "Or I'll be floating back home. Either that, or making a total ass of myself. You're always telling me how crazy I get when I'm smashed. And I always wake up with a bitch of a migraine the next day, too. I don't think getting drunk will make me much of a role model for the girls, either."

Brian grinned as he reached over to play with Justin's hair, letting it feather through his fingers. "Your hair is still so fucking soft," he murmured as Justin blushed. "And I love that I can still make you do that," he admitted, making Justin's face turn an even darker shade of pink.

"Brian..."

Brian's hand curled around the back of his neck as he pulled him closer; it only took a few seconds before their lips met and they fell into a deep, toe-curling kiss, their intermittent breathing only interrupted occasionally by a bird's plaintive cry and the soft lapping of the waves nearby. Hands wrapping around each other's body, they moved closer as Justin's hands fingered the buttons of Brian's shirt. His roaming hands were caught in larger ones, however, before he could get too far.

"Justin..." Brian breathed out as they broke apart to get some air. His description last night of them being two smoldering fires was certainly accurate; his eyes were darkened with desire and his body was screaming to possess his beautiful partner. But he couldn't, he _wouldn't_ do that, at least not now.

"What?" Justin asked breathlessly, his hands held firmly in Brian's.

"I know where this is going, Sunshine, and I need to put the brakes on it right now."

Justin looked at him in astonishment; his eyes slightly glazed over. "I couldn't have heard that right. What happened to not being able to keep our hands off each other?"

Brian sighed as he held his partner's hands in his. "Believe me, it still applies." Trusting that Justin wouldn't attempt anything else, he let go of his hands to brush one of his own through his hair in agitation as he stood up to create some space between them. He noticed his partner's eyes closely following him, silently asking for an explanation. "Even if I wanted to - and fuck, I want to - there's an important piece of equipment we're missing."

Justin frowned before he realized what Brian was saying. "Wait a minute. You're telling me that you didn't bring a...?"

"Yes!" Brian said, bristling slightly as his eyes flashed. "That's exactly what I'm saying!"

Even in his half-drunken state, the ramification of those words registered in Justin's head as he slowly stood up. He shook his head in amazement. "You really meant what you said earlier," he murmured in awe. "About getting to know each other again..."

Brian nodded. "Yeah, I did. What better way to prove it to you?" he asked softly.

Justin nodded solemnly as he walked closer. "But even first dates kiss," he pointed out helpfully.

Brian grinned. "Yeah...But probably not like WE do."

Justin smiled. "Well, we've kind of had a lot of practice with it. But I can always use some _more_ practice."

Brian gazed into his face; as always it was a strong but beautiful face. But right now, with the sun's rays glinting off the water and reflecting in the soft, blue eyes, God, he was breathtaking. He certainly took_ his_ breath way. "Well...maybe just a little more practice," he murmured as he swept the lithe body back up into his embrace, Justin's hands sliding up his chest to come to rest on his shoulders. All it took was one shy-like smile from his partner and his lips came crashing back down onto the wine-scented ones, his tongue creeping inside to deepen the kiss.

* * *

><p><em>Later that Evening...<em>

"Sunshine?" Brian asked, his partner's head lying cozily on his shoulder. He decided he liked the bucket seat of his SUV, much better by far than the seats in the 'Vette.

"Hmmm?" Justin slightly turned his head to peer up at him, Brian's right arm around his waist as he leaned into him. They had just stopped at an old-fashioned ice cream stand where you stood outside at the window to order, Brian ordering some low-fat, soft-serve, vanilla yogurt while Justin indulged in a double scoop, hot-fudge sundae replete with whipped cream, two cherries, and double nut topping. Brian polished off his cup of yogurt in record speed as they leaned against the building, giving him plenty of time to watch his partner tease him as he slowly ate his sundae, his murmurs of appreciation sounding precariously like when he was close to climaxing and his tongue periodically flicking out to capture some errant whipped cream and making him extremely aroused, so much so that he wound up having to borrow a key to the shop's bathroom that hung on a giant chunk of wood so he could jerk off to relieve himself, a fact that had made Justin both innately proud as well as just a little smug afterward.

"What about the girls?" he asked.

"The girls? I'm sure they're fine."

"No," Brian clarified. "Not that. I told them we would bring them home a souvenir of our date."

Justin lifted his head to smile over at his partner, touched that he was worried about that. "It's in the backseat," he told him.

Brian frowned. "When did _that_ happen?"

Justin explained, "I visited the gift shop while you were returning the picnic basket and signing off on returning the canoe. I found a small, beaded purse with an art motif on it for Kaylee, and a book about drawing animals for Katie. You think that will be okay?"

Brian smiled as he glanced over at his partner before returning his eyes to the road. "I'm sure it will be more than okay," he told him as Justin smiled back at him before placing his head back on his shoulder.

They rode on for a couple more minutes in the darkness, only the headlights from the SUV illuminating the darkness, before Justin spoke up again. "Brian?"

Brian smiled. "I thought you might have fallen asleep on me, Sunshine," he admitted. "What is it?"

"Thanks," was the soft response as Justin snuggled a little deeper into his side.

"For what? My charming repartee today? My illustrious artistic skills, so aptly demonstrated during _Wine and Watercolors_?"

"No," Justin said with a smile as he lifted his head, Brian glancing over at him briefly as their eyes met in the dim illumination of the dashboard. "For today. I really had a good time." He leaned up to place a kiss on Brian's cheek, Brian feeling his breath washing lightly over his skin as he turned his attention back to the road, feeling his face warm for some reason.

"I had a good time, too," Brian murmured.

"So where are we going on our next date?" Justin asked sleepily as Brian chuckled.

"Pretty sure of yourself, huh?" he told him. "You know typically the date needs to put out at least a little in order to get asked out again."

Justin snorted. "I was _trying_ earlier, remember?" He boldly reached over to squeeze his lover's cock as Brian grunted; the blood quickly rushing to parts southward as Justin began to stroke it through the fabric.

"Cut that out," he chided him as he reached down quickly to remove his hand and place it on his thigh instead before returning to the steering wheel. "You caused enough trouble earlier at the ice cream shop."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Justin said mischievously as he began to slowly rub Brian's thigh in an up-and-down motion.

Brian moaned almost involuntarily as he stated, "Justin...If you don't want me to get into a wreck out here in this Godforsaken backcountry, you need to remove your hand from my leg right now."

Justin laughed. "No...Not unless you pull over right now so I can take care of your not-so-little problem. I happen to want another date."

Brian quirked one side of his mouth up. "Well, since it would be doing you a favor and you asked so politely..." He decreased his speed, searching for a good spot, when lo and behold, he actually noticed the sign for an old-fashioned rest area, the kind with just a wooden shack for a restroom and a small, gravel parking lot with a couple of weather-beaten picnic tables. Only the lone streetlight above illuminated the lonely-looking spot as they approached it a mile down the road, the crunch of the gravel sounding absurdly loud in the quiet of the countryside as Brian veered off the road and came to a stop.

Both men unbuckled their seatbelts in record time; approximately one minute later, Justin had unfastened Brian's pants and opened the fly to retrieve the treasure he was seeking. Lying flat on the front seat, half sitting against the doorframe due to his lanky build, Brian clutched the soft, blond hair as Justin's talented mouth went to work, one hand curled around the base of his cock as he braced his other one on Brian's chest, palm down.

He moaned loudly as Justin's tongue swirled around his head and then licked the underside, his lips hot and moist. No one made him feel the way that Justin did! Never had and never will. How he had missed him all those years! "Justin," he breathed out, his voice raspy and deep as his lover's head bobbed up and down on his dick. "Feels so good..."

A vibrating hum escaped Justin's lips as Brian's arousal quickly headed toward its peak. It wasn't quite as mind-blowing as one of their fucks would be, but it was amazing nonetheless. His grip tightened in Justin's hair as his partner picked up his tempo, causing Brian to quickly topple over the edge soon afterward. His face contorting, his body tensed and his balls tightened as he promptly shot his load down his partner's throat.

Justin milked every last drop from his partner's dick before sliding his lips off with a slurping sound, crawling up his lover's body to share a taste with him, his own cock lying heavy and full between them, still painfully trapped within the denim.

"Let me take care of _you_ now," Brian urged huskily as they broke apart after several seconds. Justin nodded as they reversed positions so Brian wound up settled between Justin's legs. He lifted his eyes to bore into his partner's in the soft glow of the interior before he popped the buttons on Justin's jeans and slid them midway down the pale legs, sliding his hands slowly up his lover's thighs as he felt the slightly fuzzy skin. As he gripped Justin's cock and went to work, his felt his partner's hands grip his head in almost a death vise as he began to whimper in reaction. Brian spent the next several minutes alternating between suckling and teasing the dark-colored head to near climax and back until Justin threatened to forcibly pull some of his hair from his head. Deciding he rather liked his still-thick mop of auburn hair, Brian decided to oblige him, speeding up his ministrations until he felt his lover's body tensing beneath him and heard Justin yell out his name before his body arched up slightly from the seat and he exploded under him, shooting a copious amount down his throat. He had just swallowed the last drop - and licked Justin clean for good measure - when he heard a rapping sound on the window, followed by an unexpected beam of light. "Open up!"

"Oh, no," he heard Justin groan in disbelief as he hurriedly slid his partner's briefs and jeans up his legs and managed somehow to button one of the buttons before rising to slide his own pants back on. Another rapping noise sounded from behind him as he sat up in the seat and swiveled around to face their visitor. "Shit."

Brian plastered a smile on his face as he turned the key in the ignition to 'accessory' and slid down the window halfway. "Evening, Officer," he greeted the policeman with a polite smile. "Nice night for a drive, isn't it?"

"License and registration?" the man demanded gruffly. Brian rolled his eyes, but nevertheless reached inside his pants pocket to find his wallet and slide out his driver's license.

Justin's face warmed in embarrassment as he noticed the older man staring over at him. "You too, Son."

Justin peered over at him in disbelief. Was he ever going to look his age? He reached inside his own pants pocket to retrieve his wallet and handed over his license to Brian, who passed both of them out the window. The highway patrolman studied both driver's licenses for several seconds before handing them back.

"You from out of state?" he asked Justin as he shined the flashlight in his face, making Justin squint.

He nodded. "I just moved back from Chicago."

The policeman nodded, his lips pressed together. "Well, they may do this sort of thing at rest stops in the big city, young man, but out here we don't cater too kindly to this sort of scurrilous activity."

Brian huffed as he twisted around to face his partner. "I told you, didn't I? But no, you couldn't wait until we got home, could you?" He turned around to look back at the policeman with an apologetic shrug. "Kids! They're so impatient. I apologize for his behavior, Officer." Justin rolled his eyes and bit his lip, forcing himself to remain silent.

"Your fun's over," the highway patrolman stated flatly, not amused as he handed their driver's licenses back to Brian. "You have 60 seconds to get out of here before I have you both arrested for lewd conduct. Now don't let me see you back here again, or I won't be so lenient next time."

Justin waited just long enough for the cop to finally turn around and head back toward his patrol car and for Brian to slide the window back up before he peered over at his partner, who shrugged.

"Another date down the drain," Brian lamented sadly as he shook his head. "Fucker could have at least left his handcuffs." He curled his lips under as he peered over at his slightly agitated partner, lifting his eyebrows impishly.

Justin shook his head in amusement. "You are...I don't even have the words, Brian," he told him in resignation before he couldn't help breaking out in a smile as Brian returned the gesture before he burst out laughing. "Let's not tell the girls about this part of the date, okay?"

"I think that would be wise," Brian agreed. He glanced over at the patrol car several feet away, still idling as the cop apparently waited to make sure they weren't going to loiter. "I think we'd better continue this elsewhere," he decided, "Before we have to call Gus from the hoosegow - or whatever the fuck they call it around here."

Justin laughed. "You really HAVE been countrified, haven't you?"

He shrugged. "When in Rome..." He shook his head as he looked over at the cop, who waved his flashlight at him in a clear, 'get-out-of-here' gesture. He sighed as he turned the motor over and it rumbled to life. "This almost rivals when we tried to fuck in the back of that truck..."

Justin grinned as Brian put the SUV into gear and slowly headed out, back toward the highway. As they turned onto the road again, he breathed a sigh of relief as the patrol car turned in the opposite direction. "Ah...Those were the good old days."

Brian peered over at him. "Would you go back?" he asked unexpectedly.

Justin frowned. "Go back where?"

Brian looked ahead, unwilling to meet his partner's gaze. "To before all this happened? To before the girls? To before...Before I fucked it all up? Your life would have certainly been a lot less complicated."

Justin eyed him in shock. "Of course not," he reassured him softly. "I can't imagine my life without the girls in it...and _you_." He reached over to caress Brian's cheek with the back of his hand. "I love you...warts and all," he told him as Brian glared at him over the 'warts' part. "And I'm certainly not perfect, either. Besides, my life _might _have been less complicated...But it would have been a lot more unfulfilled, too. You're stuck with me, Brian Kinney, whether you like it or not."

Brian reached over to grab Justin's hand in his. "I like being stuck with you," he whispered back hoarsely, choked with emotion. Justin slid over and leaned into his side once more as they headed back home to their girls.

* * *

><p><em>As always, thanks to my beta, Boriqua522.;) You're the best.;)<em>


	35. Family Plans

_Justin and Brian continue to work on deepening their relationship; Justin hatches a plan to show Brian just how much he loves him, with the girls' help._

* * *

><p><em>Thirty Minutes Later...Britin<em>

"They're back!" Kaylee squealed excitedly as she hurriedly pushed the front drapes back together in the study, noticing the telltale signs of headlights slowly approaching up the driveway. "I wonder how it went? I can't wait to hear where Dad took Daddy out on their date! I think it's _sooo_ romantic!"

Katie covered her ears and scowled. "Can you keep it down? I don't want to go deaf before we get into junior high." She rolled her eyes at her sister as Kaylee sighed dreamily. "Oh, brother," she muttered as Kaylee punched her in the arm.

"Cut it out, you brat!" Katie groused good-naturedly. "Where do you think YOU'RE going?" she asked as Kaylee scurried toward the open doorway.

"I'm going to the kitchen," she told her. "They'll have to come through there from the garage."

"Have I taught you nothing?" Katie asked in disbelief. "How are we going to find out what really happened if they see us watching them?"

"Duh. Ask them?" Kaylee ventured.

"That's not the _best_ way to do it! Come on," she told her with a Kinney-type smirk as she tugged on her sleeve and headed toward the steps.

"Why are we going upstairs?" Kaylee protested, her eyes flashing. "I want to know where they went and what happened!"

"We will! Trust me, I know what I'm doing!"

Kaylee sighed heavily but grudgingly followed her sister up the steps. She was soon smiling, though, as they reached the second floor and she realized what her sister was up to. Katie promptly plopped down, Indian style, in front of one of the railings and poked her head between a couple of the wooden spindles, just in time to see their fathers come slowly shuffling down the hallway from the kitchen, softly laughing about something. Their dad's arm was around their other father's waist as he leaned in to give him a kiss on the cheek and whisper something in his ear, making their father blush.

A paper gift bag with handles and some sort of logo on it was clutched in their daddy's hand as he swung it lightly back and forth. Both sisters watched wide-eyed as the two men stopped to turn and face each other before pulling their bodies together for a lingering kiss, their arms sliding around each other to hold the other man close.

The two sisters looked at each other with beaming smiles of approval on their faces, covering their mouths to keep from giggling as the kiss seemed to go on and on. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Kaylee scrunched up her nose in wonder, unable to keep from asking her sister softly, "How can they breathe like that?", causing her sister to snicker back at her. It was a sound that carried more than they realized in the cavernous house as both men reluctantly broke apart to stare up at the second floor.

"Uh, Sunshine, I think we have an audience," Brian reported dryly as they stared up at both daughters looking down at them with sheepish looks on their faces. "You can come on down now, girls."

A pair of blond heads rose from above the railing to peer down at them as Justin grinned. "What are you doing up there? Shouldn't you both be in bed by now? Where's your babysitter? We paid him a lot of money to keep an eye on you two."

Kaylee harrumphed as she and her sister came bounding enthusiastically down the steps, now that their presence had been revealed. "You didn't pay him anything," she pointed out as Justin shrugged with a grin.

"He's upstairs in his room on his cellphone, talking to some girl," Katie reported as she wrinkled up her nose in distaste. "Good thing he has unlimited calling minutes. He's lying upside down on his bed with this goofy look on his face. Yuck."

Brian chuckled as their daughters reached the main floor; he briefly ruffled both girls' hair in affection as he asked them, "How was dinner?"

Kaylee snorted. "Katie had to eat an entire cow while we were there. Sheesh."

"I did not!" Katie argued. "It was just a quarter pounder - the same one I always order."

"Oh, my bad. A _fourth _of a cow, then. Ugh."

"Well, it's better than eating a tofu burger. How can you eat that stuff? Do you know what you get when you eat that many beans? Gas. Lots and lots of gas. And not the good kind you put in cars, either."

Justin laughed. "Girls, girls! Let's just be thankful that you both found something you liked to eat. If you're going to keep _this_ up, I might just have to return what I have in the bag here."

"No, we want to see!" They both vehemently protested in perfect choreography as if they had rehearsed it.

Brian chuckled as he looked over at Justin in amusement. "How do they _do_ that? We may just have a new Olympic sport on our hands: synchronized speaking."

"Daaaad!" Katie whined as she reached for the paper bag. "Please! What's _in_ there?"

Justin grinned as he held the bag up just high enough that they couldn't reach it yet. "First we need a report on your behavior from Gus."

Katie sighed heavily. "How would HE know? He's been talking to that girl ever since we got home! Half the time he doesn't even say _anything_. He just lies there with this moony type of expression on his face."

Justin chuckled. "Oh, your son must have it bad," he told Brian.

"What can I tell you?" Brian remarked. "It's that Kinney mystique; we're irresistible."

"And don't forget humble, too."

Kaylee's eyes sparkled in anticipation as she impatiently urged, "Come on; tell us where you went on your date! We want to hear all about it!"

Justin smiled as he lowered the bag to pluck out Kaylee's gift first before handing the paper gift bag to his other daughter. "I'll let you figure it out," he told her mysteriously as Katie looked inside and her eyes widened in excitement as she realized it was an art book. "And this one's for you, Sweetheart," he told Kaylee as he handed her a small, flat, white box.

Kaylee quickly opened the box and pushed back the tissue paper to discover the purse; both fathers instantly winced as both girls let out a shriek of delight as they explored their gifts.

Kaylee threw herself into her father's arms as she grasped the beaded purse with the impressionist design in her left hand. "I love it, Daddy! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"This is awesome, Daddy!" Katie exclaimed as she hugged her father from his other side. "I can't wait to use it to paint with! Can we do that tomorrow?"

Justin beamed at the thought. "I'm looking forward to it, Katie. It's a date." Katie's smile threatened to rival her father's as she hugged him tightly around the waist.

"Hey!" Brian protested with a mock scowl. "Uh, excuse me...you _do_ have two fathers here, you know..."

Both girls giggled as they looked over at Brian. "We do?" they both said innocently at once before they burst out laughing over his expression.

"Little fuckers..." he muttered under his breath, realizing they had been playing him all along.

"Brian!" Justin scolded him with 'that look' he had. "Language."

"Oh, I imagine they've heard it before," he snickered as the girls grinned impishly back at him. "I KNOW Katie has." He shook his head in amusement. "Maybe we should have kept you two apart after all; you're much too dangerous together."

"No, we're _invincible_ together," Katie corrected him instead, a hint of pride in her voice. "All of us. You, me, Kaylee, and Daddy."

Brian held out his arms as the two melted into his side, his heart turning to instant mush. "Yeah, we are," he whispered huskily as he bent his head down briefly to kiss the top of Kaylee's head and then Katie's. He peered over at Justin, both of them mirroring the same, intense emotion on their faces as he held both of them close against his body. "I wouldn't trade this for anything," he told them unexpectedly as he closed his eyes for just a moment and allowed his sense of touch to take over, still marveling that all of them were finally reunited as a family again. And to have Gus visiting, too, for a while made it all feel all the more incredible.

"You bet we are," he heard Justin agree softly as he opened his eyes to peer over at him with a smile. His heart skipped a beat as an unexpected feeling of contentment washed over him. Who would have thought this would ever happen? Or that it would even be possible again?

"So have the two of you figured out where we went yet?" Justin asked them with a grin.

Katie nodded while Kaylee shook her head no. "I bet you went to the winery."

Justin nodded back at her. "Would you believe your father actually painted with me?"

"Paint by number?" Katie asked innocently as her father gave her an indignant look.

Justin snickered. "I like the way this girl thinks!" he exclaimed.

Brian scowled. "Well, I don't. She thinks way too much like YOU."

Justin chuckled. "No, actually your father was a good boy, and painted a picture freehand. Well, he tried, anyway," he added, noticing a pained expression on his partner's face.

"Hey, I'm in advertising; that's what I pay my Art Department to do. I think up the amazing ideas."

Justin nodded solemnly. "Oh...I see. Good thing, girls. Because as much as I hate to say it, Katie, you did NOT get your artistic talent from your father over there."

Katie giggled. "Daddy, that's physically impossible, anyway."

Justin smiled. "True," he agreed. "But it doesn't _always_ work that way. Your sister can't draw worth a darn, either, remember?"

"Hey!"

Justin laughed. "Well, CAN you?"

"Uh...no."

Justin smiled at her tenderly in amusement. "Don't worry, Sweetheart; I know you have other talents. You're going to be a world-class vet one day, I know it. And we'll have all kinds of animals running around Britin, inside and outside the house." He grinned at Brian's horrified expression. "It was a joke, Dad. You can start breathing again now."

Brian let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding as Justin explained, "We'll do our best to keep things restricted to the stables...except for the cats, of course."

Brian groaned, another 'colorful metaphor' escaping his lips. "Fuck, I forgot about the cats! Wouldn't they be happier back at the carriage house?" he suggested hopefully. "They would have the world's largest, domestic cat house; hell, it'd be bigger than your old condo in Chicago." One look at Kaylee's expression of dismay, however, and he knew THAT wouldn't work. "No, I guess not," he decided as Kaylee sighed in relief. He shook his head in defeat. "When did you two wrap me around your little fingers?" he mused softly.

"The first day you saw them, just like me," Justin reminded him as they locked gazes on each other.

Brian nodded after a few seconds. "Yeah, I guess they did," he admitted truthfully. He took a deep breath. "Well, now that you've heard about our date, I think it's time for you girls to head up to bed," he told them as he squeezed them both affectionately before letting them go. Kaylee already had her purse out, swinging it from her shoulder, while Katie couldn't help taking a few peeks at her new art book as she skimmed over the pages.

"Noooo!" both girls groaned in protest as they realized what their father had said. Justin laughed at the uncanny timing. "Just a little longer?" Katie pleaded. "It's not like it's a school night."

"Not yet, anyway," Brian responded. "But I know how cranky you get when you don't get enough sleep, and I suspect your sister here is the same way. Plus, I know you'll both stay up for at least another hour before you REALLY go to sleep to talk. So off you go. Say goodnight to your father."

Katie pouted before Justin reminded her, "We artists have a date tomorrow morning, remember? So you need to get a good night's sleep. I'll see you then."

She smiled in pleasure at that thought before nodding in agreement, walking over to stand on her tiptoes to give both fathers a kiss on the cheek. Kaylee grudgingly followed her gesture before the two of them headed back upstairs.

"Don't be looking at that book on the steps,, either," Brian warned Katie, who already had her nose in her art book. A heavy sigh escaped Katie's lips, but, keeping her finger between the book's pages where she had left off, she closed the book and did as her father instructed. As soon as they reached the landing upstairs, however, the book was once more wide open and she had her nose stuck in it again.

Justin grinned, happy that his daughter seemed to like the book so well.

"Why didn't you tell her about the job?" Brian asked him quietly as he walked over to stand next to him. "You're not sure about taking it?" He asked. He tried to keep the indecision out of his voice, but he was suddenly feeling a little anxious. Was there a reason why Justin hadn't told her? Could it be that he hadn't quite made up his mind about staying here after all?

Justin shrugged. "I guess I want to wait and talk to the vineyard owners first to make sure it's something I'd be interesting in doing, and to get some more of the details worked out. They haven't exactly offered it to me, you know, either. They haven't even met me," he pointed out. He frowned, noticing a troubled look flicker across Brian's face. "What?"

"Nothing."

"Brian..."

"Nothing," his partner insisted. "Just wondering, that's all."

Justin turned to place his hands on Brian's shoulders. "No, there's more to it than that, isn't there?" He paused as realization flooded his mind. "Brian, I'm not going anywhere. We're going to see that attorney tomorrow to work on altering the custody agreement. Do you think I'd do that if I wasn't planning on staying in the Pitts?" He peered into the face he knew so well, astounded over the revelation that Brian could actually be that unsure of their relationship, even now. "I thought I had already made all that clear," he told him softly. "Whether I take that job or not, I'm not going anywhere. And neither is Kaylee. I told you before. It may a little while to adjust - cats or no cats," he told him with a wry smile as Brian huffed in response at the thought of the two, furry beasts inhabiting the sacred bowels of their home. "But this is our permanent home now. Okay?"

Brian nodded in relief, his brow relaxing as Justin's words sunk in. "Okay."

Justin nodded back at him with a half-smile before he rose on his tiptoes as well to give his partner a brief kiss. "Well, now that that's all settled, I think it's _our_ bedtime, too."

Brian laughed. "It's only 9:00."

Justin's smile broadened as he waggled his eyebrows. "Exactly."

Brian grinned back at him. "I like the way you think, Sunshine. Actually, I think I need to go lie down; I'm feeling weak all of a sudden. Care to join me?"

"I thought you'd never ask." Reaching for Brian's hand, the two of them turned to head up the steps.

* * *

><p><em>Next Morning...8:00 a.m.<em>

From his place at the kitchen counter, Brian blinked as he turned to observe his daughter standing in the doorway. "I must be having a hallucination," he decided.

Katie stuck her tongue out at him. "No, you're not," she told him as she walked in and opened up the door to the fridge to retrieve a carton of guava juice. Pouring herself a glass, her father shook his head as she held out the carton toward him. Setting the carton back in the fridge, she turned to walk back over and sit down next to him, like they had so many times before.

"Well, that would be the only explanation as to why my daughter is up before 9:00," Brian pointed out as he took a sip of his coffee. He was soon going to be heading into the city, having a couple of important clients to meet with at Kinnetik. His eyes widened in epiphany. "Ohhhh. Your date. I understand he's quite handsome, by the way."

Katie giggled. "You think so?" Brian nodded with a smile. "I do, too."

Brian smiled. "I know he's really been looking forward to it, Katie. Maybe even more than _you_ have."

Brian was dying to tell her about Justin's possible, new job, but he knew he had to abide by his partner's wishes and not say anything for now. If everything worked out with the owners, however, and they liked him as much as the other resident instructor did, he thought it was a perfect job for him. And Katie would be over the moon with jubilation. Instead, he told her, "Gus is going to keep an eye on you two later today. Your father needs to meet me this afternoon for a meeting at 2:00."

She snorted. "As long as it isn't before noon. You think I'M bad about getting up!" Brian laughed as she furrowed her brow in curiosity. "What _kind_ of meeting, Dad?"

He paused, wondering how much he should tell her. "Just some legal stuff, that's all," he finally said.

"What KIND of legal stuff?"

Brian sighed. "Katie..."

"Well, YOU brought it up," she pointed out.

"It's nothing to worry about, Chiquitita..."

"Then why won't you tell me? It's about me and Kaylee, isn't it?" Her eyes grew wide with apprehension. "Dad, what's...?"

"Now don't go jumping to conclusions," he responded as he held up his hand. He was about to explain further, when suddenly someone else spoke up.

"We're meeting with an attorney so we can get the custody agreement altered," Justin said from a few feet away as Brian and Katie turned to look over at him. His hair still damp from his shower, he was clad in a pair of worn jeans and one of his favorite painting shirts: an oversized, denim shirt that had at one time belonged to Brian and that had long been discarded when it had become 'less fashionable.'

He walked over to slide into the counter seat next to Katie, who was wearing a similar outfit; one that she would not mind getting smeared with paint stains.

Her face lit up. "You are? Does that mean...?"

"It means that your father and I will be petitioning the court to have the original custody agreement revised or hopefully thrown out, since it's not applicable any longer."

"Then we really ARE going to be a family again," she replied.

The two men peered over at her tenderly, Brian speaking for both of them as he told her, "We already are, Princess. We're just going to go through the formalities now."

She nodded in relief as Brian pushed back from the counter and stood up. "I have to get going," he told Justin as he walked over and rinsed out his mug before placing it in the sink. Walking back over to his partner, he bestowed a quick peck on his lips as he asked, "You want to meet me at Kinnetik around, say, 1:00, and we can have some lunch before we head over to the attorney's office together?"

Justin smiled. "Sounds good. I wouldn't mind seeing Ted and Cynthia again, anyway."

Brian scratched his head with his hand as he told him, "Uh...Justin...that reminds me..."

"What?"

"It's about what I guess you would call our second date."

"Our lunch today?"

Brian smiled as he shook his head. "No, that's a freebie," he told him. "Gus told me after we got home last night that Debbie wants us to come to Sunday dinner over at Michael's house." He looked over at Katie. "_All_ of us, including Gus and the girls. I think we're finally going to get to meet this hunky construction guy that Mikey seems so enamored with. And you'll get to see all the old gang again, too. She's even invited Jennifer and Molly. Okay with you?"

Justin nodded. He figured they would have to get back into the groove with the others eventually, anyway; they might as well jump in now. "Sure, why not? I'm kind of curious about this guy, too." His face turned serious as he added softly, "It'll still seem weird to be in that house without Ben being there, though." Debbie had told him that Michael has considered moving once Ben had died - the memories painful and raw back then - but ultimately the sadness had been muted by the good times the two of them had shared there, so ultimately he had decided to remain in the house that he and Ben had purchased together.

Brian nodded. "I know," he told him. He took a deep breath before tousling Katie's head affectionately and bending over to kiss her on the cheek. "Now you two go paint me a masterpiece," he told them with a smile. "See you later," he told Justin before picking up his briefcase lying on the counter and heading out.

Justin smiled as he watched him go, an idea quickly forming in his head in response to Brian's statement. _It was time,_ he decided. _Time to change a lot of things_. He turned to his daughter. "Have you eaten yet?" he asked her.

She shook her head. "Just some juice."

Justin nodded as he grabbed his coffee mug and walked over to refill it. "Well, what would you like for breakfast?'

Katie's eyes sparkled in anticipation as she shook her head. "I'm not hungry, Daddy," she told him as she got up and brought her glass over to the sink to stand next to her father. "I'm too _excited_ to eat right now."

Justin smiled. "Well, I'm excited to be painting with you, too. But you must have gotten your lack of appetite from your _other_ father, because he'll tell you that I don't normally skip a meal." She grinned over at him and nodded. "I'll tell you what," he decided. "I'll throw a couple of frozen waffles in the toaster and we'll put some peanut butter on it and make it a portable meal. How's that?"

She nodded.

"Good," he told her. "Because I have a very special project that I want the two of us to work on together."

Her eyes widened in pleasure. "You _do_? What kind of project? Tell me!"

He hurried to prepare their makeshift meal, taking a couple of waffles out of the freezer and throwing them into the toaster. "I'll explain when we get upstairs, okay? It'll take us a little while to get it done, but we won't want to rush something like this."

"Daddy," she whined in protest as she placed her hands on her hips, unable to bear the secrecy. "Tell me!"

Justin laughed. "You'll find out soon enough, Katie. Now grab a couple of paper plates and we'll get this show on the road."

Sighing in resignation for the time being, she did as she was told, her heart thumping in her chest. She couldn't wait to see what her father had in mind!

* * *

><p>Fifteen minutes later, when Justin propped a brand new canvas on his easel and began to explain what his 'special project' would entail, Katie's heart exploded with joy. It was everything - and more - that she could have ever hoped to imagine. It was perfect.<p>

"It may take us a while to get it just right, but I think we can get it done in time," Justin explained as his daughter's face glowed in anticipation. "But I can't do this without you. Will you help me?"

Katie beamed as she bobbed her head up and down enthusiastically, her words rushing out in a torrent. "Are you kidding? I can't _wait_ to get started now! I wish we could get it done _tomorrow_!" Justin laughed as she prattled on without stopping for breath. "Oh, my God, Kaylee is going to _freak out_! We ARE going to tell her, aren't we? I mean, we'd _have_ to! And what about Gus? He needs to know, too! How long do you think this'll take again?" She asked, her piercing, blue eyes boring into his.

Justin laughed. "Whoa, slow down, Sweetheart!" Katie's face was lit up with excitement as he told her, "Yes, we'll need to let Gus and Kaylee in on what's going on, at least once we get it done. They'll be instrumental in helping us pull this off. And you and your sister are the consummate schemers, I've come to realize, so I'm sure you will both be perfect for the job," he teased her. "So do you think it'll work?"

"Are you crazy? Of _course _it will work! Oh, Daddy, I'm so happy!"

Justin smiled at her as he pulled her into his arms and held her tight. "Me, too, Katie. Me, too." They remained together for several seconds until Justin let her go and began to find the paints they would need for their joint endeavor. "Ready to get started?" She smiled radiantly at him and nodded as he handed a brush to her. "Then let's do it."

* * *

><p><em>Sunday Evening - 11:00 p.m. - On the way back to Britin<em>

Justin twisted around to look at his and Brian's daughters in the backseat, their eyes closed and their heads turned toward each other in slumber.

"Both asleep?" Brian asked softly as Justin nodded, his face cast in shadows from the muted glow of the dashboard. Both girls had IPods in their laps as they slept, listening to their individual, favorite tunes on ear buds. Oddly enough - or maybe not so oddly - they had quickly discovered that despite some of their differences, they could have easily shared the same IPod; their musical library was almost identical to each other's.

Brian couldn't help smiling in recollection. "They always used to fall asleep whenever we took them for a ride in the car when they were babies, remember?"

Justin smiled as he looked over at him. "Yes, I remember," he told him wistfully. "It always seemed to calm them down back then when they were cranky. Much better than you trying to sing them a lullaby."

Brian snorted. "I _never_ sang them lullabies."

Justin laughed softly. "No, you didn't. I never _could_ understand why they couldn't fall asleep to Jim Morrison or the Rolling Stones. I always thought 'Light my Fire' was rather soothing myself."

Brian grimaced. "You heard me, huh? I tried to do it when you weren't around."

Justin chuckled. "Obviously you weren't successful all the time."

Brian grinned. "Must have been my calming presence, then."

"Well, it couldn't have been the lyrics." He stared over at him quietlyHis face grew more serious then. "They always _did_ respond to your voice, though, whether you were just talking to them or channeling Mick Jagger. You're right. You could work miracles sometimes when I couldn't seem to." He blinked as memories came flooding back, feeling himself getting choked up all of a sudden.

"Hey...What?" Brian pressed, hearing a hitch in Justin's voice unexpectedly.

"Nothing."

"_Now_ who's not being completely honest?" Brian pointed out quietly. "Tell me. No more secrets, remember?"

_Well, almost none, anyway_, Justin couldn't help thinking as he thought about his and Katie's 'project.' He had a good reason to keep that a secret, though, at least for now.

Justin glanced back again at the backseat before admitting, "We missed out on so many things with them, Brian. You should have been singing your odd, little lullabies to them a lot longer than you did. We should have found a way to..."

"Justin," was the quiet but commanding voice as Brian reached over to squeeze his hand. "Stop. It doesn't do any good to revisit that. We can't get it back; we can only move forward. I'm ready to do that, and I think you are, too. So let's just concentrate on making _new_ memories, okay?"

Justin swallowed before he squeezed Brian's hand back in agreement and nodded. "We've already started doing that," he whispered. "That visit to the vineyard, you painting with me...seeing everyone again tonight." He smiled, still holding Brian's hand in his as he continued, "It was nice seeing everyone together again, like old times...and Derek seems like a down-to-earth kind of guy. And Michael does seem happy with him."

Brian nodded with a laugh. "Yeah, who would have thought that Mikey would have roped himself an Italian Stallion as Debbie calls him? But I have to admit, in a dark, brooding sort of way, he _is_ hot. There would have been a time I wouldn't have minded checking out his screwdriver myself." Justin rolled his eyes at that as he admitted, "But even then, I wouldn't have done it; not if he had been with Michael and I knew he meant that much to him."

"I'm glad you and Michael are still friends," Justin told him as Brian gave him a somewhat skeptical look. "No, really. You know, in a way, he helped to bring us back together. And he was a big help when Kaylee was injured."

Brian had to nod at that. "Yeah, he was." He paused. "I'm glad, too. Mikey and I will always be friends. But he has his construction guy now, and his kids...and I have _you_." He glanced back again at their girls as he added, "And our daughters."

"And Gus," Justin added with a smile as Brian nodded in agreement. He reluctantly let Brian's hand go, trying to sound nonchalant as he asked, "Speaking of which, do you know when Gus is planning on going back to school? I'm going to miss him when he has to leave."

Brian smiled. "Me, too. But we'll see him during his Christmas break, one way or the other," he vowed. "And hopefully spring break, too."

Justin nodded. "I'm glad he's back in my life again, Brian. I've missed him."

Brian reached over to briefly squeeze his partner's shoulder. "He's missed you, too," he assured him. "And it's great to have him here right now. It's given him and Kaylee a chance to get to know each other all over again." He smiled. "Gus has always loved playing 'big brother' to Katie; now he has two of them to watch over." He chuckled. "He certainly came in handy when your asshole boyfriend showed up, too."

Justin huffed. "_Former_ asshole boyfriend, okay? Can we just forget about him, please? _I _have."

Brian glanced over at him, replying softly, "Done." He never wanted to even think about Justin having come close to marrying someone else, or him being with someone in a serious relationship.

Justin peered down at his lap, trying hard to sound casual as he asked, "Uh, you think Gus will be here at last for the girls' birthday in a few weeks?"

Brian's eyes widened. "Shit!" He exclaimed. "I'd almost forgotten about that." He shook his head in amazement as he peered at the road straight ahead. "You know this will be the first time the girls have celebrated their birthday together since they were babies?" He mentioned softly. "I'm sure Gus would definitely want to hang around for that, but I'll double check with him to make sure."

"Good. Because if you don't mind, I'd like to plan something special for them, maybe up at the cabin."

Brian turned to eye him with a frown. "You mean way up on the mountain? The cabin I built?" Justin nodded. "Why all the way up there, Sunshine? I was thinking more along the lines of having our family and friends attend a party for them at Britin; and we should invite Daphne to come, too, don't you think?"

Justin nodded in agreement as he looked back to make sure the girls weren't overhearing them. "Of course. It's only right she should be there. But if it's okay with you, I was thinking something more along the lines of small and informal. Just a quiet get together up there with you, me, the girls, Gus, and Daphne. Maybe an outdoor cookout. We can take the girls up there on the ATVs, and Gus can ride up on one of the horses with Daphne. She's been wanting to do some horseback riding, anyway."

"You mean not invite your mother and Debbie? They will want to be there, you know, no matter _where _you have it."

"We can take the girls over to the diner or to my Mom's house or Debbie's to have a separate celebration afterward." He paused as he looked over at him beseechingly. "I really want it to just be the family for now; _our _family. Can you understand that?"

Brian nodded. "Yeah, I can understand that perfectly," he replied to Justin's relief. He looked in the rearview mirror to observe the girls still out like a light. "Plan your little soiree, then, Sunshine," he told him with a smile. He grimaced. "I'm not exactly looking forward to her reaction, but I'll take care of Deb when she finds out what she missed, and you can take care of the _other_ grandmother."

Justin laughed softly. "It's a deal." Satisfied, he closed his eyes and rested his head against the back of the seat, his mind swirling with thoughts about what he had planned coming up, and comforted by the lull of the car's motor and Brian's hand holding onto his.

* * *

><p><em>One Week Later...<em>

Brian inhaled deeply as he stirred in half-sleep, a smile breaking out on his lips as he recognized the familiar scent of his lover now lightly snoring in his bed; no, _their_ bed, he decided. This was the way he was meant to wake up every morning: with Justin in his arms. How he had missed this, perhaps most of all, during their long separation! He was thankful that Justin had seen the folly in trying to remain separate from each other while they continued to rebuild their lives together. They could have formally slept in separate bedrooms here at Britin, but both of them knew that would have been a foolish endeavor. No one - and nothing - had ever been able to keep them apart permanently, and nothing, including four walls - ever would. And now, thanks to their joining forces regarding the girls' custody arrangement, the girls were now, officially, free to be with both of them on their own terms. The judge had declared the agreement null and void, to their enormous relief.

Skimming over the creamy-colored, bare shoulder and arm in front of him with the pads of his fingertips, he watched Justin snuggle deeper into his embrace in response as if on autopilot, studying his face that appeared so peaceful-looking in slumber. He smiled indulgently in recollection, seeing traces of the eager, 17-year-old boy who had been so infatuated with him several years ago on his still-youthful face. He wished he could stay in bed all day, just admiring his partner and continuing to get 'reacquainted.' But he had some important clients waiting to meet with him at Kinnetik. Plus, Justin had a class later that afternoon at the winery. Katie had talked about nothing else ever since they had returned from the vineyard after their first 'date' and she had found out about his new job a week later (once he had decided to accept). When she had discovered that her father would be teaching the children's classes there, she had been thrilled at the thought of her Daddy, the "great artist," being her instructor. Right now, though, that didn't mean they couldn't engage in a bit of a wakeup call first before they started their prospective days separately.

Leaning over slightly, he kissed the top of Justin's shoulder lightly as his arm gripped the side of his partner's waist, his lips traveling up Justin's collarbone and then onto the side of his neck to gently suck on the tender flesh there, before moving up to grasp the lower earlobe between his lips and bathe it with the tip of his tongue. He saw a smile begin to appear on Justin's face, signaling his partner was waking up. A soft mewling sound escaped between his partner's lips that he found incredibly adorable as well as arousing as Justin's eyes finally fluttered open.

"What time is it?" he whispered sleepily, flopping onto his back and raising his hands above his head to stretch.

Brian smiled as he pulled back to gaze into his eyes. "About seven. I have to head into Kinnetik for a while to make sure Theodore hasn't pushed me into bankruptcy. I doubt the girls are even up yet; they're already moaning now about how they'll have to get up early when they have to return to school next month, and Kaylee keeps insisting that she needs her _beauty sleep_."

Justin grinned. "Sounds like her." The two met for a kiss as Brian draped his longer frame over his partner's and smiled. "Sleep well last night, Sunshine?"

Justin nodded back with a lazy smile. "I always sleep well after a good workout."

"And what a workout it was," Brian declared with a smirk as Justin blushed. Since they had reunited, it was almost as if they couldn't keep their hands off each other. "Although, I've heard if you exercise in the morning, it keeps your metabolism up for as much as four hours afterward."

Justin laughed. "Nice try. But I promised Katie we would paint upstairs in the studio again this morning."

Brian almost pouted then like he was being deprived of his favorite toy, making Justin laugh. The mirth bubbling up in his throat promptly died, however, as Brian wriggled against him and made his desire blatantly clear, his partner's heavy, hot, and hard cock brushing up against his belly. He couldn't help the groan that erupted as Brian scooted ever so much to the right, the wetness of his tip brushing against his skin.

"Brian..." he whimpered then as his partner held onto his upper arms and began to sprinkle kisses on his neck and jawline with his lips; those talented, warm lips. "God...I, I told you..."

Brian smiled against his skin. "Uh...Yes? You were saying, Sunshine?" he murmured, the vibration of his lips making Justin shiver with anticipation and need.

Justin moaned softly as he reached up and, grabbing Brian's face with his hands, plastered their lips together for another kiss. Their tongue-dueling match carried on for several minutes, arms exploring everywhere on each other's bodies, before both were soon beyond the point of stopping. Of course, that was not a big surprise to either of them, nor did they want to stop. They always had been like two sticks of dynamite about to explode at any time, and this was no exception.

As they finally pulled back to stare into each other's eyes, Justin knew his plans for the morning were about to be slightly altered. But he couldn't think of a better delay. "Fuck me, Brian," he demanded huskily.

"Now? I told you I had a meeting," was the exasperating reply as Justin scowled in disbelief. To his astonishment, Brian began to move away from him as if he were really serious about leaving, before he grabbed his lover's cock and gave it a skillful squeeze.

"Oh, no you don't, Mr. Hot-Shot Executive," Justin growled as Brian peered over at him in a '_gotcha' _sort of smirk. "Now that you've got me all hot and bothered you're going to damn well finish the job."

Brian grinned widely then, both of them knowing that was what he had been wanting all along. "Well, I always finish what I start," he told him, waggling his eyebrows before he proceeded to do just that.

* * *

><p><em>One Hour Later...<em>

"Hey, Princess," Brian greeted Kaylee with a tender smile as he bounded down the stairs after his and Justin's morning 'wakeup call,' encountering his daughter sitting on the bottom step with her hands on her knees. She was still wearing her matching, pink pajamas and her pink bunny slippers, her favorites. "How are you this morning?" He pulled on his tie to loosen it; he always did hate how constricted the damn things felt, but he also realized it was all part of 'the image.' He furrowed his brow as he stared down at her rigid posture. "Everything okay?"

Kaylee pursed her lips together for a moment before sighing heavily and lifting her eyes to meet his. "Yeah, everything's just peachy. Couldn't be better. Can't you tell?"

Brian frowned at her sarcasm. Although he knew he was already cutting things close as far as getting to his office on time, there _were _some perks to owning his own company, and one of them was taking time out to take care of more important matters. And he couldn't think of anything - or anyone - more important than one of his daughters. Obviously, something was bothering his more emotional, little girl. Placing his briefcase down onto the hardwood floor, he quietly sat down next to her as Kaylee stared sullenly straight ahead. "Yeah, I can tell," Brian told her softly. "Now why don't you tell me what's _really _going on?" He watched then as she blinked back tears, sensing the faucet was about to open. And he wasn't wrong.

"They're leaving me out!" she cried out unexpectedly then.

Brian lightly clamped his left hand on his daughter's shoulder as he asked softly, "_Who's_ leaving you out, Kaylee?" It couldn't be any of her friends, because except for the little girl she had met at camp who had become one of her and her sister's allies - Christina, he thinks? - she hadn't had a chance yet to meet anyone else, except for her sister. That would soon change, however, when they both went back to school together in a few weeks.

She wiped her eyes with the back of her pajama top sleeve as she told him, "Daddy! And Katie!"

Brian opened his mouth to speak, but promptly closed it as he realized what she was talking about. Ever since Justin had promised to paint with Katie up in his studio, they had been spending every day up there for the past week. And then Katie talked nonstop about it every night at dinner, going on and on about how exciting it was to be painting with Justin. He had noticed that Kaylee had seemed a little quieter than normal lately over dinner, but until now he hadn't put two and two together. "Ohhh," he said sympathetically. "Well, I'm sure it's just temporary, Kaylee," he told her. "Your father can get very absorbed in his work when he's painting, as I'm sure you know. And Katie can be the same way. I'm sure they're just both excited about being able to paint together, that's all. Once the newness wears off a little, I'm sure things will be back to normal."

"Why should I care?" Kaylee retorted, her quivering voice belying her words. "I wouldn't want to get paint all over my hands and my clothes anyway. LET them paint together and get all nasty."

Brian offered her a half-smile as he took his hand and brushed some of her hair back from her face. It was still on the short side, but was slowly growing longer like she preferred it. When he thought about all the tactics both girls had employed just to bring him and Justin back together - ALL of them back together as a family - he knew there was a lot more going on here than she was intimating.

He nodded. "Yeah, that can be a real bit...uh, nuisance, to get off your hands," he told her. "Not to mention clothes." He grimaced. "I've been there before when your father 'gets into his work' - literally," he told her with a smirk. "I don't much think that has changed over the years."

For the first time, his daughter flashed him a hint of a smile as she shook her head. "No, it hasn't. He's _still_ messy, trust me. And when he paints in front of me, it's almost as if he's on another planet."

Brian grinned. Somehow it was comforting to know that had stayed the same. He looked at his daughter tenderly as he commented, "But this isn't really about painting, is it? It's about your father and your sister sharing something that you aren't a part of." Brian raised an eyebrow when he didn't get an immediate answer. "Kaylee?" he prodded.

"I don't want to paint," she maintained stubbornly, but she sighed as her father continued to stare over at her. "I just don't understand why I can't at least go up into the studio while they're working together, that's all. Why does it matter if I see what they're painting?"

"Did they say that you couldn't?" Brian asked her, a bit surprised that Justin would be that restrictive toward his other daughter.

"Well, not exactly," Kaylee admitted. "But every time I go up there and open the door, they hurry up and cover up whatever they're working on like it's some big secret."

Brian pondered that. "Well, maybe they want to wait until it's done before they show it to anyone," he suggested.

"But why? Did Daddy used to do that when you watched him paint?"

Brian thought back to all the times he had observed Justin either sketching or working on a canvas. Normally, he was eager to show him what he was doing. But not always. "Sometimes," he told her honestly. He smiled in recollection. "Especially if he was sketching or painting _me_. Then he normally wanted to wait until he was completely done before he showed it to me." He gazed at her affectionately. "He loved to show me drawings and paintings he had done of the two of you, though. He couldn't wait to show those to me. He's always been so proud of both of you, Kaylee."

She nodded, feeling a little better but still feeling decidedly left out.

Brian glanced up at the grandfather clock nearby, noticing it was getting late. "Look, Princess, I hate to do this, but I really have to head into Kinnetik to meet with someone very important this morning. But when I get home, though, why don't the two of us do something together? Would you like that?"

Kaylee flushed with pleasure at the thought as she smiled at him shyly. She nodded as he smiled back at her before tousling her head. "Good. I'll try to cut out early after that; maybe around two, okay?" She nodded again as he told her, "In the meantime, why don't you and Gus do something together? I'm sure if you asked him, he would be more than happy to do something with you."

"If I can get him off the phone long enough," she grumbled.

Brian laughed. "I'm afraid that goes with the territory when it comes to teenage boys. Why don't you take a walk down toward the stables, then?

But Kaylee shook her head. "No, I can't do that."

Brian frowned. "Why not?" he asked softly.

"Well...I...I just don't want to, that's all."

Brian nodded, thinking he knew the reason why. "Kaylee, sometimes you have to confront your fears in order to triumph over them. Both horses are very tame, and you wouldn't have to get that close to them. It's just a nice time of the day to take a walk along the trail. You do know that Ceres would have never done what he did if he hadn't been spooked, right?"

Kaylee sighed. "I know, Dad. I love animals! But it's so hard. Every time I look at him now, it just reminds me of what happened, and I...I just can't get near him anymore."

Brian peered at her sympathetically. "I understand. Maybe one day. Maybe we can all go riding together sometime: you, me, your father, and Katie. Maybe that would help." Smiling tenderly at her, he finally rose to his feet. "Well, I'm sure you'll find something to do. I have to go, Sweetheart. I'll see you later, okay?"

Kaylee nodded, glumly watching her father go before she finally headed back up the steps to get dressed, wondering how in the world she was going to entertain herself until her father returned.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time...<em>

Justin watched proudly as his daughter swept her brush over the brown strands of her brother's hair, taking great pains to recreate the golden highlights. He was amazed by her talent for someone her age. While he was doing most of the work, Katie was proving to be a quick study. He had no doubt that if she chose to pursue her skill - and it became a passion to her like it was to him - she could, also, be a professional artist one day. He wasn't quite sure from his talks with her, though, if this was where her true passion lay, like it did with him. She was a very well-rounded young lady, into sports and her horses, for example, in addition to her art. And while he wouldn't deny that it would please him if she followed in his footsteps one day - and painting with her was a definite thrill - he would be pleased no matter what she did, as long as his daughter was as happy as she appeared right now.

"That's great, Katie," he praised her warmly. "You have a really good feel for the canvas."

She blushed over the compliment as she finished the rest of Gus's hair before turning to place the brush back into a small, empty, soup can filled with water. "You really think so?" she asked as she wiped her hands on a paint-stained, white rag that had once been a tee-shirt of Brian's. "I know how parents are, though; they say anything to make their kids look good, whether they are or not."

Justin laughed. "You may be right," he conceded as he walked over to her to peer at the partially completed portrait. He smiled at their progress. "But one thing you will find out is that neither Brian nor I will ever lie to either one of you. Well, at least going forward, anyway," he corrected himself, thinking that he and Brian had contributed to the biggest lie of all by not telling the girls about each other. That was all in the past, though. "So when I say that you have a real, artistic talent, I mean that, Katie."

Katie's smile rivaled her father's as she nodded back at him in pleasure before her eyes suddenly teared up.

"What?" he asked her in alarm. "You okay?" He walked over and stooped down beside her to grasp her by the shoulders.

She smiled reassuringly through her tears as she nodded. "I...I just can't believe this is finally happening," she eventually managed to reply. "And...and now..." Her eyes widened as she thought of something. She smacked her forehead. "Oh, my God! Daddy! I have something I have to tell you!"

Justin peered over at her curiously. "What is it, Honey?"

"It's something I found out about last year when I was looking for my Christmas present."

Justin laughed. "You do that, too, huh?" He grinned. "I should have guessed that was one more similarity between you and your sister. Remind me to think very carefully about where to hide your presents from now on. Okay, so what did you find?"

His smile soon transformed into one of astonishment when he found out exactly what it was. He swallowed hard as a flood of memories came rushing back to him. "Are you sure?"

Katie nodded firmly. "I put it back so Dad wouldn't know...but I bet it's still there!"

Justin bit his lip in thought. _Was it possible_? "Can you show me?" He finally asked her as she eagerly nodded. He tried to slow down his breathing, but it was no use; his heart was pounding as he suggested, "Your father's not here right now; let's go find out!"

Beaming back at him with a conspiratorial smile of delight, they both turned to rush toward the door, Justin taking care to lock the studio behind them.

No sooner had they left the studio and headed downstairs to investigate, however, did they run into Kaylee, emerging from her bedroom and now dressed in a casual outfit of a pair of light-blue jeans and a short-sleeved, navy-blue t-shirt with "Princess" emblazoned across her chest, along with her favorite, worn pair of white sneakers. She was feeling anything like royalty, however, as she spied her sister and her father coming down from their hiding place and scowled over at them as she heard Katie giggling.

Justin frowned at the expression on his daughter's face as he turned to greet her with a smile. "Hey, Sweetheart. Had breakfast yet?"

Ignoring her father's question, she glared over at her sister, who raised her eyebrows at her in reaction. Turning slightly toward her father again, she finally asked, "Do you care?", pursing her lips tightly together and crossing her hands over her chest in a combative stance.

Justin's eyes widened in surprise over the acerbic tone in her voice. "Excuse me?" he asked.

_Uh, oh_, Katie immediately thought. She knew instantly what was wrong. Why hadn't she noticed it before now? "Uh, Daddy..." she began tentatively.

"No, Katie," he admonished her softly but firmly as he peered over at his petulant daughter. "I'll handle this. Kaylee, do you want to explain what's wrong with you, and why you're speaking to me this way?"

"Daddy..." Katie gripped his arm, finally getting his attention. "Please...I know why," he told him softly as Kaylee remained stonily silent.

Justin sighed as they all stood there, facing off in the hallway like opponents at a chess match. "Well, by all means, then, enlighten me," he told her.

"She's upset because of all the time we've been spending alone together," she explained.

"I am _not_!" Kaylee protested, suddenly not appreciating being thought of as a big, jealous baby; it was painful to realize that Katie was so perceptive about it. She had tried not to let either her father or her sister know how badly it had hurt her to think she was being left out of something with them, but the truth was it had. She just didn't want them to think of her as some whiny crybaby, though. "I don't even _like_ to paint!" The glimmer of pending tears in her eyes, however, instantly betrayed her.

Justin sighed in realization. _Shit_. When did he stop being so aware of his other, more tender-hearted daughter's feelings? At the time he had first thought the idea up, he truly had thought it would be best to keep it just between him and Katie initially, to minimize the chance that Brian would find out somehow what was going on. He had had every intention, however, of letting Kaylee, Gus, AND Daphne in on the secret soon. It appeared that he had waited just a bit too long when it came to his other daughter, though, and now he had some major repairing to do. He felt like a Class-A, major shithole of a father at the moment.

Walking over to his defiant daughter, he gently pried her arms away from her chest as he suggested, "Come upstairs and I'll show you what we've been working on - and I'll explain everything."

But Kaylee shrugged away from his embrace as she cried out tearfully, "I don't _care_ what you're working on!"

"Yes, you do," he told her softly as he reached down to wipe some tears away from her cheeks. "I should have told you what was going on from the start," he said as he peered over at Katie, who nodded in agreement. _Now you tell me_, he thought wryly as he quirked one side of his mouth upward in irony.

Kaylee sniffled. "I told you I don't _care_ what you're painting up there! Besides, Dad promised to do something with me and me alone when he gets home later today!" She replied as she gave her sister a 'haughty' sort of look as if to say, _two can play this game...'_

Justin shook his head in exasperation. He always knew one 11-year-girl could be a handful; until he and Brian had been reunited with both girls, however, he didn't realize how much of a handful _two_ of them could be. "Kaylee, listen to me," he told her firmly. "We are going back upstairs now, and I am going to show you why Katie and I have been spending so much time together upstairs. You have a right to know, anyway, since it's going to involve you, Gus, and your mother, in addition to your father. And, besides, I can't go through with what I'm planning unless I have your approval." Although he doubted if _that_ would be a problem, he suspected. But his enigmatic statement did serve his purpose, as his daughter finally raised her head to peer up at him through water-kissed eyelashes to whisper, "What are you talking about?"

Justin smiled at her tenderly. "Come, and I'll show you. And then you can help Katie and me on our reconnaissance mission."

Kaylee frowned. "Your _what_?"

Justin laughed as he exchanged a smile with his other daughter, who nodded in agreement. "Never mind," he reassured her. "We'll explain upstairs, okay?" He reached into his jeans pocket to retrieve a small package of tissues, one of the number of items he constantly kept in his arsenal whenever he was painting. He hadn't counted on needing them this morning to calm an upset daughter, however. Handing one to her as she blew her nose, he urged her gently, "Come see what we're up to, Kaylee Marie. We're about to plan a BIG celebration."

Eyes widening in confused surprise, she finally half-smiled through her tears and nodded. Her father took her hand as he led her and Katie back over to the door leading back up his studio, relieved that one more piece of the puzzle was about to fall into place.

* * *

><p>Chapter End Notes:<p>

_So what are Justin and the girls planning? Hmm... _

_Thank you as always for reading and for your support. BTW, if you're still enjoying this story and reading, please LET ME KNOW. The only way I know is through feedback, and if there ever comes a time when that disappears, then perhaps it's time to just hang up my writing hat. I will finish this story, however. I have probably one more chapter to go. And I will finish my other two WIPs as well. Thanks  
><em>


	36. The Secret Revealed

_Justin informs Kaylee, Jennifer, and Gus of his plans. Will it go the way he hopes it will, however? _

_I am updating this story out of rotation, since it is so close to completion, My 'final' chapter has taken on a life of its own, though, so I'll have to break the conclusion up into parts. Here's the first part - hope you enjoy it!;) _

* * *

><p>"THAT'S why you and Katie have been up here all this time?" Kaylee shrieked, her father nodding as he revealed her plans to her a few minutes later, and she finally had her first chance to see the artwork Katie and her father had been working on together. Her eyes darted back and forth between the two of them to make sure they weren't playing some sort of sick joke on her as she squealed, "Oh, my God! Oh, my God!" She turned unexpectedly then to smack her sister soundly on the upper arm as Justin's eyes widened in surprise.<p>

"Hey! What was THAT for?" Katie growled in disbelief, rubbing her skin where her sister's palm has made contact with it.

"That's for keeping this a secret from me. You KNEW I would want to know that Daddy...and Dad..." Her eyes widened as her father's words really began to sink in; she whirled around to face him, her face glowing with incredulity and her eyes round as large pearls. "Do you really mean it, Daddy? THIS is why you and Katie have been painting up here? For that?"

Justin smiled at her warmly. "Yes, Sweetheart, it's true." His smile diminished a little as he told her softly, "I'm sorry we didn't tell you sooner. It's just that we couldn't take a chance that your father would find out beforehand."

"But I could have kept it a secret," Kaylee maintained, her lower lip jutting out a little defensively. "Look how Katie and I were able to keep our identities from you and Dad."

Justin had to admit, she had a point. "Yeah, you were," he conceded after a brief pause. "But this is going to be the biggest secret of all. One, last, very important secret. So I really need you to help us keep this quiet, okay?"

She nodded solemnly, her heart pounding at the thought of it actually succeeding. No, it HAD to succeed. "What about Gus?" she asked as she looked over at the beginning portrait of him portrayed on the canvas. "Does he know what's going on?"

Her father shook his head. "No yet," he told her. "I'm not even sure he'll be here for your birthday, but your father is going to find out. I think when he finds out the reason why, though, he'll definitely want to stay, don't you?"

Kaylee nodded, grinning like a fool. She couldn't help it. "Oh, Daddy," she whispered as tears sprung to her eyes. This time, though, they were happy tears. "We've waited so long...So long..."

Justin's own eyes filled with tears - tears of regret as well as love for these two, very special little girls. He walked over and stooped down in front of both daughters to sweep them tightly into his arms. "I know, Sweetheart," he whispered, overcome with emotion as he hugged them. "I know..." The three of them stayed that way for a long time, until they were startled by the door at the bottom of the steps opening.

"Hey, where IS everybody?" Gus groused. "Is anyone up there?"

The three of them broke apart to stare at each other, the three of them silently conducting a conversation between themselves, until Justin made a decision. "We're all up here, Gus," he called down. "Come on up...We have something to tell you." The two girls beamed over at him as he nodded. It was time this family was made whole again.

* * *

><p>Gus walked upstairs and poked his head above the steps, rubbing his eyes sleepily, even though it was nearly noon now. He frowned at the teary-eyed look on all three of their faces. "What's going on? Did you ruin a painting or something?" he asked.<p>

Justin looked at him for a couple of seconds before all three burst out laughing at his confused expression.

"What's so funny?" he groused as he walked up the rest of the way and stood near them, the painting facing away from him.

Justin grinned at the two girls. "Not quite. Come and see what Katie and I are working on, then YOU tell US."

Clad in a pair of well-loved jeans, holes in the knees, and a short-sleeved, white t-shirt, a barefoot Gus scratched the back of his head as he plodded over to stand in front of the painting as three pairs of eyes stared over at him. He frowned again as he recognized the subject of Justin's and his sister's latest artwork. "That looks like me..."

Justin grinned at the two girls. "Well, I'm glad I haven't lost my touch yet. Actually, Katie is the one who's painted most of it; I just helped her a little with the outline."

Gus wondered if he was quite awake yet as he asked, "But why are you painting me? And why am I so small?"

The two girls giggled as Justin explained with a smile, "That's because you're going to be part of a large collage," he explained. "We needed room for the others."

"Others?"

Justin walked over and placed his hand on Gus's shoulder. "Yeah. You, me, the girls...and your father. The whole family." He bit his lower lip then tentatively, suddenly unsure of how Gus would react to that idea. He relaxed a little, however, as Gus nodded, appearing pleased with the notion.

As if reading his mind, Gus replied, "Good idea. We need an updated portrait."

Justin smiled. "I'm glad you think so," he told him softly. "In fact...I have a favor to ask of you. Well, two favors, actually."

Gus turned slightly to peer over at him. "What?"

"Well, your father was going to ask you tonight, probably, but since you're here right now...The girls' 12th birthday is coming up in three weeks, and I'd like to plan a special celebration for it. Just you, me, your sisters, your father, and Daphne, up on the mountain at the cabin. Will you still be here then?"

To Justin's relief, Gus nodded. "Sure...I mean, I was planning on going back a little early. But I forgot about your birthdays," he told his sisters. "So I'll be glad to stick around."

Justin's face broke out into a pleased smile. "That's great!" he told him with relief. "I'm so glad to hear that." _That was one more piece of the puzzle falling into place..._

Gus nodded in acknowledgment, suddenly recalling what Justin had said earlier. "You said you had two favors to ask me. What's the other one?" He peered over at the partially-composed portrait and scrunched up his nose. "That doesn't look much like my chin," he decided. "Need to build it up some," he suggested. "Are you wanting me to pose for you, is that it?"

Justin laughed. _Oh, my God. If Gus only knew what sort of memories THAT statement brought back!_ "No," he assured him. "That's not the favor. I'm not done with your chin yet, so I think you're safe," he told him as Gus shrugged.

"Then what?"

Justin looked over at his little girls and took a deep breath. "It's about the celebration. You might say I have a job for you; a very important job."

Gus shook his head slightly in annoyance. "Justin...Just tell me. I'll do whatever you need me to do - it's for my sisters," he added as the two girls beamed over at him in reaction.

"Not quite."

"Shit, Justin!" Gus growled then, tired of playing games. "Just spit it out, okay? You're starting to make me nervous for some reason."

"You think YOU'RE nervous," Justin muttered. _If he only knew...The event was three weeks away, and he was already sweating merely at the thought._ "Okay. I need to ask you something."

* * *

><p>A minute later, Gus stared at him agape. "For real? No shit?"<p>

Justin smirked over his reaction. "No shit. Of course, it's up to Brian, too. So what do you say? Will you help us?" He held his breath. It was one thing to ask Gus to stick around and attend his sisters' joint birthday celebration; this was on a whole, different level, and he still wasn't 100% sure how Gus felt about him and Brian reuniting again permanently.

He didn't have to worry for long, however, as Gus abruptly reached over and clapped him roundly on the back. "Hell, yeah, I'll do it!" he declared, his lips curled under like his father.

Justin grinned as he let out the breath he had been holding. "I'm glad, Gus," he told him softly. "Thank you."

"No, Justin," was the soft reply. "Thank _you_. I haven't seen my Dad this happy in a long time. And it's all because of you."

Justin's eyes watered as he told him, "Not just me." He glanced around at all of them, standing there united, as he told them, "It's because of all of us. Including your father."

All the children nodded as Justin swallowed the lump in his throat. He took a deep breath. "Well, I'd say we all have a lot of work to do, then," he told them. "Katie, you and I will keep working on this," he told her as she nodded. "Gus, I won't need your help until closer to the event," he told the boy as Gus nodded. Turning to eye his other daughter, a thought occurred to him. "But I _do_ have an idea how YOU can help us, Sweetheart," he told Kaylee.

Her eyes lit up at the thought of helping carry out their plan. "How?"

"Well, you probably don't know this, but your father is a really good amateur photographer, and I know you love to take nature pictures." Kaylee nodded with a smile. "I just bet if you ask him when he gets home, your father will be more than happy to give you some pointers. And in the meantime, you can go around and practice your skills by taking several candid shots of everyone that will be in our collage. Could you do that for me?" he asked her. "Then I would have some examples to use." Truth be told, by now Justin knew each of their faces by heart, so he could paint them by memory without any problem. But he wanted his little girl to not only bond more with Brian, but also feel like she was contributing toward their goal.

The radiant smile that broke out on Kaylee's face then was proof that he had done the right then as she nodded. "I'd love that!" she exclaimed. "I'll ask him as soon as he gets home!"

Justin grinned. "That's great, Honey. We'll print them out with my printer up here."

Kaylee nodded with excitement. It was all almost too much to comprehend. It was like some dream that was finally coming true. In reality, though, it was. It had been her and her sister's dream for a long time. All of sudden, the waterworks threatened to fall anew as she realized it was really going to happen. "Daddy..." she managed to croak out.

Justin's eyes widened in concern. "What, Honey?" he asked softly.

She shook her head and smiled before she flung herself against him and sniffled. "I love you so much," she told him against his waist.

Justin's eyes glistened as he smiled. "I love you, too, Kaylee," he told her as he, too, sniffled now. He glanced over at Katie and Gus as he added, "_All_ of you."

* * *

><p>Watching Gus heading back downstairs to forage for leftovers from last night, Justin turned to his daughters at the bottom of the steps heading from his attic studio. He had made sure to lock the door, knowing that Brian respected his privacy and would not venture up there unless he asked first. That was one more thing that Justin loved about him; just one in a <em>million<em> things.

"Okay, Katie," he said as he turned to look at his daughter. "Show me where you saw it." His heart was hammering in his chest; was it actually possible she was right?

She nodded with a smile as she, Kaylee and Justin all walked down the hallway toward the end where the master bedroom was located.

Biting her lower lip in anxiety - fervently hoping that it was still there - Katie walked over and stooped down in front of the mahogany night table on the left side of the bed - _Brian's _side - and pulled out the bottom drawer. Numerous pairs of socks were folded up inside, Justin noted, as he and Kaylee waited by the foot of the bed, but from his vantage point he couldn't see anything else.

"Katie?" he finally called over to her softly as she continued to sweep her arm around the interior in search of the object.

"I can't feel it yet," she told him. "But there's so many socks in here..."

Justin was about to sigh in disappointment and tell her to forget it when all of a sudden he heard her gasp in delight, "Here it is!" She pulled her arm out and stood up, turning around to display the small, burgundy-colored, leather box in her hand. Beaming in triumph, she walked over and placed it in her father's open palm.

Justin stood there as time seemed to stand still, memories of a long ago flashing through his mind and filling him with all sorts of bittersweet emotions - joy, pain, sorrow, fear, love...regret. He closed his eyes briefly before opening them back up; taking a breath of resolve, he slowly pried open the top with his other, trembling hand. A sharp intake of breath followed as he stared at the familiar contents inside. "Oh, my God," he whispered. They were even more elegant and beautiful in their simplicity than he had remembered. They had never actually gone through with a formal ceremony - neither man feeling like it was necessary at the time - but they had, instead, elected to hold their own, private commitment ceremony one night amidst a glow of candlelight in this very bedroom, just before the girls had been born. They had stood over at the fireplace, both men's faces awash in hues of oranges and browns against the flickering flames, as they stared into each other's eyes and clasped hands, vowing to love each other as they proclaimed their eternal devotion in each man's unique way - Brian's more sarcastic and cryptic, Justin's overtly romantic and traditional. It hadn't been stilted or rehearsed; there had been no minister or stodgy justice of the peace to preside over it and make it 'official.' But it hadn't mattered. When each of them had slid a ring on the other's finger, it had felt more real than any legal ceremony could ever be.

When Justin had left that day with Kaylee, however, he couldn't bear to look at the symbol of their love. It had only reminded him of what could have been, and what would never be. So in a moment of perhaps hasty decision, he had slid the gleaming band from his finger and placed it on the bedroom dresser before he left Britin with his daughter in search of a new life in Chicago. Now, however, just like the symbolism of the ring, life had come full circle, and he had another chance to make things right again.

"They're beautiful, Daddy," Kaylee murmured as she and Katie stole a peek at the two rings nestled inside the box. "The smaller one must be yours."

Justin's eyes glistened as he nodded. "Yes," he told her with a wistful smile.

"Try it on," Katie suggested as Kaylee nodded in agreement.

Justin shook his head. "I don't know...That's probably bad luck, and that's the _last _thing we need right now."

"How can it be bad luck?" Katie insisted. "Those show how much you and Dad love each other. How can that be bad?"

Justin knew she was making it sound far too simplistic, but she had a point. The rings had never been a symbol of sorrow, only happiness. Besides, he was itching to make sure his still fit - and to see it back on his finger, if only for a brief second. So he finally nodded as he reached in with his thumb and forefinger to gingerly pull the shiny band from its nesting place. His hand shaking - and not due to his previous injury - he stared at it for a few seconds before sliding it slowly down over his left ring finger, the coldness of the metal making him shiver a little as it came to rest near the web of his hand.

Kaylee and Katie both sighed dreamily in unison as Justin couldn't help smiling. Was this really going to happen for real this time?

He was relieved to find that the ring still fit him perfectly. He spread his fingers apart to better admire the platinum band that still looked brand new. "How does it look?" he asked his daughters as he stretched his hand out to admire it.

Both girls turned to look at each other with a smile. "It looks great, Daddy," Kaylee assured him. "It's so pretty in the light." The sun streaming in through the large windows was casting a prism of rainbow colors on the metal band as Justin nodded in agreement.

Sighing in reluctance, he finally pulled the ring off his finger to place it back into its spot in the box before snapping it closed. Clutching the box in his hand, he took a deep breath as he turned to Katie. "Your father never mentioned that he had these before?"

Katie shook her head. "Are you kidding? It was hard enough just to get him to say anything about _you_. Although he used to moon over you all the time."

Justin grinned in amusement. "Moon, huh?" She nodded. He liked the sound of that. "How do you even know what that word means, Katie?" he asked.

Katie shrugged. "Not sure," she answered honestly. "Must have been one of Dad's old movies where I heard it. That's all he ever watches, do you know that?" she replied with a roll of her eyes. "Does he even know that movies come in color now?"

Justin chuckled. "Yeah, he's had that habit for a long time now. Except when you were little, he sometimes got snookered into watching Cinderella or Snow White in a weak moment. But he always drew the line when one of you wanted to watch Winnie the Pooh. For some reason, he hated that cartoon!"

Both girls giggled as Justin thought of another idea for their celebration. "I wonder if he would notice if these were gone?" he mused out loud to no one in particular.

"Why, Daddy?" Kaylee asked him curiously. "Are you going to get new ones?"

Justin thought about that. In a way, that would make sense. If all went as planned, they would be starting a new life together. A new symbol, then, of their future together might be appropriate. But they weren't really starting a new life together, he thought, not really; not when they still had Katie, Kaylee, and Gus. They had always been a part of their lives, and always would be. So perhaps there was a way to meld both ideas into one. He shook his head finally. "No...But I _will_ need these for your birthday party. I'm hoping your father won't notice that they're gone, because I'm going to have some changes made." How often had he wondered what had happened to them! It made him happy to know that Brian had kept them all these years, though. He looked at that as a hopeful sign.

He smiled at them then, knowing they must have a lot of questions on their minds. There was so much to do in the next three weeks! But getting the portrait collage finished, however, was the priority.

"By the way, Daddy..."

"Yes?" Justin asked as he turned to look at Katie, noticing both of his girls whispering together.

Kaylee nodded then as Katie replied, "Kaylee and I know our birthday is just a way to get Daddy up on the mountain. So we're okay with it just being a fake birthday."

Justin frowned. Hadn't he been clear about that? "What do you mean, a 'fake birthday,' Sweetheart?"

Katie shuffled her feet slightly as she explained, "Well, we know you only said that so you could get Daddy up there. We know that's not what it's really for. But that's okay," she was quick to add before Justin could respond. She smiled over at her sister as she impulsively took her hand. "Just having our two fathers back together is the best birthday present we could ever have."

Kaylee nodded in agreement as Justin shook his head in amazement. "You two..." he murmured. "No," he told them as they frowned. "You are _still_ going to get your birthday party, don't worry. I can't think of a better day to celebrate than the day the two of you were born." He smiled at them as he told them, "That was one of the happiest days of my life - and your Dad's. And this will be the first time in a long time that we can celebrate it with both of you together. I wouldn't miss that for the world."

Both girls were teary-eyed now as Justin grinned. "Now what kind of cake do you want for it?"

"Chocolate marble!" both girls answered together as Justin laughed, totally unsurprised. He already knew that was Kaylee's favorite cake - vanilla and chocolate swirled together. Why was he not shocked that it was Katie's as well? "Well, then, chocolate marble it will be," he told them as he placed the ring box in his jeans pocket and walked over to place a hand around either girl's shoulder. "Now, Katherine Elizabeth - artist in residence," he said as she giggled over the new title. "I think it's time you and I go back up and do some more preliminary work on our painting, don't you?" Katie nodded as he looked down at Kaylee with a smile. "And you are welcome to watch us. I know how exciting you think that is, and how much you love the aroma of fresh acrylics."

She wrinkled her nose up, just like Justin knew she would. "No, thanks," she muttered as Justin laughed. Her eyes sparkled with excitement, though, as she said, "But I can get my digital camera ready for when Dad comes home and take some pictures of you and Katie painting, though!"

Justin grinned. "Honey, I think I know what I look like. But that's not a bad idea, though. In fact, I'll tell you where your Dad used to keep his old SLR camera. I bet it's still up there." Brian was a creature of habit for the most part when it came to storing his things, whether it was clothes, books, papers...or unused electronics. Something told him he knew exactly where it would be.

"That would be great, Daddy!" Kaylee squealed, excited at the prospect of getting started and having her father's camera ready when he got home. "You don't think he'll mind?"

Justin shook his head. "No, of course not," he reassured her. "After all, it was his suggestion that you do something together, and I think he had a great idea. You can even blame it on me," he teased her. "I think he'll be thrilled, though. Come on, let's go see if we can find it together," he decided. "Katie, can you go upstairs and get the paint ready? I'll be right there."

His other daughter nodded eagerly. "Sure, Daddy," she told him as he nodded.

"Okay, let's go find it," he told Kaylee. Keeping his hand around her shoulder, they headed toward Brian's study downstairs.

In no time, Justin had located it right where he thought it would be: in the safe situated behind one of his old paintings. Brian had never taken it down - and he had never even changed the combination to the safe. Was it possible that somehow Brian knew that this day would come? He couldn't have known, Justin knew, but the romantic in him like to think so nonetheless."Here you go," he told her, handing her a somewhat threadbare, dark-brown leather camera case, cracked with age. "Now you'll be all set for your photo shoots when your Dad gets home."

Kaylee nodded, eager to get started on her mission. "You think I could try it out now?" she asked.

"I think I'd wait until your father gets home," Justin told her gently. "It's kind of a complicated camera, and your father is very fond of it. He's had it for a long time. Why don't we leave it on his desk, and in the meantime you can practice with your own camera?"

Kaylee nodded as she walked over and carefully placed it down on top of the desk. "Maybe Dad will let me use this on our birthday to take pictures of the two of you," she said hopefully.

Justin smiled. "Maybe." He wouldn't be surprised. If anyone could talk him into it, it would be one of his beloved daughters. The only variable would be if she would have a need to use it. He refused, though, to go down that road. Everything HAD to turn out right. After all this time, they deserved it; all of them.

Kaylee nodded again as she walked back over to her father. "He will," she said with conviction as Justin grinned. "And I'll be a pro by then."

Justin laughed. "Well, as long as you don't charge too much for your services, I would be honored for you to be the photographer."

"For you and Dad, I won't charge a thing," Kaylee told him with a professional-sounding voice.

Justin leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. "That's very generous of you, birthday girl. Now I have to get back upstairs to help Katie, okay? Why don't you go see if Gus needs any help rooting out leftovers; you always seem good at finding them at the back of the fridge."

"Ew, Daddy, no, he'll get food poisoning!" she declared. "Everything in the back is moldy. I'd better go help him out. We don't want him getting sick before our birthday."

"No, we don't," Justin agreed with a smile. "See you later." He cupped his daughter's cheek briefly before she headed out of the study and toward the kitchen. Standing in the hallway, he studied his daughter's retreating form silently before turning to head back upstairs to his studio.

* * *

><p><em>Two Days before Katie and Kaylee's Birthday - Mountain Cabin<em>

The serenity of the mountaintop vista was unexpectedly broken by the roar of two ATVs approaching; two deer turned their heads, startled, and dashed off into the woods as the vehicles approached, carrying a total of four occupants: a teenage boy, two very excited, blond-haired girls, and a young woman.

They pulled up together near the front of the cabin and came to a stop, silencing the intrusive motors and bathing the area in peacefulness once more. Daphne was the first one to emerge from the driver's side of the first ATV, once more marveling at the magnificent scenery that being virtually on top of the world provided. Alighting from the other side of the ATV was Kaylee, leaning into the vehicle to start pulling out some of the items they would need from the backseat.

Gus pulled his long, lanky body out from under the driver's side of the other vehicle as Katie emerged the passenger side. The four of them all took a moment to peer around, imagining what it would look like in a few days, each one anticipating it with great eagerness.

Daphne smiled at the thought. Shit, she had always hoped for the best when it came to her best friend and Brian - and of course, her daughters and Gus - but she had always thought for some reason when the time came that Brian would take the lead. Not that he was the overly sentimental, romantic, traditional type - far from it - but he _had_ changed over the years through Katie's influence. And there was no doubt how he felt about Justin. In fact, from what she could tell, his love for her best friend ran even deeper than before.

But when Justin had called her about a month ago to ask her if she could come to a pseudo-birthday party for the girls, naturally the first thing she had asked was, _what the hell is a pseudo-birthday party_? Then, once he explained what it was REALLY for, she couldn't help letting out a gasp of surprise. But once she thought about it, it did make sense. It felt right for Justin to ask him.

The only question remaining, however, was - what would Brian's reaction and his answer be? She knew he loved Justin with all his heart, and wanted him in his life completely. But was he ready to go that extra step, or would he somehow think it might jinx their happiness? Would he be afraid to change something that 'wasn't broken?'

She wasn't about to express any of her doubts to the girls, however; they were far too excited over the prospect of their fathers getting married finally.

"Aunt Daphne?"

She blinked as she realized Kaylee was standing on the other side of the ATV, holding a box with several supplies in it for the cabin. She smiled at her reassuringly. "Yes, Honey?"

"Can you get that other box over on your side?"

She nodded. "Sure." She looked over at Brian's son to catch his eye. "Gus, can you come over here and get the painting for us? I imagine it's really heavy. I can't wait to see it!" By the time Daphne had gotten to Britin earlier today, Justin already had it all wrapped up securely with brown wrapping paper, so she hadn't had a chance to see it yet. She was dying to take a peek at it.

Gus nodded as he and Katie walked over to join them. He grinned knowingly. "Trust me, it was. I've got the sore back to prove it. Katie, can you take that box from your mom?" he asked his sister, who was a few feet away. "I'm going to need her help with this. It took both me and Justin's strength to get it out his trunk the other day and haul it down to the stables to put it in there. That frame he picked out must weigh a _ton_!"

Justin had taken great pains to find just the right frame to complement the family collage once it was finished, making sure the material, width and color were perfect for the display spot he had in mind. He and Katie - the home's 'other resident artist' - had driven into town last week when Brian was at work, Kaylee tagging along, too, since the frame shop was at the mall - so he could find just the right frame for it. It had taken close to an hour until Justin finally found the sample that was perfect in his and Katie's eyes, and three days later the frame shop had finally called to tell him it was ready, just in time for the celebration. Once he knew that vital errand was accomplished, that only left a few other tasks to complete, including the one that Daphne and the children were undertaking presently. Except that Justin had no idea about everything they were doing, only the painting part. Their Dad wasn't the _only_ one who was going to be surprised...

"I'm glad that Daddy had some business in town today, and that you talked him into going to see his mother," Kaylee told her mother with a grin.

Daphne smiled. "Hey, where do you think you got your scheming talents _from_? I can be as devious as you can be - when the need arises." The others grinned back at her. "So let's get busy!" she declared with a twinkle in her eye.

Gus nodded as the two girls hefted their boxes toward the cabin's door, setting them down on the front porch's wooden bench. A few minutes later - after some grunts and groans from both Gus and Daphne - the two adults managed to carry Justin and Katie's painting over to the door. Setting it down with great relief, Daphne dug into her jeans pocket for the key Justin had given her. Holding it up, she grinned over at her co-conspirators. "Okay," she said, breathless from her exertion. "Let's get this show started."

* * *

><p><em>Pompilio's Café - Same Time<em>

Jennifer silently peered over at her son in concern as she took a sip of her iced tea, noticing his food was basically untouched. She watched as he gazed out onto the street from their window table, his mind seemingly a thousand miles away. He still had his hand wrapped around his fork, but her son was apparently not interested in food at the moment. Hence, her worry; from the moment her son could grasp a utensil, he had always had a hearty appetite.

Ever since she had collaborated with her granddaughters in their schemes to reunite their two fathers, and Justin had found out about her complicity regarding it, she had tried hard not to interfere anymore. She knew whatever happened between the two of them was strictly up to them now. The fact that her son and Brian were throwing a private birthday celebration with only Gus and Daphne as additional guests didn't really bother her; on the contrary, she was pleased that the small family unit seemed to be functioning well. So why did her son appear to be so caught up in his thoughts? And why did he seem so serious?

Finally, she couldn't stand it any longer. After all, he had asked HER out to lunch; somehow, though, she suspected it wasn't just to catch up. "Justin?" she called out softly. He didn't seem to hear her, not until she reached over and gently clasped his wrist to get his attention.

Then her son turned his head and blinked as he peered over at her, seeming to refocus on his surroundings. He bestowed a half-smile on her as he asked, "You said something, Mom?"

Jennifer sighed. "Justin, you've been staring out into space for the last few minutes, and you haven't hardly eaten any of your linguini with clam sauce, and it's always been your favorite here. Honey, what's going on?" She didn't come out and say, "What's wrong?" She was trying hard not to jump to any conclusions - yet.

"Nothing," he told her softly. "Really," he added as she raised an eyebrow in skepticism.

She furrowed her brow. "Then what? Obviously, you're preoccupied about something. I've _never _had a meal with you where you would need a doggie bag." She peered over at him until finally her son reacted with a snort. "So, come on, Justin. Spill!" she urged him, leaving no doubt she was prepared to wait a long time until she received a straight answer.

Justin took a deep breath; he was already feeling jittery about what he was about to do. Perhaps his mother could help calm his nerves. "I did come into town to see you," he began. "But I also had an errand to run. I had to pick up something from the jewelers." He paused as she waited for him to continue. "I had to pick up these."

He reached inside his jacket pocket to produce the leather ring box and place it on top of the table.

Jennifer's eyes grew wide and her mouth formed into an 'O' shape. "Justin...That looks like..."

Justin bobbed his head once. "Open it," he told her quietly.

Reaching over, Jennifer grasped the box in her hand as she pried the lid open. She gasped as her suspicions were verified. "Oh, my God," she whispered as she looked over at her son, who was peering back at her uncertainly. Justin bit his lower lip as she slid one finger over the smooth, gleaming finish of the smaller band. She lifted her gaze, her mouth hung open. "Justin...You bought these?"

Her son shook his head. "No...Those are the same ones that Brian and I used to wear after our private commitment ceremony. Katie discovered them one day in Brian's nightstand when she was searching for her Christmas presents, and told me about them. I took them into the jeweler's to have an inscription added to them," he explained.

"But why?" she asked, holding her breath. _Could it be...?_

Justin smiled nervously. "You know the girls' birthday party in two days? Up on the mountain?"

Jennifer nodded.

"Well...it's not just going to be a birthday party. I mean, we WILL celebrate it...but..."

Jennifer gasped as she looked down at the rings. "You're going to ask Brian to _marry you?_"

Justin nodded, his smile diminishing a little as he started to explain, "Mom, I know we were apart for a long time. But I never stopped loving him. I'm ready now; and I think _he's_ ready. I trust him - and I know he's committed to only me now, just like I am to him. He's proven he loves me over and over again. And the girls - Mom, he loves them and Gus so much. He's such a wonderful father. And I know..."

Jennifer placed her hand over his and squeezed it to interrupt him. "Justin, you don't have to justify it with me. I think it's wonderful, Sweetheart!" she cried out, her eyes filling with tears. "I'm so happy for you!"

"You are?" He asked, a little surprised. His mother nodded with a warm smile as he breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm glad you feel that way," he told her.

She smiled back at him radiantly, proving where he had inherited his own smile. "Do the girls know?" she inquired. "Oh, Justin, they must be ecstatic!"

He grinned. "Yes, they, Gus, and Daphne know so far - and you. And yes, they can't hardly stand to wait until day after tomorrow - and not because of the girls' birthday. Do you know they told me they didn't care if they even _had _a birthday? Well, they did - that's how much they want this, Mom. And _I_ want it, too." He appeared a little uncomfortable as he realized something.

"What?" she asked softly.

"Mom, I hope you know I'm not trying to slight you - or Deb - or any of friends by not including you. It's just that it...it felt right to do it this way, with just the girls, Gus, and Daphne. And I figured we could all have another celebration with everyone afterward. You do understand, don't you?" He peered over at her anxiously; the last thing he wanted to do was hurt his mother. She and his sister meant the world to him.

To his relief, she shook her head and smiled. "Of course I understand, Honey!" Her eyes glistened as she told him, "I'm so happy for you." Her smile lessened a little, however, as she noticed a troubled look on her son's face. "Justin, you should be excited and happy about getting married. So why that look on your face?" Her mouth hung open in realization as she asked, "Surely you don't think that Brian is going to turn you down?"

"I...I don't know," he answered her honestly. "Maybe he won't want that sort of formal commitment."

Jennifer's eyes flashed. "Justin Taylor, that man loves you - deeply, unequivocally, and with every fiber of his being. I have no doubt in my mind. And he loves his children and would fight to the death to protect them. You can't tell me he wouldn't want to proclaim that to the world! There is no way that man is going to say no to you!"

For the first time that afternoon, Justin actually laughed then. "Mom, you're so melodramatic!" He teased her.

"Well, it's the truth!" she insisted.

He grinned before telling her softly, "Yeah, I think maybe you're right." He took a deep breath and let it out as a large weight seemed to roll off his shoulders. "So...Do you think they could warm this up for me? Suddenly, I'm feeling really hungry."

She grinned back at him and nodded as she raised her hand to get the waiter's attention. "So are you going to tell me what you had inscribed on the rings?"

Justin blushed. "No," he told her a little regretfully. "I want that to stay just between Brian and me - okay?"

She nodded. "I understand." As the waiter returned and retrieved Justin's plate to go warm it up for him, Jennifer told her son, "Well, I expect lots of pictures at the ceremony, and a video. Or I will crash your party!"

"Mom!" Justin scolded her with another laugh as he held up his hands. "Okay, you have a deal. I think Kaylee has become quite the budding photographer, so I have a feeling she'll be more than glad to oblige you." Now his smile became a full-blown one as he confided, "And don't worry; I want plenty of photos and videos of this, too. I don't plan on going through with this ever again." His eyes welled up with the prickling of happy tears as he felt the emotion rising up in his throat. "I plan on this lasting forever."

* * *

><p><em>Two Days Later - Kaylee and Katie's Birthday<em>

Brian's eyes slowly fluttered open as he felt the sun shining through the master bedroom; he instinctively reached his hand over to Justin's side of the bed, only to come up empty handed. He lifted his head, noticing Justin sitting over in the window seat, looking out pensively onto the backyard.

Sliding from the bed, he winced slightly as his feet hit the cold, hardwood floor. A few moments later, he leaned down to slide his arms over Justin's shoulders to settle on his chest. "Hey," he whispered as he kissed Justin's cheek.

Justin reached up to place his hands on top of Brian's as he turned his head and smiled at him. "Hey yourself," he greeted him softly.

"What are you doing out of bed so early?"

Justin turned around on the window seat to face his partner as Brian took a seat beside him. "Just thinking," he told him with a soft smile. "Got a lot on my mind, I guess."

"Care to share?" Brian asked. "Most people say I only have half a brain at times, so I've got lots of room up here." He curled his lips under playfully as he pointed a finger at his temple.

Justin rolled his eyes. "Oh, I seriously doubt that," he told him with a smile of his own. He stared silently over at Brian then, almost as if he were memorizing every angle. "You're the most amazing man I've ever known," he told him softly. "And one of the most intelligent."

"Well, I'll make room for you, then," he teased him as he cocked his head. He didn't receive the smile he expected to garner, however, as he frowned slightly. "Everything okay, Sunshine? I'm sure the girls' party will go off without a hitch. You don't have anything to worry about."

_Don't I?_ He couldn't help thinking. "Everything's fine," he told his partner. He paused for a moment before he asked, "Brian, you _are_ happy...right?"

Brian's mouth hung open. _Where had THAT come from?_ He huffed in disbelief. "What the fuck, Justin? How could you even _ask_ that?" He reached over to cup his hand under his partner's jaw and force the mesmerizing, blue eyes that he knew so well to look at him. He slowly stroked the slightly stubbled skin under his touch as he reminded him, "Justin...You know me better than anyone, just like I know you. So how you could even question that..." He scooted over closer until their upper legs were touching. "You...You, Gus, and the girls...you complete me. You all give me a reason to get up in the morning, and a reason to come home at night. As much as I have always loved having Katie here with me, I don't think I really understood how empty I felt inside until you and Kaylee came back into my life. It...It was like a big piece had been missing." He dropped his hand down to grasp Justin's in his. "Justin...Shit...I don't know what else to say, except that I love you. I never _stopped_ loving you. And now I can't imagine any other kind of life. I wouldn't _want_ any other kind of life." He slowly rubbed his thumb over Justin's hand before he whispered, "Does that adequately answer your question, Sunshine?"

Justin's eyes watered. Yes, he thought it did. Now, there was only one _other _question he had to ask. And as much as he was dying to ask it right now, he couldn't. It would have to wait until later. He nodded then. "Yes," he managed to croak out, his voice breaking just a bit. "Just...feeling a bit nostalgic today, I guess."

Brian stilled his hand to reply, "Well, past memories are nice to have. But I think it's time we start making _new_ memories now, don't you?"

Justin nodded with a smile. "Yeah, me, too." He told him. "Definitely."

Brian nodded in relief. He exhaled a deep breath. "You know, Kaylee has a real eye for photography," he told him. "She might just make a hell of a photographer one day." He and Kaylee had printed out several of the photos Kaylee had taken outdoors on photo paper, and Brian had framed several of them to display in various locations throughout the house, just like the proud father that he was. "I think her keen, artistic sense of style came from you, Sunshine."

Justin smiled. "I'm not sure if you realize just how much she has enjoyed spending all that one-on-one time with you. I don't think I've ever seen her so happy, Brian. You're spoiling her."

"Looks who's talking!" Brian remarked with a laugh. "Katie now thinks she's the next, best thing to Georgia O'Keefe." His voice softened as he added, "Kaylee's not the _only_ one who's had the time of her life these past few weeks. She loves painting with you, Justin." He rolled his lips under. "Please tell me, though, that you're finally done. When you don't show up on time for dinner, I know it's _really_ serious. And Kaylee's getting tired of THIS father attempting to cook."

Justin burst out laughing. "You? I figured you were ordering a deivery of some kind on the days when Katie and I worked through dinner. Now that I know you're subjecting our daughter to possible food poisoning, though, I'll make sure to fix dinner myself from now on." He smiled at Brian's look of indignation. "Well, don't worry, Dad. Now that we're done, you won't be placed in that awkward position again - and our daughter will be safe from jeopardy."

"I am more than happy to relinquish that duty over to you, Sunshine," Brian told him. He smiled. "Katie really seemed pleased with the painting the two of you did. I'm just a little surprised it took this long to finish, though."

Justin averted his eyes then, hoping Brian didn't see the look of guilt there. But it was for a good cause, wasn't it? He glanced back at him as he explained, "Well, she wanted to make sure it was perfect, so we spent more time than normal on it. I'm glad you liked it."

"I would have loved anything she helped you paint, you know that," Brian murmured. "I'll make sure your painting of Britin has a place of honor at Kinnetik in my office." He paused. "I loved it, but I'm a little surprised you didn't make it a little more personal."

Justin sputtered, "Personal?"

Brian nodded. "Yeah. You know - personal. Like maybe Gus, or their grandmothers. Or maybe you and me, since I know the girls are so thrilled to have us back together."

Justin squeezed Brian's hand. "They're not the only ones," he whispered softly, effectively steering the subject away from his and Katie's painting. He didn't want Brian to suspect that the painting he and Katie had done of the front grounds of Britin had merely been an elaborate ruse, and that, in actuality, there were _two _paintings.

Brian smiled as he reached over to grasp Justin by the scruff of the neck to pull him in for a kiss. As they broke apart, he whispered in his ear, "Well, now that you have me _up_, I could use a shower. Care to join me?"

As always, Justin's pulse raced at the sultry look on Brian's face, and the seductive tone of his voice. He nodded as Brian nuzzled his neck for a few moments for good measure before he rose from the window seat, pulling Justin up with him. "Come on, Sunshine - time's a wasting. You have a birthday party to organize."

"I do?" he replied with a quirk of his mouth. "And what is your job going to be today while I'm hard at work?"

"Mine's going to be to stay out of the way," Brian quipped as he smacked Justin on his butt. "Now come on - my cock has a date with your ass this morning."

"How romantic," Justin replied, rolling his eyes as Brian thrust his tongue into his cheek impertinently. Justin laughed at his antics, despite his stomach churning. He didn't know why he was so nervous about what he was planning to do later. Why did he think he had anything to worry about, especially when Brian was gazing over at him with love shining so clearly in his eyes? Still, until he heard that one word he was yearning to hear - and until he could slip that ring onto his finger again - he would still have that one, slender tendril of doubt. The afternoon couldn't come soon enough for him. Either way, he had to know.

"Justin? Coming?"

He turned to peer over at his partner. For once, there was no hint of flippancy in his voice, only a genuine question, and almost a hint of vulnerability in the hazel eyes.

Justin smiled. "I'm definitely planning on it," he finally told him as Brian grinned.

Holding out his hand to him, Justin placed his hand in his as they walked toward the master bathroom.

* * *

><p>Chapter End Notes:<p>

_Will have the final part up very soon - working on it now. Thank you for reading, and for all the support! It is greatly appreciated. :)_


	37. The Knight On the Not-So-White Steed

_Justin's surprise for his partner risks being ruined by an unexpected turn of events. Will Kaylee wind up saving the day for both her fathers?_

_Ten O'clock..._

"Kaylee, you have got to be kidding!" Brian groused at his daughter as she held up one of his shirts in front of him and a pair of linen dress pants; he was presently clad only in a white, Egyptian-cotton bath sheet, wrapped securely around his waist. Somehow, a few minutes ago, his daughter had decreed this morning that, as one of the 'birthday girls,' she would get to choose what he would wear to her and her sister's soiree. He had congenially agreed to go along with her decision. After all, they were still his clothes in the master closet; how could she go wrong with her choice, then? Nothing he had would really clash color-wise; with his wardrobe that was virtually impossible. He always wore darker clothes for the most part that all complimented each other. But he soon found out in a way that he was wrong, as she held up what she had decided he should wear: a long-sleeved, maroon shirt that shimmered under the bedroom's overhead light, a dark, gray button-up vest with light gray pinstripes, and a pair of dark, charcoal dress pants. The pants would be fine at Kinnetik for an important meeting with a client, and the shirt might have been appropriate if he were trying to focus everyone's attention on him at Babylon - which, for the record, he rarely visited now - but a child's 12th birthday party?

He sighed as she eyed him from a few feet away. "Kaylee...Princess...I'm sure you have good taste in clothes," he began in an attempt to mollify her, "but this is a birthday party up on a mountain, and we're riding up there in one of the ATVs. Don't you think maybe a nice pair of my good jeans, and a cotton shirt might be more appropriate?" Surely she would see the rationale in that; after all, his daughters - both of them - were impetuous at times but also very sensible. To his consternation, however, she shook her head stubbornly.

"Dad, don't you want to look nice for our birthday party?"

"Well, yes, of course, but..."

"You told me I could pick out what you were going to wear because it's my birthday, remember?"

"I know, but..."

"Are you going to go against your word now?" she asked him pointblank, her blue eyes boring into his.

Brian opened his mouth to speak, but then shut it again. "I guess not," he finally decided as she smiled at him in triumph and nodded. "Am I going barefoot, then?" he asked, one side of his mouth quirking upward in amusement.

She grinned as she walked over and handed the clothes to him. "No, but I thought you could handle that part. Just make sure the shoes are black and not brown to go with your pants. When I take pictures, I want you to be color coordinated."

Brian had to guffaw at that statement. "Color coordinated, huh?" he replied as he took the pants and shirt and laid them flat onto the bed. Kaylee nodded. "Well, I'll make sure my socks and underwear match, too, then."

"Dad!" she responded, blushing as he grinned back at her, tongue in cheek. "I'm going to go check on Daddy now," she reported as she headed toward the door. Just before she left, however, she turned around to add, "And NO cheating! I'm not riding up with you unless you're wearing that outfit."

Brian rolled his eyes good-naturedly. "Yes, Ma'am," he responded with a smile. He shook his head in amusement before he walked over to the dresser to find the rest of his clothing, wondering if Justin had been subjected to the same treatment as he.

He hadn't seen his partner since they had showered a while ago, and Justin had told him afterward that he was going to go check on the girls to make sure they were up and getting dressed themselves. At the time, he had been wearing a pair of his favorite, ratty, old sweatpants and a short-sleeved t-shirt. But something told him he wouldn't be the _only_ one subjected to the 'royal treatment' today. He grinned as he grabbed his clothes and walked over toward the bathroom to start getting ready. After all, this was a special day for his girls, and, overdressed or not, if it made them happy, it was good enough for him.

He glanced over at the clock on top of the nightstand just before he entered the bathroom, determining it was still fairly early - only 10:00. The party wasn't due to start until noon, and he knew Daphne had yet to show up. She would be riding up with Katie once she got here, probably together on Eton, the larger horse. She had been wanting to get into horseback riding again, but Katie had mentioned that it might be better and safer - for both of them - if they rode up on the same horse, and her mother had agreed.

Justin and Gus would be taking one of the two ATVs, since they were toting the party supplies up there in the backseat. That left him - and his 'fashion-conscious' daughter - to take the remaining ATV to join them. Justin had told him earlier to make sure he had Kaylee up there no later than noon; he and Gus would be heading up about an hour before that to get everything ready for the celebration. He wasn't sure why there was such a tight schedule everyone seemed to want to follow - it was just an informal party between the six of them - but it seemed to be important to his partner and his daughters, so he really didn't mind. He grimaced as he closed the bathroom door behind him and, dropping the towel into the hamper nearby, slid his arms through the slippery fabric of the shirt. "You sure want me dressed up for this shindig, don't you, Kaylee?" he murmured. Shaking his head, he proceeded to continue getting dressed in his 'assigned' birthday outfit.

* * *

><p><em>Same Time - Downstairs<em>

"I'll get it!" Katie screamed before her father had a chance to respond, turning from her place at the kitchen counter and rushing down the hall toward the front door. A few seconds later, Justin could hear the door being opened and his daughter greeting her mother, followed by the sound of Kaylee chiming in a few seconds later as she flew down the steps to join them. Then their voices grew decidedly quieter, punctuated by an occasional giggle as they walked back toward the kitchen. He looked down at the coffee cup in his hand, noticing his hand shaking and wondering if their nerves were as on edge as his were. He didn't know why he was so restless or worried, especially after his talk with Brian earlier.

He groaned inwardly as he replayed it back in his mind; it's a wonder his partner didn't somehow figure out what he was up to with his questions. Why did he ask Brian if he was happy? _Shit_. Didn't he already know that? He knew Brian loved him, just as much as he loved HIM. Was there really any doubt what his answer to his proposal would be, then? "Hell, yeah," he couldn't help muttering as the girls and their mom approached. If there wasn't any doubt, he wouldn't be questioning himself right now. Brian was, if anything, still on the unpredictable side. Until he was able to slide that wedding band onto his partner's finger - and see it on his hand - he would still be left wondering and fretting. Well, one thing was clear: he was going to find out soon enough...

He nodded with a half-smile as Daphne walked up to him, noticing she was wearing a pair of long, flared, dressy, beige culottes, a chocolate-brown, long-sleeved shirt, and a matching vest; a simple strand of delicate pearls and a set of small, matching pearl-drop earrings topped off her outfit, along with a pair of dark brown, leather boots peeking out under her calf-length cuffs. Her outfit was an exact replica of the ones the girls were wearing, except theirs were a shade of maroon with a charcoal shirt to match the color scheme their father upstairs had been told to wear. "Howdy!" she greeted him with a grin. She glanced behind her down the hallway before she lowered her voice. "Ready to get hitched, pardner?" she teased him. The two girls giggled as she frowned at the somewhat pale look on her friend's face. "What is it? Are you feeling ill? Justin, why aren't you wearing your shoes?" she inquired; her friend's bare feet stood out conspicuously against his dressy outfit, which consisted of a navy vest and matching pants, and a light, gray-blue shirt that highlighted his eyes. "You only have a couple of hours, and you need to get up there ahead of time! Where's Gus..." she lowered her voice conspiratorially as she added... "and the minister?"

"Shh!" Justin hissed, his eyes wide as he glanced down the hallway to make sure Brian wasn't coming down. "Do you want him to hear? I'm nervous enough as it is!"

"Ohhh," she responded knowingly. "So _that's_ why you have that look! For crying out loud, Justin, I thought we already discussed this! Will you just calm down? You have nothing to worry about! Besides, he can never say no to his girls, and they'll back you up 100% in this...Right, girls?"

Two blond heads nodded vigorously as Justin bit his lip. "Thanks...I think."

Daphne rolled her eyes. "You still didn't answer my question. Where're the best man and the minister?"

"They're out back at the barn already. Gus texted me a few minutes ago; they're going to head on up there and wait for us in the cabin until we get there. He's got all the paperwork Brian and I will need to sign before the ceremony."

Daphne's eyes sparkled. "Good thing West Virginia is a no-wait state," she told him with a smile. She reached over and squeezed his shoulder briefly, noting the worrisome look on her friend's face. "It's all going to work out," she told him. "Before this afternoon is over, you will be a _married_ man! And I'll be a happy woman!" She glanced over at her daughters. "And you'll have two happy daughters!"

Justin winced, feeling like he was presently drowning in a sea of female hormones. "Uh...shouldn't you and Katie be going, too?" he quietly urged, needing some time alone for some reflection before he and Brian hopefully took this monumental step in their relationship. He thought briefly of spiking his now lukewarm coffee with some Beam to bolster his wavering self-confidence, but he thought better of it, although it _was _tempting.

"Yeah..." Daphne agreed, noticing they had 90 minutes now until it was time. "Ready, Honey?" she asked Katie, who nodded with a smile. "We'll meet you up there, Justin. Now go find your shoes and the rest of what you need."

Justin nodded before he called after their retreating forms. "Wait!" Mother and daughter stopped to turn around as he explained, "There's something I want to give Katie first."

Katie walked over to stand next to her father. "What is it, Daddy?" she asked peering up at him.

Justin smiled as he walked over to the pull-out, spice cabinet and retrieved two, small, thin, white boxes. "These are for you," he told his two daughters as he handed one to each girl. "I guess you can call this a combination birthday/maid of honor present," he told them softly as both girls opened the lid of their box simultaneously before they erupted with a collective gasp: nestled inside was a gold locket with the words _Special Daughter_ inscribed on the front.

"Go ahead; open them," he urged both of them softly.

Inside the heart-shaped lockets were two compartments where Justin had placed a couple of photos - one showing him and Brian when they were younger, and another of both girls. "That picture of the two of you was taken when you were about a year old," he told them softly, his eyes misting over in memory. "You were always such happy little girls back then. And the other one was taken of your father and me not too long after we first met."

He paused as he walked over and took Katie's locket out of the cotton backing to separate the clasp from the chain. Walking around to stand behind his daughter, he reached to drape it over her chest as he reconnected it, adding, "And finally, today, my two daughters are back together again. Which makes today all that much more special."

He repeated the procedure as he took Kaylee's necklace out of her palm and hooked it around her neck. Smiling at both of them tenderly, he slightly straightened out Kaylee's locket as he told them approvingly, "There...they look perfect on both my special daughters now." He glanced over at Daphne, whose eyes were glistening. "Don't they look beautiful, Daph?" he whispered.

She nodded with a smile. "They certainly do," she agreed as she peered over at them. They had both become such wonderful, young ladies. She couldn't help how her heart swelled with pride over that fact. Justin and Brian had raised them well, despite their separation.

"Daddy..." Kaylee's eyes welled up as the fingers of her left hand brushed reverently over the two photos. "It's so wonderful...These are for _us_?"

Justin smiled warmly at the two of them, noticing that Katie's eyes were watery as well. Her mouth was open slightly in awe as she held the gold locket in the palm of her hand and peered at the writing on top. "Of course," he told them. "It's always customary to get a gift of appreciation to the bridesmaids on a groom's wedding day."

Katie burst out then, "Oh, Daddy!" Justin had just enough advance warning to stoop down and accept his daughter into an embrace as she flung herself into his waiting arms. "Thank you," she whispered as she burrowed her face into his side, Justin instinctively knowing her expression of gratitude wasn't just for a piece of jewelry. She wasn't the _only_ one, however, who was grateful for everything he had been blessed with. He held out one arm as Kaylee joined them a few seconds later. Glancing over at Daphne, he blinked, the tears trickling freely down his face now unabated as she smiled back at him in understanding.

He held them for a few seconds until he took a deep breath to compose himself and wiped his tears away with his sleeve. Exhaling, he disentangled himself gently from his daughters' embrace as he reminded them, "We'd better get busy, girls, okay?" They nodded at him. "Kaylee, will you go make sure your father is finishing getting dressed, and that he waits about thirty more minutes before the two of you head up to the cabin? Maybe you can talk about your cameras, and the photos you'll want to take later. Or about the cats," he said with a grin. "That should keep him occupied for a while. And Daphne, you, Katie, and I had better be heading out to the stables so we can get a head start on him. I just have to pick up a few things that we'll need up there first."

Daphne nodded. "Ready to go?" she asked Katie, who nodded back at her with an excited smile. "Well, then, let's get saddled up!" She looked over at father and daughter as she told Justin, "We'll see you up top shortly, then."

Justin nodded as Daphne and Katie walked over to the sliding glass door and exited onto the back patio. "I guess this is it," he told his daughter with a nervous smile. "I have some things I need to carry out to the ATV before I leave. But I'm counting on you to keep your father busy upstairs until I can get everything out there. It shouldn't take me more than a few minutes. But give me a little extra time, just to make sure I have all of it out of the front closet. I'm counting on you, Kaylee. Can you do it?"

"Of course, Daddy!" she exclaimed as if it had never been a question. "You _know_ me!"

Justin chuckled. "Yes, I do," he told her with a grin. "And I think I picked out the perfect person for the job. Now get going, Sweetheart, before your Dad comes down to see what's going on."

Right on cue, Justin's heart pounded as he heard Brian calling him from their upstairs bedroom. "Justin!"

Father and daughter exchanged a nervous look as Justin rushed down the hall to stand by the end of the staircase. "Yeah?"

"I can't find my black boots!" Brian told him. "Where are they?"

_Shit_, Justin silently exclaimed as he rushed to press his slender body up against the nearby wall so Brian wouldn't see him in case he came out of the bedroom. He knew it made him sound like some hetero bride, but he wasn't taking any chances on anything going wrong today, and that included Brian being aware of how dressed up he was, too. That would only add to his partner's suspicions, and Brian was a very perceptive, shrewd person; besides, one look at his face, and he would know that something was up. "Uh...Kaylee knows where they are!" he finally shouted back at him. "I'm busy taking things out to the ATV for the party! She'll come up and show you, okay?" He held his breath as he waited for a reply.

Just as he feared, he heard a creaking noise coming from the second-floor hallway as Brian came to stand at the top of the steps, scanning the area below for his partner's presence as he placed his hands on his hips. He frowned slightly when all he saw was Kaylee standing there. "Where did your father go?" he asked.

The lie came smoothly off their daughter's lips as she answered quickly, "He went back into the kitchen, Dad. Said he had to find some more plastic silverware and the birthday candles for the cake. I'll come up and find your boots for you," she told him.

Brian stood there for a few seconds before he finally nodded. "Okay, but good luck! I've looked all over for them." He scowled before he turned and headed back toward the bedroom. Unbeknownst to Brian, however, Justin had moved his boots from the master bedroom closet to the guest bedroom he had been sleeping in before, instinctively knowing that his partner would choose those to wear with his dressier outfit today. It seemed his hunch - and possible delaying tactic - was going to come in handy.

Kaylee grinned - having been let in on the subterfuge with the boots yesterday - as she nodded back at her father before shouting up the steps, "I'm coming, Dad!" Letting out another deep breath, Justin set out quickly to get to work.

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen Minutes Later...<em>

"Well, Kaylee...Are you satisfied, Birthday Girl?" Brian asked as he emerged, fully-dressed and groomed, from the master bathroom. He laughed as his daughter left forth with a decidedly, unladylike wolf whistle of appreciation. "You can whistle?" he asked in surprise. "Your father can't whistle at all."

She nodded as she proceeded to whistle him a short version of "Happy Birthday to You," just catching herself from whistling the initial strains of "The Wedding March" instead. "I know...we used to have a cockatiel," she reported to him. "And it always drove Daddy crazy, because he was the only one in the house who couldn't whistle the theme to the "Andy Griffith Show." She grimaced. "But Creamsickle wound up being too messy, and the cats drove him crazy, so we finally gave him to my best friend, Carrie."

"Creamsickle?"

She nodded. "He kind of looked like an orange and white Creamsickle, so that's what we named him."

Brian chuckled. "I see. Well, hopefully, I meet with your approval," he told her with a grin. "I'd hate for you to give ME away."

She giggled. "Don't worry, Dad, you're here to stay," she reassured him as Brian nodded.

"You bet I am," he whispered back to her. "So, you like?"

She nodded vigorously. "You look beautiful, Dad," she told him firmly. She mentally thought about how wonderful her two fathers would look in their wedding photos later. She couldn't wait to take their picture together once they were married!

"Kaylee?"

She blinked, not realizing she had been daydreaming a little about the near future. "Yeah, Dad?"

Brian smiled warmly over at her. "I was just saying that I'm not the _only_ one who looks beautiful today," he told her. He furrowed his brow in curiosity as his eyes lit upon the gleaming piece of jewelry around her neck. "Is that new?" he asked her as he walked up and noticed the words _Special Daughter_ inscribed on top of the locket.

Kaylee nodded with a sort of shy smile. "Daddy gave it to me a little while ago as an early birthday present. He gave one to Katie, too," she reported. "He put some pictures inside of all of us," she added.

Brian walked a little closer as he gently grasped the delicate, heart-shaped locket and pried it open with his fingernails. His heart skipped a beat as he immediately recognized the photos inside. He couldn't help smiling in recollection as he told his daughter, "That was very thoughtful of your father. And he chose a couple of my favorite photos to put in there, too." He gently closed the locket back up as he told her softly, "And you ARE special daughters; _both _of you."

Kaylee beamed back at him as he asked, "All set to head up to the mountain now?"

She nodded, realizing that sufficient time had lapsed now for her father and the others to have gone on ahead of them.

Brian reached for her hand as he told her, "Well, let's get this party started, then."

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen Minutes Later - BarnStables_

Kaylee sat on a nearby bundle of straw, biting her lip fretfully as she heard her father let forth with a string of frustrated profanities under his breath. She watched wide-eyed, as he unexpectedly flung the heavy, metal wrench he had been holding in his hand across the dirt floor of the barn, hearing it clank against a metal feeding tub for the horses.

"Shit!" Brian roared, his shirt sleeves rolled up and sweat pouring off his forehead. He sighed heavily as he finally stood up and faced his daughter regretfully. He hated like hell to have to tell her this, but there was no point in putting it off any longer. "Princess...It's no use. This damn machine is not going to come to life. I have no idea what else to try at this point," he admitted. Normally, he was quite adept by now at tinkering with the various machines scattered around Britin. Over the years, both he and Katie had honed their mechanical and carpentry skills to the point where he could pretty much instinctively figure out how to fix something around the house. In fact, normally he enjoyed being able to secretly gloat over his successes without even looking at the manual. But this time, he had to admit he was in the dark. The damn thing had started the other day, when the girls and Gus had ridden them around the trails with Daphne. Today, however, the best he could get out of the thing was a sputtering engine. Despite his best coaxing - and pulling the sparkplugs out, adding more oil and more gas, and waiting in between attempts to start it - it was not turning over.

He wiped his brow with a white rag as he told her sorrowfully, "I'm really sorry, Kaylee. It's just not going to start. And there's no cell signal up at the cabin, so I can't call anyone up there to ask them to come down and get us. We'll just have to hope they figure out something's wrong eventually, and they send someone down to pick us up. I'm sure they will...but it might take a while."

Kaylee's reaction to his news, however, was unprecedented, even for her, as she jumped off the bale of straw, scrunched up her face in dismay and wailed, "NO, Dad! We HAVE to get up there _now!_ Please, you have to do something! Call a mechanic! Wash it out with a hose! Put a new part in it! But we can't _stay_ here! We have to get up there somehow right away!"

Brian peered over at her, astounded by her melodramatic, emotional outburst. "Kaylee...I know it's been a long time since we've been able to celebrate yours and Katie's birthdays together, but it's not the end of the world! We'll still get up there," he assured her with a smile. "Although, with your father's penchant for eating sweets I can't guarantee all of the cake will still be there before we do. Don't worry, though; it'll be all right."

"No, Dad!" Kaylee cried out as she walked up to him and grabbed his wrists. "You...You don't understand! Please! Think of something!" She had recalled her father mentioning the other day to her mother that the minister would have to leave no later than 3:30 today, since he had another wedding to officiate in the evening back in Wheeling. She knew, then, that if they didn't get up to that cabin soon, there was a good chance the wedding would have to be postponed...or worse. That was a chance she wasn't willing to take. She sniffled, the tears running down her face as she thought about what her Daddy must be going through up on the mountain. He had to be worried sick by now about them. But what could she do? She sniffled in heartbreak, just before she heard a soft whinny coming from Ceres' direction over in his stall located a few feet away. Her eyes widened as an idea began to bloom; a crazy, desperate idea that both terrified but also excited her.

Brian looked down at his distraught daughter helplessly. Why was she so upset? It wasn't as if the world was coming to an end, although to a 12-year-old, perhaps it felt that way. "Kaylee..." he began, wondering if it might be a good idea after all to call in a mechanic. But he knew if he did, it would take far longer than it would for Justin or Gus to realize something was amiss and come find them. In the small 'burg they lived in, there wasn't even a mechanic in town; he would have to summon one from the next town over. It simply wasn't worth doing under the circumstances, but at the same time he couldn't stand to see his daughter so upset. He took a deep breath, prepared to explain again that they would just have to wait until someone noticed they were missing, but he did not have the chance before Kaylee interrupted him.

"Dad...I know a way we can get up there," she told him quietly, staring up into his concerned eyes.

Brian frowned. "How?"

Kaylee swallowed hard. She could do this...She _had_ to do this... "We...We can ride up there...on Ceres."

Her father's eyes widened in astonishment. "Ceres? The horse you were injured on?"

She nodded as she bit her lower lip; her heart was pounding in trepidation over the thought of getting back up on top of the horse, but she could do this. She could do this, because her desire to see her fathers married - and her love for them and for the rest of her family - would provide her with the shield of protection she needed to triumph over her fears. "Dad...I can do it," she pleaded. "I know I can. Please! You don't know how important this is to me. We have to get up there!"

Brian sighed. "Kaylee, are you sure?" he pressed, eyeing her doubtfully. "Absolutely sure?"

Kaylee nodded her head again, more resolutely this time. "Yes, I'm sure. Please..." Her eyes bored into his, reminding him so much of her father's. He never could resist Justin when he looked at him much the same way, and with the same, beseeching tone of voice. "Well...we'll need to find you a helmet..." he began, and Kaylee knew he had made his decision.

Her heart was a mixture of both joy and anxiety as she nodded again in agreement.

Brian gently released himself from her grasp to walk over to the metal cabinet and retrieve a helmet. As he held it up, he realized it was the same one Kaylee had worn on that horrific day, and quickly put it back to reach for a different-colored one in the same size. Turning around, he heard his daughter command softly, "You, too, Dad. I want you safe, too."

He smiled then wistfully, remembering another time when he himself had made the same statement to her father. Had it been that long ago? The truth was, though, he _still_ wanted Justin safe. He would always feel that way about him - and his daughters, and Gus. Nodding, then, he lightly tossed the helmet to Kaylee as he donned his own, taking care to attach the strap under his chin before doing the same to his daughter's, ensuring that hers fit snugly and properly.

Noticing the worried expression on her face, he reminded her, "Kaylee, we don't have to do..."

She shook her head obstinately. "No, Dad, we do! I'm okay. As long as you're with me, I know I'll be okay."

Smiling tenderly at her, he nodded back. "Let me go get Ceres, then, and we'll get started."

Her heart pounding in reluctant anticipation, Kaylee watched as her father walked toward Ceres' stall, soothed somewhat by the knowledge that what she was doing would mean the difference between success or failure. That knowledge served to bolster her courage as she waited to mount the horse; that, and her father's love and strength for her.

* * *

><p><p>

Chapter End Notes:

_I really did try to conclude this in one last chapter - honest! LOL! But when I got to over 17,000 words, I knew it was getting way too big. So I'm posting part of it now, and will post the other part probably no later than Sunday. Just a little more to write. Thanks for bearing with me. Conclusion will definitely be in the next chapter! _


	38. Forever and a Day

_Brian finds out there is more to the girls' birthday than he thinks. What will his answer be?_

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><p><em>Same Time...Near the Cabin<em>

"Justin..." Daphne eyed her friend with concern; he had his back to her, lost in thought as he gazed out over the captivating vista of pine-blanketed mountains, wildflowers, and fields below. It would normally be a serene scene that would calm frayed nerves and instantly reduce stress and anxiety. But she could tell by the rigid stance of his shoulders that it was doing nothing of the kind. "I'm sure there's a good reason why they're running late..."

Justin turned around, worry etched on his face. "Or they're not coming at all..." he couldn't help adding as his hand curled around the ring presently clutched in his left hand - _Brian's _ring. He looked over at the minister and Gus standing several feet away, quietly conversing between themselves near a large boulder. Katie sat, dejected looking and worried herself, over at the nearby picnic table. Everyone was no doubt feeling the same sense of foreboding that he was.

"Justin, don't say that!" Daphne admonished him sharply. "Brian has no idea what's going on up here! And he wouldn't want Kaylee to miss her own birthday party! So you just put those kinds of thoughts out of your head right now!"

"But then why aren't they here? Have you considered that maybe Kaylee just couldn't keep it a secret any longer, and Brian _does _know after all? Maybe I already have my answer, then...without him even being here." He shook his head as he turned around to gaze down at the valley far below, his thoughts a jumble of emotions. They had come so far...so very far. Was this the result?

He shook his head as he turned back around to face his friend. "Well, either way, I don't care," he told her, more to convince himself than her. "I still love him. And...And even if he _doesn't_ want to get married, that's okay, too. I can live with that."

"Justin..."

"No, I can," he insisted.

"But you have your heart set on this," she reminded him quietly, always able to see right through him. She always _had_, actually, he thought to himself silently. He nodded, swallowing hard and closing his eyes briefly. He let out a deep breath to compose himself as he turned to peer over at his daughter, who was clutching her hands tightly in her lap, her own disappointment clearly written all over her face. For her sake, he had to stop wallowing in his own self-pity and think of her, instead. "I...I'd better go talk to Katie," he told his friend. "I'll be all right."

"Want me to come with you?" she asked softly.

He shook his head with a sad smile. "Thanks, but I think this is something I need to handle alone. I hope you understand..."

She nodded. "I'll be right here if you need me."

Justin grasped Daphne by the upper arms and leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks, Daph," he whispered as she smiled at him sympathetically.

Justin started over then to his daughter, trying to decide in his mind just what he was going to say to her. He did not want to make Brian out to be the bad guy here. If Brian did not want to get married, nothing would change. They would still all live together in the same house, and he would ensure that their daughters would never be separated again. He would never perhaps get to fulfill one of his more fervent dreams...but he could live with that. He _had_ to live with that...

He had just taken a few steps, however, when he noticed his daughter's entire body seem to come alive with excitement as a binding smile broke out on her face. He watched as she jumped up from her place on the picnic bench and turned to look over at him, her face aglow with euphoria. "Daddy! Daddy, it's _them_! It's Dad and Kaylee! Look!"

Justin turned to observe what Katie was pointing at, and he couldn't believe his eyes: Kaylee was astride Ceres with a slightly disheveled-looking Brian sitting behind her, one arm securely wrapped around her waist as he held onto the reins with the other. He watched, stunned, as Ceres loped up to him and Katie until Brian came to a stop near the cabin, issuing a soft 'whoa' as he pulled up next to the wooden railing. Dismounting adroitly, he turned to hold his hands up to help Kaylee down before the two of them unsnapped their chin straps and yanked off their respective riding helmets to lay them down on the ground, both of them shaking their heads to dislodge the sweaty hair that had become plastered to their scalps during the ride.

His hand on Kaylee's shoulder, Brian led her over to his partner, who stood there with his mouth open in astonishment. "Hey," he greeted him nonchalantly, as if it were the most normal thing in the world for them to trot up to the cabin on a horse like John Wayne. "Have we missed anything exciting yet?"

Justin stood there in shock, trying to formulate the words. "Brian...What? How?" He looked over at his daughter then, who was grinning in amusement over his attempt to speak. If he didn't know better, he would say she actually looked smug. "Kaylee...What...?"

Brian smirked. "Good thing you don't have to be real glib for this birthday bash, Sunshine," he teased him with a smile. He raised his voice slightly as he announced, "Sorry we're late. The ATV wouldn't start - so we wound up having to use a more fuel-economical means of transportation." He smiled down at his daughter as he squeezed her shoulder. "You did great, Kaylee. You can be my riding partner any day." He peered over at his partner as he told him, "She was very persistent that we had to get up here right away. And very brave, too," he added, the pride clearly evident in his voice.

Kaylee beamed at the praise as she looked over at Justin. "I told you I would get him up here, didn't I?" she told her father.

Justin smiled at her affectionately. "Yes, you did, Sweetheart." He looked over at Brian, who had a quizzical expression on his face; apparently it was because he had just noticed his little family wasn't quite alone. He watched him staring at the unfamiliar, middle-aged man wandering over to them with Gus. "Who's that?' he couldn't help asking Justin as they approached.

Justin took a deep breath. This wasn't quite the way he had pictured this moment, but it was now or never. "I asked him here," he began softly as Gus and the minister joined them. Everyone was present and accounted for. Now there was only one, last thing that had to be done.

Brian frowned as he noticed all eyes upon him, like everyone knew the punch line of a joke except him. "What for?" he asked. He noticed the man opening his mouth as if to explain, only to have Gus hold up his hand in a silent signal for him to remain silent. The man nodded as, once again, everyone turned to stare at Brian. "What?" he asked again in bewilderment, holding his hands out, palms up, in confusion.

He watched then as his partner turned to face him, staring intently into his eyes as if he desperately wanted to say something, but was hesitant to. Slightly exasperated, Brian opened his mouth to demand what the fuck was going on; that is, until Justin reached inside his pants pocket and pulled out an object he was instantly familiar with. Brian's eyes grew large as a pair of expressive, blue ones lifted almost shyly to stare into his with a sense of uncertainty, and it was then that he understood exactly why his tenderhearted daughter had been so intent on getting up here. "Justin..." he murmured in shock, but his partner shook his head to silence him.

"Brian..." Justin could feel the heat on his face; he knew everyone was staring at them, but for now he concentrated on his partner. For just a few moments, he wanted this to be just between the two of them. He took a deep breath to steel himself to start over again before he lost his nerve. "Brian, it took us a long time to get to where we are now. And sometimes I guess we both wondered if we would ever reach this point in our lives again." He paused, feeling his eyes misting over. He smiled at his partner then as he whispered, "But we did. And we rediscovered this amazing family in the process." He looked around at all the people gathered around them; all the people he loved so deeply, and he couldn't help smiling at them as they, too, smiled back in encouragement.

Emboldened by their support, he turned back to stare at his silent partner. Brian's eyes were staring into his intently, the sun above casting a prism of colors off the eyes he knew so well. The intensity of his gaze made him feel both hopeful as well as nervous for some reason. "I...I know several years ago we had a ceremony to privately express our commitment to each other. In a way, so much has changed since then, but it has also stayed the same. We always loved our children - _all_ of them," he clarified as he glanced over at Gus, wanting him to know he would always be considered a part of their close family unit. Gus half-smiled at him in acknowledgment before he added more softly, "...And I never stopped loving you all this time. And now I know without any doubt that I want to spend the rest of my life with you; you and our children." He paused for a second before continuing to compose his thoughts; he hadn't really written anything down for this moment; he was going strictly by the heart now. "Like I said, I know we've done something like this before. But in a way, this is a fresh start for us today. For _all_ of us. And I can't think of a better day while we are celebrating the birth of our two daughters to also celebrate our love for each other. So..." He took another deep breath. _Here goes..._ "Brian Kinney, would you do me the honor of marrying me today, here, in the presence of all our family?" He held the familiar, shiny band out toward his partner with a shaky hand, his heart on his sleeve and his emotions laid bare.

A pin could have dropped at that moment in the silence; even the birds seem to stop singing, and the wind that normally gently caressed the pine trees seemed to stop blowing as everyone waited for Brian to speak.

Justin held his breath, dying a little inside for each second that went by, before Brian finally blinked as if he were coming out of a trance. He licked his lips as if he needed to wet them before he turned to gaze over at his daughter with a smirk on his face. "So _this_ is why I had to get so dressed up?" he asked her softly. "Why you wanted to get up here so badly?" Kaylee nodded silently as he returned the gesture with a single nod of his own.

His gaze swept around then to linger on his other daughter and then his son standing next to the ready-made minister before his eyes settled back on his partner's face. He glanced down at the ring Justin held in his left hand, and he imagined what it would be like to see Justin wearing his own ring. The thought filled him with...what was the right word? He wondered silently. Not fear. Not anxiety. Not hesitation. No. It filled him with a sense of completeness, a sense of elation. A sense of ...family, of belonging. As he lifted his gaze to look into the fathomless pools of blue - and a face that stared back at him with a mixture of unabashed love but also insecurity - he knew there would not be any cockiness, any teasing, any attempt at prolonging his answer just to torment his partner. No typical, Brian Kinney snarkiness. He simply could not do that. Not to this man who had become his soul mate so long ago and always would be. He took a deep breath and let it out between slightly parted lips as he reached out and grasped the warm, slightly callused, artist's hand of his partner, feeling it tremble beneath his grip as he offered a faint smile of reassurance. "Let's do it," he finally whispered back at him; a decision that could only be heard by the two of them, despite the pregnant silence surrounding them.

He could feel Justin's hand tighten slightly in his grasp as the blond looked over at him hesitantly, wondering if he had just imagined what he had said. "What...What did you say?" he asked. "Did you...just say yes?"

Brian did smirk then. "Si, Oui, Ja, Hai, Nai..."

Justin frowned slightly, even as his heart began to pound with hopeful excitement. "That last one sounded a lot like _no_."

"_No_, Daddy!" Katie spoke up then to correct him. "I mean, _yes_! It's yes in Greek! I learned it in school." Her eyes grew wide and an enormous smile of joy broke out on her face as she began to understand the implications. "He said yes!" she shrieked as she grasped her sister's shoulders and began to dance around with her in a circle. "He said yes! They're getting married!" The two of them abruptly grabbed their mother's hand and pulled her into their spontaneous jig as she giggled back at them, the three of them dancing around with glee.

Brian rolled his eyes in amusement. "It seems the party has started without us, Sunshine," he told his partner dryly.

Justin smiled like a fool; he didn't care if he looked like a little kid, too; he was just too happy. The sound of someone clearing their throat nearby made both men turn to peer over at the minister questioningly.

"Uh...Gentlemen, pardon the interruption, but I must remind you I have a wedding in Wheeling I need to attend in 90 minutes. If you're going to do this, it needs to be done _now_."

Justin nodded. He turned to his partner. "Ready?" he whispered to him.

Brian smiled then and nodded, an open, undisguised look on his face that spoke volumes. "I'm MORE than ready," he whispered simply.

The minister quickly secured their signatures on the marriage license before placing it back into a small leather briefcase on top of the picnic table. "If you will all gather together then," he intoned as Gus walked over to stand beside his father. The two exchanged a look between them before Kaylee and Katie walked over to stand next to their brother. Justin smiled over at Daphne as she, too, walked over to stand beside her best friend.

The minister nodded. "I was told to make this brief and to the point," he told them as Justin nodded in confirmation. He had mentioned that Brian would not want some flowery, prolonged ceremony. That was fine with him as well; he didn't care about that. All he cared about was being married to this man. "So, without further ado..." He cleared his throat again. "We are gathered here today to witness the union of Brian Matthew Kinney and Justin William Taylor. Justin, do you take Brian to be your lawful husband?"

Justin swallowed the emotional lump in his throat; he couldn't believe this was really, finally happening. He gripped Brian's hand hard as he managed to utter a hoarse reply. "Yes...A thousand times, yes."

Brian chuckled at his over-the-top response as the minister turned to him next. "And do you, Brian, take Justin to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"Uh..." He hesitated.

Justin stared over at him dumbfounded until he explained, "I'd like to say something first."

The minister nodded as Justin's eyes widened in surprise. He noticed what appeared to be a slightly uncomfortable look on his lover's face as Brian began to speak - words that could only come straight from the heart, but ones that he suspected he might not ever hear.

"Justin...Wow, where to start," Brian half-laughed self-consciously. "I wasn't really expecting to have to practice my extemporaneous linguistic skills during the girls' birthday party today." His expression turned more serious as he continued softly, "But...I just want to say that the day you came into my life -the day my son was born - was one of the best days of my life. I'm not sure at the time that I realized what a difference it would make in my life back then. Not until later. But I still knew there was something..._special_ about you, Sunshine. Something different. And it wasn't just because you were a persistent, snotty brat," he teased.

"I didn't realize I was about to take this fantastic journey; a journey I wasn't even aware I was traveling until, one day, I suddenly realized that I couldn't foresee a time when you weren't in my life; nor would I ever want to." His eyes traveled over to his two daughters, who were standing side by side, their eyes wide with rapt attention. He smiled at them tenderly as he turned to tell Justin, "I never thought I would ever experience the joy that I feel having two such precious, little girls, either, as well as a son. But I do -every single day."

He squeezed Justin's hand then - his warm, oh-so-familiar hand - his heart beating rapturously as reality sank in; he really was about to marry this exquisite man, his soul mate, his everything. "Justin...I will never be perfect, I won't always do what is right. I will make mistakes along the way. But as long as I have you there by my side for the rest of my life, I know that I will always be happy. Oh...and I do, too, by the way."

Justin's eyes shimmered with tears of happiness as he nodded back at him with a grin of relief. Sniffling a little sentimentally, the minister quietly interrupted, "The rings?"

Justin smiled, sniffling, as he held out the palm of his other hand that was still clutching Brian's ring. "Please place it on Brian's finger," the man instructed as Justin gripped Brian's hand with his own and slid the simple, gleaming, intertwined band onto his finger.

"And now you, Brian..."

Gus walked up and dug into his pocket to retrieve Justin's ring he had been keeping for him; reaching over to hand it to his father, Brian smiled at him fondly as he took it out of Gus's palm and held it between his thumb and index finger. Cradling Justin's hand, he felt it trembling under his touch as he slid it smoothly onto his partner's finger. The ritual complete, Brian held his hand in his as the two smiled at each other, their eyes glistening with the joy that both of them were presently feeling.

The minister nodded. "And now, by the power vested in me by the State of West Virginia, I now declare that you are legally married. You may now..." He didn't get a chance to complete his statement before Brian grabbed his new husband by the upper arms and promptly smashed their lips together like a parched man in the desert. Everyone else around them promptly faded away into the background as they wound their arms around each other and kissed each other intensely, their heads tilted to deepen the kiss.

The minister's face turned red at the erotic demonstration of passion in front of him until Daphne finally put an end to their display. "Boys!" She called out sternly." Let's keep it PG, okay?"

The two newlyweds then broke apart sheepishly as the two girls giggled at the look on their faces. "It's okay, Aunt Daphne," Katie reassured her matter-of-factly. "We're used to them sucking face."

Daphne rolled her eyes in amusement. "I should have guessed," she muttered. She walked over to wrap one arm around both men. "Congratulations, you two!" she exclaimed as she gave both of them a kiss on their cheeks. "I wasn't sure I would ever see this day - but I'm so happy for you!"

"Thanks, Daph," Justin told her with a beaming smile; he couldn't help glancing down at the ring now snugly adorning his finger. It seemed so surreal in a way, but he could feel the slightly heavy coldness of the smooth metal, reassuring him that it was, indeed, real. He did know he _was_ sure of one thing: He would never take this ring off for as long as he lived. He felt Brian's hand intertwine with his as he glanced over to him and their eyes met. He blushed slightly for some reason before the two girls bounded up to greet them, their faces broadcasting the same sort of joy that he was experiencing at the moment.

"Let me see! Let me see!" Kaylee shouted as she pulled her father's hand loose from Brian's.

"Me, too!" Katie insisted as both girls took one of their father's hands with the rings on them and clutched them in their much smaller hands. They issued a dreamy sort of collective 'ahh' as they admired the twin bands on each ring hand.

Brian snorted under his breath. "See what you've done, Sunshine? You've turned our other daughter now into a ridiculously romantic sap, too."

Katie glared over at him in insult as Justin pursed his lips together to keep from laughing at her. "Hey!" Katie growled. "I am _not_!" She frowned before asking, "What's a sap, anyway?"

Both men laughed then as Brian smiled at her and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry, Princess; even _I_ can be that way sometimes; your father here tends to have that effect on people." He leaned in to kiss his new husband on the cheek as he shook his head. "Shit...How did I go from ATV mechanic to being married within an hour's time?"

Justin shrugged with a grin. "That's what happens when you're so resourceful. If you hadn't managed a different mode of transportation, you might not be in this predicament right now."

"May I remind you that your daughter was the one who suggested that, Sunshine?"

Justin guffawed. "Oh, so now she's MY daughter," he scoffed as Brian rolled his lips under in response and shrugged. Justin's face softened as he turned to look at Kaylee. "Weren't you scared to get back on Ceres, Honey?" he asked curiously.

She nodded, biting her lower lip.

"Then how did you get the courage to get back on? Your father and I have been trying ever since your accident to convince you to give Ceres another chance. What made the difference this time?"

Kaylee smiled shyly as she explained, "I had to do it, Daddy. I had to do it for love."

Justin's eyes watered as he nodded. That was explanation enough. He already knew that love could overcome a lot of challenges. "Well, I'm glad you did," he told her softly. He looked up as Gus and the minister walked over.

"I need for you and Mr. Kinney to sign the marriage certificate," he told Justin. "And then I'm afraid I need to head back down to my car."

Justin nodded. "I appreciate your willingness to participate in our subterfuge, Reverend," he told the dark-haired, portly man. "Would you like to take a piece of birthday/wedding cake with you?"

The minister chuckled as he shook his head. "Never heard of a dual-purpose cake like that before. Thank you, but no, I really need to get going soon to the other wedding that I'm scheduled to officiate."

Gus interjected, "I'm ready when you are, Reverend," as the man nodded with a thankful smile.

"You're coming back up, aren't you, Sonny Boy?" Brian asked him as he turned to go, the wedding certificate now sitting on the picnic table nearby, officially signed and legal.

Gus nodded with a smile over at his sisters. "Of course! I wouldn't pass up this chance to celebrate my sisters' birthday - and _your_ wedding." He laughed. "I'm not sure which event I find more astounding - or incredible."

Brian reached over to grab his son by the neck and pull him close. "Thanks, Gus," he murmured as he nuzzled his cheek briefly before letting him go.

Gus barked out a short laugh. "For what?"

Brian told him sincerely, "For just being _you_. For being my son. For putting up with your old man." He paused, finding himself slightly overcome, before he added, "I'm very proud of you, Gus."

Gus found himself blinking back tears of his own over the unexpected sentiment as he nodded back at his father with a smile. "I'll be back shortly," he told them. Just as he turned to go, he paused long enough to tell them, "Don't cut the cake until I get back!"

Brian and Justin nodded with a grin as he held out his hand for the minister to lead; a few minutes later, the ATV roared to life as it sped down the hillside trail, back toward the stables.

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><p><em>Two Hours Later...<em>

"Don't forget to wear your helmet, Katie!" Brian called out as his daughter prepared to swing back up into Eton's saddle. Kaylee had already left with her brother, deciding this time to return to Britin in the ATV, while Daphne, a little more comfortable now on horseback, determined she would be all right riding back down alone on Ceres; Katie would be accompanying her on the other horse.

"Dad," she groaned in protest. "I've ridden him a million times..."

Brian sighed from his seat at the picnic table next to Justin. "Katherine Marie..." he began sternly.

That was enough to get his point across as his daughter briefly huffed and rolled her eyes, but she did as he commanded, pushing the pearl-white helmet down onto her head and latching the chin strap before hoisting herself agilely onto the saddle.

Brian nodded at her in approval then, both men waving at their daughter as she pulled on the reins to veer the horse back toward the trail.

"See you tomorrow!" Daphne called out to them, having agreed to watch the girls until they returned to Britin. She grinned, her smile showing under her helmet. "Have fun, boys!" she added with a wink before she dug her heels slightly into Ceres' flank and mother and daughter slowly trotted away.

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><p>At last, the sound of the ATV and clip-clop of the horses faded away, to be replaced with the more familiar sounds of the wilderness: the occasional screech of a hawk, the melodic sound of birdsong, and the wind that blew a warm breeze through the multitude of trees, brushing across their faces like a soothing caress.<p>

Justin sighed as he leaned back against the edge of the picnic tabletop.

"Tired?" he heard Brian whisper softly beside him. He nodded, just before he felt Brian's arm slide around his shoulders to pull him close. He instinctively leaned his head onto his husband's shoulder, a half-smile appearing on his face. "Yeah, but it's a _good _kind of tired," he whispered. "This whole day has been like a dream, Brian," he murmured.

"A good one, I hope."

Justin's smile widened while his eyes remain closed, heightening his sense of touch, smell, and hearing. He nodded slightly. "Oh, yeah...a _very _good one. And if it IS a dream...please don't ever wake me up."

Brian chuckled softly beside him. "It's no dream, Sunshine. You made an honest man out of me, all right; I have the hardware to prove it." Brian couldn't help glancing down at his ring-clad finger, still a little amazed by the fact that he had just gotten _married. _But he found to his surprise that it didn't freak him out; on the contrary, it filled him with a sense of contentment, a sense of belonging, something that had been desperately missing in his life for so long.

In reaction to his statement, Justin raised his head as he opened his eyes to peer up into the amber-colored ones. Their lips inches apart, he asked, "Brian?"

His companion's eyes bored into his as one, perfectly manicured brow lifted in question. "Hmm?"

"You didn't marry me today just to make me happy, did you? I mean, you did want it, too, right?"

Brian's expression softened as it transformed into something bordering on indignation. "What do YOU think?" he pressed quietly. "Since when have I ever done something I didn't want to do, Justin?"

"You and I agreed to split up the girls when they were babies," Justin pointed out softly. "I know you really didn't want to do _that_."

Brian mulled that over for a few moments before he answered honestly, "No, I didn't. And neither did you. But at the time we both thought it was the right thing to do for them. Now we know better, I suppose." He reached over to clasp his husband's hand in his and placed them in his lap as he whispered, "Do you really want to rehash that again, Sunshine? It's our wedding day, remember? No regrets, no 'what ifs.' Today, I'd rather reflect on the good things, what we and our family have to look forward to in the future. That's much more productive and pleasant to consider...don't you think?"

Justin nodded with a smile before they came together for a brief but heartfelt kiss.

As they broke apart, Brian asked, "So...now that our little birthday elves have done all the cleanup for us and moved the leftovers into the cabin, why don't we take this little adventure somewhere more comfortable?"

Justin nodded as he groaned slightly. "Good idea. This picnic bench is making my ass sore."

That comment produced an immediate smirk on Brian's face as he told him huskily, "I can think of a _much_ better way to make your ass sore." He rose from the bench, pulling Justin up beside him. "Come on, spouse! Time to perform your wifely duties."

Brian laughed as he received the predictable scowl and smack on his ass from his 'wife' as Justin rose to stand beside him. "Keep that up, _husband_, and you're going to wind up sleeping on the marital futon in there tonight."

Brian winced. "Ouch." He grinned then, tongue rolled into his cheek, ultimately receiving a grudging smile in return, because both men knew that was never going to happen. His hand still clutching Justin's, the two of them walked over to the cabin, Brian pausing at the door, even though he figured it wasn't locked. He brought Justin's hand up to peer down thoughtfully at the ring on his finger, almost as if he couldn't believe it still.

Justin frowned in question. "Brian? Something wrong?"

Brian shook his head, too choked up momentarily to reply. "No," he finally whispered hoarsely as he lifted his gaze to smile lovingly at him. "Everything's just perfect." Justin nodded back at him in relief, just before he let out a squeal as Brian abruptly hoisted him into the air and threw him, fireman style, over his back. Laughing in delight now, Justin heard the door open as Brian summarily carried him bodily into the cabin and then stopped suddenly. "Holy shit," he murmured as he just stood there, staring open-mouthed.

Justin tried to crane his neck to look around him, but found it was impossible in his position. "What?"

Brian pulled Justin up and slowly lowered him to the ground to stand face-to-face with him before he turned him around in his arms to let him see. "Oh, my..." was all he could manage as he gaped at the transformation.

The entire room had been decorated into something obviously meant to resemble a honeymoon cabin: A paper sign spelling out "Congratulations" in gold, shiny letters was strung on one of the far walls, and fat, white, pillar candles had been placed all along the top of the mantle. A full stack of wood was sitting in the fireplace, just ready to be lit despite the relative warmth of the day. A CD player was sitting on the kitchen countertop with a big, yellow, post-it note that read in large, black letters: _Play Me! _And a matching note was attached to the refrigerator that said in true, Alice-in-Wonderland fashion, _Eat Me! _The table had been set with two, china settings, wine goblets, and a chilled, ice-filled bucket with a bottle of champagne. Two, perfect, jumbo, red-colored roses were poking out of a crystal, clear-glass bud vase in the center, accompanied with two, white, spiral-twisted candles, a small book of matches lying next to them.

Both of them could smell something wonderful coming from the crockpot on top of the counter next to the sink, softly bubbling with an unknown dish. The stove had been turned onto 'low' to warm something in the oven, and even the sheets on the bed appeared to have been freshly changed, the covers pulled back with a, small, gold-foiled Godiva chocolate nesting on each pillow. A large, cellophane-wrapped gift basket with a massive, white-and-gold bow was sitting at the foot of the bed, containing a variety of different, unknown items, a small card attached to the ribbon.

But the most amazing part of it all to Brian was the object hanging from above the mantle. His mouth hung open in incredulity as he whispered in awe, "Justin..." He let go of his husband to walk over to the mantle and peer up at the painting he was seeing for the first time. He stared at it for several seconds, hearing Justin walk up beside him, before he turned to him and asked, "When...When did you do this? It's fucking incredible."

Justin smiled with pleasure. "Katie and I painted it. Remember the painting of Britin we gave you?" Brian nodded. "Well, that was just a decoy to throw you off the trail. This was what we were really doing all along." He explained softly, "I wanted it to be a wedding present to you...Even though I wasn't sure at the time what your answer would be."

Brian shook his head in amazement as he gazed back up at the collage showing a grown-up Gus and the girls, with him and Justin in the center. "Did you really ever doubt that, Justin?"

His husband shrugged. "I never doubted your love for me - or the girls," he explained truthfully. "But I guess I still wasn't sure how you would feel about making such a formal commitment."

Brian cupped Justin's face in his hands, so many feelings flooding through him as he gazed into the face of his soul mate. "Maybe the formality means a little more to you than to me," he admitted as Justin's eyes opened a little wider. He hastened, however, to explain as he added, "But that doesn't mean I still didn't want this. I plan on spending the rest of my life with you, so I don't care if everyone knows that or not." He smiled as he noticed a flicker of relief cross Justin's face. "So you can fucking shout it from the mountaintop if you need to - literally."

Justin flung himself into Brian's arms then with supreme joy, feeling Brian chuckle. "You are _so _sentimental, Justin Kinney-Taylor." He heard him whisper then.

Justin pulled back to look into the brunet's eyes. "What did you say?"

"I said...you are so sentimental."

Justin shook his head. "No...not that part. The other part."

Brian appeared a little uncomfortable then; this was all fairly new territory to him. "Oh...that."

Justin smirked. "Yeah..._that."_

His husband rolled his lips under in that 'little-boy' look that was always so endearing to Justin as he explained softly, "I just thought since we were...married now - shit, I'm still trying to get used to that - that maybe we should change our names to reflect it, that's all. You know, for the girls' sake."

Justin nodded solemnly. "Yes, of course. For the girls' sake." Both of them knew better, however. But Justin wisely chose not to call him out on it.

"So we're agreed?" Brian prodded, secretly astonished that he really did want it. He _wanted_ everyone to know he was Justin's husband. He was damn proud of it, too.

Justin nodded back at him with a radiant smile; could this day get any better? He wondered. _Well, there was still the night to come..._

"Good," Brian replied. "Care to seal the deal, then?" he asked in that certain, sexy tone of voice that left no doubt what sort of verification he had in mind. Within seconds, Justin was back in his arms and they were kissing deeply, groping, touching, lightly scratching with fingernails, licking, nipping at tender skin to mark each other. Pulling back breathlessly several seconds later, Brian murmured, "Hungry? Cold?"

Justin stared intently at him, his breathing shallow and labored with arousal. He shook his head. "No...actually, I'm hot. Really, really, hot," he replied deep in his throat. "But I AM starving," he responded, just before an internal explosion of desire erupted within them and they were frantically tearing at each other's clothing. Buttons popped in their haste to feel skin on skin; Brian moaned deep in his throat as Justin's lips slid across the tender flesh of his neck before biting down on his collarbone, a growl of possession escaping as he continued up to his ear to tug on it with his lips; he knew that both areas were particularly sensitive spots for his husband, and this time was no exception.

"Justin...Fuck, I want you so much..." Brian hissed out as he reached to tug at his lover's pants to open them, wanting, _needing_, to feel him; ALL of him. Seeking his target, he pulled at the linen material and the cotton briefs to expose his husband's beautiful cock. _Perfection...sheer, perfection._ He placed one hand around Justin's neck to pull his lips back up to meet his, hearing his lover whimper into the kiss as his other hand curled around his shaft and began to expertly stroke him.

Tongues dueled as they tasted each other over and over again, while Justin reached down to unzip Brian's pants, his hands curling around his backside to cup his ass cheeks and shove their bodies closer together. It was with a great deal of self-discipline that he placed his hands on Brian's waist to pull their bodies apart then a few moments later, both panting and breathless, their eyes dilated with sheer lust and their lips thoroughly swollen from their myriad kisses.

"Bri...Brian..." he managed to say. "Bed..." The romantic in him didn't want their first time as husbands to be this way. "Hurry..."

Brian took matters into his own hands then, nodding as both of them stepped out of the remainder of their clothing and shoes before he pulled Justin backward toward the bed, secretly grateful that this was a one-room cabin. He knew he, too, couldn't wait to make love to this incredible, beautiful man - over and over again.

With a sense of urgency but also with surprising gentleness, he lowered Justin's slender body to the bed, draping his long frame over the smaller one. They wound up lying diagonally across the queen-sized bed, sheet bunched up beneath them, but neither man cared as they begin to kiss deeply, their legs intertwined together while their hands roamed over familiar, warm planes. Brian released Justin's lips after several seconds to trail a wet path down the hollow of his throat and onto his chest; he felt Justin's hands on his upper back as he honed in on one, pert, pink nipple. He heard Justin moan in response as he nipped at the pebbled peak with his teeth before soothing it with his lips and tongue.

He could feel his and Justin's cocks trapped between their bodies, hot, heavy, and pulsing, as he paid equal attention to his other nipple, his hands lightly trailing down his husband's arms until they reached his elbows, and then taking a detour over to his waist to lightly brush across his skin with the tips of his fingers. He smiled as he heard Justin giggle then over the ticklish sensation, just as he expected, before he raised his head to peer up at the large, luminous, blue eyes, so full of love and desire for him. Their eyes locked and he heard Justin suck in an expectant breath before his hands traveled down to his hips as he readied himself for his prize. Licking his lips in anticipation Brian lightly tongued the underside of his husband's cock, receiving another moan from above, before he engulfed the tip in his mouth.

He felt Justin's hands grab onto the top of his head and his body grow rigid as he began to slide his lips and tongue up and down the shaft, reaching down at the same time to grasp the base with one hand as he lightly juggled the heavy, full balls with his other. He then got to work in earnest, sucking on a couple of his fingers to get them coated with saliva before he proceeded to deep throat Justin's cock. He felt a slight jolt of surprise from his husband as he slid one finger inside the tight, rosebud-shaped hole, then another as he continued to bob his head up and down his lover's shaft, savoring the salty-sweet taste on his tongue as his lips slid up and down the hot flesh.

Justin by now was a writhing mess of pleasure and desire as he squeezed his eyes shut and curled his toes under in the throes of pending climax, his face sweaty and red with heightened arousal as he moaned softly. "Fuck...Brian...so...so good..." His voice became more vocal, his balls drawing tight with impending release as Brian increased his ministrations to encourage it.

"Yes..." Brian paused long enough to reply as he gazed up at Justin's face. God, he was so magnificent when he was about to climax. "Come on, Sunshine," he demanded. "Do it; I want to see you come for me."

Returning to Justin's profusely leaking cock, he began to suck harder then, his fingers pumping in and out of the tight, narrow hole, until it became too much for Justin to control any longer; crying out Brian's name loudly as he promptly shot down his throat, his body quivering with uncontrollable desire.

Licking his husband clean, Brian slowly withdrew his fingers and released Justin's cock, his own hard and heavy as he slid back up Justin's sweaty body like an elegant panther. Nose to nose, he smiled down at the lazy look on his lover's face. "Feel good?" he murmured as he brushed some sweaty hair back from his forehead.

Justin nodded, eyelids half-shut, as he smiled up at him. "That...That was..."

Brian smirked. "I know. But don't go to sleep on me, Sunshine. That was just Round One."

Justin grinned sexily as he reached down to squeeze Brian's cock, watching the amber-colored eyes darker with desire. "I'm ready when you are," he promised him sultrily.

Brian reached down to steal a quick kiss from the soft, ravaged lips as Justin spread his legs to better accommodate him. Brian rose up onto his haunches as he began to look around. It was one thing to use his spit to loosen Justin up with his fingers; this was something entirely different. He briefly cursed himself for even having to worry about needing a condom; if he hadn't been so stupid and thoughtless before...

"Brian," came the soft reproach as if Justin read his mind. "Don't worry," he whispered in reassurance as their eyes met. "Gus took care of it. Top drawer," he instructed.

Brian swallowed down the sorrowful thoughts to push them aside as he reached over to pull out the narrow nightstand drawer and retrieve a small tube of lube and a couple of condoms. He was about to tear open one of the packets when Justin reached up to grab his wrist to get his attention. Furrowing his brow at him in curiosity, Justin whispered, "You know it's only temporary. One day soon we won't need any barriers between us...okay?"

Brian stared into his expressive, blue eyes, returning a wistful smile as he nodded in understanding. Justin raised his legs then to place them on his husband's shoulders, gripping his biceps as Brian tore open the condom packet and reached to pull it down over his cock. Squirting some of the lube then onto his fingers, he slathered it onto his cock before applying some around Justin's hole. Grasping his husband's legs to lower them, Justin wrapped them around his waist to readjust his position. Placing his hands onto the slender, pale waist for balance, Brian leaned down to whisper "I love you so fucking much," before he arched his back and slowly pressed inside, stealing a kiss as he heard Justin hiss into his mouth over the initial intrusion. Pulling back from the warm lips, he whispered, "all right?"

"Yes," Justin shakily blew the word out as his breathing quickened. "Please, Brian...More; I want more."

Brian nodded as he withdrew slightly and then thrust back in, deeper, harder, more urgently, needing to possess this man, body and soul; needing to confirm to Justin that he wanted only him, loved only him, needed only him until the end of their lives.

Justin blinked as drops of Brian's sweat tickled his eyelashes as he stared into the beautiful face of his husband. _Husband_. Merely that word caused his libido to go into overdrive as Brian began to fluidly thrust in and out of him, occasionally stealing kisses from his now-swollen lips. Their eyes never left each other as they made love, every touch, every kiss, every look clearly speaking of their deep commitment and devotion to each other.

Finally, Brian reached down to begin stroking Justin's cock with one of his long-fingered hands as he continued to plunge into his tight heat, grunting with each down stroke.

"Oh, fuck," Justin moaned out at the exquisite torment. "Brian...I'm going to ..."

"Do it," Brian demanded, his voice a throaty, hoarse, command. "Look at me, Justin. Look at what you fucking do to me," he told him breathlessly as he continued to thrust deeply in and out, his body glistening with a thin sheen of sweat. "Don't hold back."

The sound of passion in Brian's voice, and the impending look of climax on his face - the cord of his neck arched and his lips formed into an "O" with his eyes black now like coal - was enough to throw Justin over the edge. Digging his heels into Brian's lower back, he clenched his muscles against Brian's cock to heighten the incredible feeling of possession before his entire upper body arched upward off the bed and he exploded all over their chests, his body trembling like a volcano's aftershocks for several seconds until, at last, Brian followed him, throwing his head back as he erupted into the condom.

Brian lay, spent and sated, on top of him for a minute or two as Justin slowly stroked the sweaty skin of his back in a hypnotizing, up and down motion, until at last he raised his head to peer into his husband's face. Still trying to come down from the incredible high produced by their passion, he thought at that moment that Justin had never looked more beautiful to him, his face beaded with sweat, his golden hair plastered to his forehead, and his eyes - his heavy-laden eyes staring languidly into his as he smiled back at him. He could feel his husband's heart still beating rapidly like the tiny wings of a hummingbird beneath him as he swept the soaked hair back from his eyes. "You..." he began, suddenly finding himself getting all choked up.

Justin frowned as he continued to slowly stroke his fingers up and down Brian's bronzed skin. "What?" he whispered curiously.

Brian shook his head slightly as if to say it was nothing before he took a deep breath and then blew it out. Leaning down to steal a tender kiss, he pulled back just enough to feel Justin's breath on his face as he told him truthfully, "I was just thinking how incredible you look right now...And how much you mean to me. And how very lucky I am to have you, Gus, and the girls as my family."

Justin's eyes watered. "Brian..." He responded, touched beyond compare by that admission. This entire day had been filled with these kinds of unexpectedly candid moments, moments that he would treasure for the rest of his life. "I feel so lucky, too, and so blessed," he whispered back.

He sighed with some disappointment as Brian reluctantly slid out of him, twisting to lie on his back and tying off the condom to throw it down nonchalantly onto the rough-hewn, wooden floor. Turning to recline on his side, he braced his head with one hand while he stroked lazy patterns on Justin's shoulder with the other, feeling his husband shiver. "Cold?"

Justin smiled. "No," he confessed, blushing. He didn't have to say anything more as Brian grinned smugly. Justin reached over and smacked him lightly on the shoulder in reaction as he told him, "But you've made me sticky now. Any ideas how we can take care of that problem?"

Brian waggled his eyebrows suggestively. "As a matter of fact, I do."

"Hey!" Justin protested as he watched Brian rise from the bed. "Come back here; I don't mind sticky," he hastily clarified, deciding he already missed his husband's warmth. He couldn't help admiring the long, lightly muscled, majestic body as he walked away, and the dimples in Brian's ass cheeks as he watched him walk toward the back of the cabin. "Where are you going?" he asked, not even realizing until now that there was another exit leading out back.

"Bring the champagne, corkscrew, glasses and come find out," he replied suggestively as he turned around, a condom packet clenched in his teeth and the small tube of lube clutched in his hand; he opened the back door and left it ajar as Justin furrowed his brow in confusion. A few moments later, he heard what sounded like a machine starting up around the side of the cabin. _What the hell?_ His curiosity - and the fact that Brian had a certain object with him - got the better of him as he slid out of bed and walked over to retrieve the bubbly, corkscrew and glasses from the table.

The sound of the motor became louder as he emerged out into the waning sunlight, and his breath caught in his throat. He wasn't sure at that moment which was more breathtaking - the sun slowly setting over the horizon of the mountains...or the sight of his Greek god of a husband, sitting with his back leaning against the inside wall of a hot tub, the jets whirling around his lower body as he anchored his arms along the back rim. He grinned lopsidedly at him as Justin's heart - and body - quickened in response. Just one look - one certain smile - and it was like the finest of aphrodisiacs to him. He could feel his cock springing back to attention as he smiled back at him in delight.

"Why don't you join me, Sunshine? The water's just right. And you're not so bad looking yourself, by the way," Brian added admiringly with a smirk. His eyes raked down the pale, slender body appreciatively, making Justin's face warm over the attention. He loved how he could do that to him. "Put down the champagne and the glasses and come here," he whispered seductively, one side of his raspberry-colored lips turning upward as he held his arms out to him invitingly.

Justin placed the bottle, glasses, and corkscrew down onto a small, wooden table near the door as he walked over to his husband, allowing him to take his hand so he could help him climb into the hot tub. The water felt deliciously stimulating against his skin as he shuffled the couple of steps over to sit down on Brian's legs and straddle him, their lips coming together for a sensuous kiss while their tongues fought for supremacy.

"Mmmm," Brian growled low in his throat as they continued to kiss, the vibration against Justin's lips ramping up his desire. He slowly began to wantonly slide back and forth on his husband's lap, making Brian tightly grasp his ass cheeks as his fingers dug into the sensitive skin.

"Fuck," Brian moaned out as they finally broke off the kiss, mesmerized by the lusty look on Justin's face and the feelings coursing through him. "You...What you do to me," he managed to utter breathlessly as he pushed Justin closer with his hands; now it was Justin's turn to moan as their cocks rubbed against each other, both painfully hard and throbbing.

"Brian..." Justin panted, his eyes darkened with arousal. "I want you. I need to feel you inside me again."

Brian urgently looked around for the condom and lube he had brought outside, locating them along the ledge of the hot tub as he reached to grab the silicon-based gel. But Justin caught him by the wrist, shaking his head to silently inform him there was no need to bother. Instead, he moved his hands down to Brian's thighs to brace himself as he moved toward his target. Brian's eyes widened in realization as he gently pushed Justin away from him, far enough to keep them separated. "What are you doing, Sunshine?" he quietly chided him. He shook his head. "You know we can't do that. Fuck, don't make this any harder than it already is," he told him.

Justin sighed in frustration. He hadn't been thinking. He wanted Brian so badly, unbidden by any barriers between them. But he was right; he had just gotten through denying him the same pleasure, and he knew enough time hadn't passed for them to be assured they were safe. He found it highly ironic, however, that it was due to _his_ sexual activity in the past six months, and not Brian's. Was that some perverted type of poetic justice, he wondered? Nevertheless, he finally nodded as Brian reached for the condom, tearing it with his teeth to open it before Justin took it from his hand. At least he would do the 'honors,' he decided.

A few seconds later, he was fully impaled on the hard shaft, drowning in the wondrous sensations of desire and passion as they once more commenced with their dance of love, the last physical barrier between them temporarily forgotten.

* * *

><p>An hour later, Justin found himself cocooned in Brian's arms as they lay in bed facing each other, both of them having eaten some of the Chateau Briand Daphne had managed somehow to concoct in the crock pot, a couple of warm rolls, and some of the champagne, along with a few chocolate-covered strawberries they had found in the refrigerator. He felt warm, content, and happy as he lay there, Brian fast asleep, but he found that he couldn't join him just yet. He glanced down and smiled as he looked at his left hand, finding comfort in the shiny band still resting there on his ring finger.<p>

He realized that he still hadn't told Brian how he had discovered the rings earlier - and what he had had inscribed inside them - but he knew eventually he would point it out to him. For now, however, he was content merely in the knowledge that today really had happened; he really WAS married to this incredible man. And even better, he had a wonderful family waiting for him when they returned to Britin tomorrow. Brian had mentioned how lucky he had felt earlier. No, they were both the lucky ones.

Brushing back some hair from Brian's face, he noticed him half-smile in his sleep in reaction to his touch. Lulled at last by the crackling flames nearby coming from the stone fireplace, he snuggled closer to Brian as his husband's arms tightened around him before he finally closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

* * *

><p><p>

Chapter End Notes:

_Sigh...I know - I promised to have this done yesterday! I tried; but to do it justice and not rush it, I have to break it up due to the length and time it takes for me to look it over before I post it. All I have left now is the epilogue, which IS done. It will be posted either tomorrow or Wednesday, and then at last it will be complete; then I will be working hard on my other two WIPs to hopefully update them faster. Rest assured they will all be updated AND completed like always. Thank you for bearing with me, and thank you for the support & for the comments; both are greatly appreciated. _


	39. The Sound of Happiness: Story Conclusion

_Four Months Later – Christmas Night_

"Remind me again why we agreed to host the entire city of Pittsburgh for our first Christmas Eve together as a family again," Brian asked his husband dryly as they sat with their backs against the master bedroom's couch, watching the dancing flames in the fireplace.

Justin took a sip of his wine as he smiled. "It wasn't quite the whole city," he reminded. "Mel and Linds won't get here until tomorrow morning, and I think we may have left out a few of your former tricks from the invitation list."

Brian huffed under his breath as he muttered, "You could have fooled me. Do you know how much shrimp they ate? Shit, that had to set us back at least a couple hundred dollars. And remind me the next time to super glue shut the top over the piano keys to your baby grand. After that performance tonight, we'll need to put some crime scene tape around it to avoid any repeat performances tomorrow. And for God's sake, no more spiced eggnog ever again, okay?"

Justin laughed as he recalled their friends' impromptu musical performance earlier. While Gus had attempted to figure out how to assemble the new vanity that Kaylee had received from her two fathers as a gift - Katie giggling the whole time in amusement while he occasionally grunted profanities under his breath - the rest of their guests had decided to engage in a boisterous round of caroling, bolstered in large part by copious amounts of spiced eggnog. Ted had commandeered Justin's grand piano, having taken lessons for the past several months and wanting to demonstrate his newly acquired skills, as they all grouped around the monstrously-sized instrument with their eggnog or hot cider in hand and began to sing quite raucously together, starting with the elegant classic, "Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer," followed by the Elmer Fudd rendition of "Blue Christmas." It promptly proceeded to go downhill from there, since most of the ragtag choir group, including Debbie, Emmett, Blake, Michael and his new boyfriend, Ted, and even Carl, were mainly tone deaf, and the several songs that followed sounded more like fingernails scratching across a blackboard than beloved Christmas carols.

"It wasn't that bad," Justin maintained as Brian gave him an incredulous look. He smiled at him sheepishly. "Well, maybe it was," he admitted as Brian chuckled. "Okay, it was pretty horrible. But you have to admit, everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves tonight."

Brian snorted. "_Almost_ everyone. It's a toss-up between me and Sonny Boy as to which one of us was having the most _fun_, as you so eloquently put it." He shook his head. "Apparently my handyman genes have been tainted by the Munchers' influence."

Justin laughed. "Oh, come on, you don't fool me! You were both having a great time down there! Well, maybe you more than Gus," he conceded. "He did seem to be a little frustrated at times."

Brian guffawed. "That's an understatement," he replied as he, too, took a sip of his wine. He stared over at his husband who looked so hauntingly beautiful, almost ethereal, in the firelight. "You and Auntie Em really put out quite the spread for dinner tonight, Sunshine. You know he's looking for a new catering partner after Darren left to ply his trade in Philly at the piano bars." Darren - or Shanda Leer as he preferred to be called - had always loved performing on stage; the catering gig had merely been a way to keep himself in proper high fashion, since his numerous high heels and gowns cost a mint. It had only been a matter of time, then, until he left Emmett to pursue his most cherished dream full-time. "Just make sure he doesn't lure you into some sort of perverse partnership with him." He shuddered. "I could just imagine what our gourmet kitchen would look like in no time."

Justin grinned. "Don't worry; it was a one-time performance," he assured him. "At least until Easter, anyway."

Brian groaned. "Oh, no..."

Justin laughed. "Gotcha! You are so gullible, Mr. Kinney-Taylor."

"No fair," he maintained. "Between you and the girls, you know I don't stand a chance..."

"No, you don't," Justin told him with a wry smile. His face softened as he reminded him, "I haven't had a chance to give you your Christmas present yet with everything's that been going on."

Brian reached over to clasp his hand in his as he told him, "Neither have I." He looked down at the ring firmly surrounding Justin's finger - the one inscribed like his with the words _Forever Isn't Long Enough_ on the inside - and whispered, "You didn't need to get me anything. You know how I feel about presents and all that nonsense. Besides...I got everything I could ever need or want this past year; nothing could top that ever again."

Justin's eyes misted over in reaction as he replied, "Me, too," before the two of them leaned in for a kiss. As they broke apart, he whispered, "But I wanted to get you something anyway. Let's go to bed, and I'll get it for you."

Brian nodded, both of them well aware they were planning on doing anything but sleeping for a while. With all the company they had had over the past few days, this was one of those rare moments when they were actually alone, and they both wanted to take advantage of it.

Placing their wine glasses down on the floor nearby, Brian rose to stand as he pulled Justin to his feet, just as a pair of skittering, slipper-footed girls came rushing into the room, sliding on the smooth, hardwood floor.

"Whoa, girls!" Brian called out with a laugh as he and Justin caught one girl each in their arms. It was obvious that neither girl was quite ready for bed yet, either, judging by the excited looks on their faces. "Careful in those," he told them with a smile as he steadied Katie by hugging her around the shoulders.

"Sorry, Dad," she said. "We just wanted to say good night - and to thank you for our amazing gifts! I can't wait to take the new portfolio with me when Daddy and I go to painting class this weekend. Can I still help out with the younger kids?" she asked Justin hopefully.

He laughed. "Are you kidding? I'm counting on you to help keep me sane," he told her with a grin as she beamed with pleasure. Justin's classes at the winery had become so popular over the past few months that he had been forced to split the classes up into an elementary group and a teenage group to accommodate everyone who wanted to participate. That actually suited him fine; it was a challenge at times, but he loved what he did, and he derived great joy not only in igniting the same passion for art in the children he taught, but also in having a way to spend more time with Katie. The owners had been so impressed with his work, drive, and ambition - and the amazing way he interacted with the children - that he had been given a hefty raise about a month after he had started working there. "Remember, though, Sweetheart, anytime you have any extracurricular events for school, that takes priority over you helping me. I don't want you thinking you have to assist me every weekend if you have something else you want or need to do."

Katie shook her head. "No, it's fine!" she told him. "It won't be a problem until my soccer starts back up again. And I love helping out," she told him.

Justin smiled affectionately at her. "And I love having you there with me." He made a point then to turn to his other daughter to ask her, "Did Gus ever get your vanity up yet?" Ever since that fiasco with Kaylee feeling left out when they had started painting, he and Brian had made sure to include her in many of their conversations and activities as well. In fact, presently she and Brian were taking a photography class together at the local community college, and some of Kaylee's works were going to be displayed soon at a junior art fair there, much like her father had experienced when he wasn't much older.

The two girls giggled as she explained with a melodramatic sigh, "Finally!"

Brian looked at them in amusement. "What's so funny?"

"He decided he didn't need to look at the directions before he started putting it together."

"Uh, oh," Justin replied. "If he's anything like your father when it comes to assembling furniture..."

Brian lifted an eyebrow, choosing to ignore that statement as he prodded, "Hey! What did we just discuss..?"

Justin grinned. "Handyman skills and reading directions first before you assemble something are two totally different things. Remember the girls' playpen you tried to put together?"

Brian grimaced. "Just barely," he lied as Justin laughed.

"Never mind," he told him as he turned to the girls. "So what happened?"

"He wound up putting the mirror on backward. He had to take off all the screws and turn it around the right way...and it was heavy!" She giggled as she reported, "We learned some new words we didn't know before."

Brian shook his head in exasperation as Justin laughed. "Well, just see that you don't repeat them outside these walls, okay? We wouldn't want to be accused of corrupting you."

"We promise," they both responded in unison, their eyes sparkling impertinently.

Brian nodded. "Well, everyone else is in bed, and it's after midnight. Now that old Sonny Boy has finally managed to put your vanity together, you two need to hit the sack, too, okay? And don't stay up more than half an hour talking; I know how you two are."

Both girls sighed. "Okay, Dad," they repeated as one.

Both fathers exchanged a look as Brian murmured, "How do they _do_ that?" At least he could tell them easily apart now; even if Kaylee's hair hadn't been shoulder length again, by now he knew their personality traits and quirks so well, it was easy to tell which was which. How things had changed since the first time he had discovered their ruse!

"Okay, off you go," Justin told them as both men leaned down to give their daughters a quick kiss on the cheek. "Love you," he whispered to both girls as they repeated the same thing to him and Brian.

"Sweet dreams, girls," Brian murmured as he watched them leave. He let out a deep breath. "I use to have that much energy."

Justin grinned. "Don't sell yourself so short, Dad. You still have enough energy where it counts," he told him as he waggled his eyebrows meaningfully.

Brian smirked. "Yes, I do," he agreed, tongue rolled into his cheek. "Allow me to prove it to you."

Justin smiled, that radiant, almost blinding smile that Brian adored so much, as he took Brian by the hand and led him over to the bed. "Wait," Brian said as he broke off their handclasp to walk over to the door and shut it softly, turning the deadbolt to lock it. "It's time for some private Christmas cheer of our own, and I do NOT want us to be disturbed," he explained as Justin's face grew warm in anticipation.

He nodded as Brian walked back over and, instead of joining him to sit against the headboard, he walked the few steps over to the massive, walk-in closet and leaned up on his tiptoes to retrieve a small, leather grooming kit. It was the one he normally took with him when he had to travel on business, so he figured it might be a good place to hide a Christmas gift from a certain pair of prying eyes.

Unzipping the leather case, he pulled out a flat, thin, long, white box with a plain, red ribbon tied around it. Placing the case back up on the top closet shelf, he returned to the bedroom and, standing by the bed, handed it to his husband. Moving to sit on the bed next to him, he told him, "I figured if you went snooping in our bedroom for your present, you would never be able to reach up that high."

Justin huffed in indignation as he gazed into his eyes and said sincerely, "Merry Christmas, Justin." The words almost stuck in his throat; it was still somewhat hard to be even remotely sentimental verbally, even with his soul mate, but it was slowly becoming easier. Besides, he figured a simple "Merry Christmas" would be safer than something outright sappy. And he suspected that soon enough, the waterworks would start, so he'd best get it out of the way now.

Justin smiled in delight as he accepted the small box. "Brian...I told you..."

"I know," he told him softly. "But I wanted to. Now quit being so damned ungrateful and just open it up."

Justin rolled his eyes as he pulled on the narrow, red ribbon to loosen the bow and lay it down next to him on the mattress. He lifted the lid, his heart pounding in curiosity, as he immediately recognized what it was: there inside the box was a red, _Liberty Air_ ticket envelope. Placing the box down to join the ribbon, he held the envelope up with a shaky hand as he lifted his gaze to peer over at his husband. "Brian..."

Brian shrugged. "I'm waiting, Sunshine. We haven't got all day...or night."

Justin bit his lip as he opened up the envelope and took out a folded piece of white copy paper. Unfolding it, his mouth fell open in astonishment as Brian told him softly, "I've always heard that Paris in the spring is amazing - not to mention, all the new Armani and Prada collections that come out then. Remind me to take an extra suitcase with me when we go...or better yet, I'll just pay to have them ship my new clothes back to the States..."

Justin flung himself into Brian's arms, holding on tightly to his back as Brian laughed. "We're going to Paris! Are you serious?" He started sprinkling butterfly kisses all along Brian's jaw, neck, and shoulders as Brian told him, "Serious as a heart attack...or having one ball..."

Justin pulled back to plaster his lips against his husband's for several seconds in delight, Brian eventually drawing both of them down to lie fully on the bed so Justin was on top of him. To his slight surprise, however, his husband broke apart much sooner than he would have liked and started to rise from the bed.

"Where are you going?" he asked him. "I still need some more _thanking_."

Justin laughed as he turned around to tell him mysteriously, "Trust me, you'll be getting plenty of _thanking_ in a few minutes."

Brian lifted an eyebrow in curiosity as he watched Justin walk over to the window seat and open up the tufted, leather top to pull out a small sewing kit they kept in there for minor clothing repairs. He grinned as he placed it on top of the window seat and flipped the lid open to retrieve a wrapped present of his own. Unlike Brian's, however, this one was wrapped in elegant, silver-foil paper with a fancy, royal blue ribbon, and was about the size of a box of teabags.

"How creatively evil of you to hide it in there," Brian droned as Justin walked over to sit back down on the side of the bed next to him.

Justin grinned. "Well, two can play that game. I figured you of all people would never think to look for your Christmas present in our sewing box."

Brian snorted. "You got _that_ right! What makes you think I would even go snooping for something like that, anyway?"

"Well, I wanted to make sure," he told him, his smile slowly dissolving into something that looked almost hesitant as he softly urged him, "Open it up, Brian. And Merry Christmas to you, too; to _both_ of us." His eyes never left his husband's as Brian attempted to untie the tight knot that Justin had wound around the box, scowling when he couldn't get it to untangle.

"Oh, for..." Justin reached over impatiently to snag the box back from his husband as he none-too-gently slid the ribbon down the box until he could remove it. "Sissy," he taunted him with a grin as he handed the now-unencumbered box back to him. "I'm assuming you can handle the gift wrap," he told him.

Brian mock glared at him as he held the feather-light box in his hands and frowned over its lack of weight. "What have you got in here? It's obviously not that Gucci watch I was admiring in the window the other day at the jewelry store."

Justin shook his head. "No...But I'm hoping you will like this a lot better," he told him quietly.

Brian eyed him curiously as he slid his fingernail under the taped part of the package to tear it open; the smirk that started to appear on his face as he recognized the box identifying his favorite brand and size of condoms instantly vanished as he realized - or at least, he hoped he understood - why the box seemed to weigh so little. His lips parted as he stared over at his husband and murmured, "Justin..."

"Just open it, Brian."

Brian nodded as he tore away the rest of the paper with relish now and threw it hastily aside to pry open the unsealed box, lifting the top to find a folded, yellow piece of paper inside and a small, unopened tube of lubricant. Finding his own hand shaking a bit over the possibilities, he dropped the box down onto the bed and lifted out the paper to unfold it, confirming what he had hoped it was: the results of a test Justin had undertaken at the local health clinic in town, verifying he was disease-free.

"I know you were tested right after we got back together," he heard Justin whisper. "And so was I. So as soon as you get tested again, well, then we can...that is, if you still want to..." He stopped as Brian inexplicably shook his head. All sorts of horrid possibilities swirled through Justin's mind for a few seconds before he finally asked with a little trepidation, "What?"

"Don't need to," Brian told him simply in response as he peered into his eyes with a dry smile. He reached inside his jeans pocket to retrieve a small, folded piece of paper of his own. "I wasn't sure when the right time was to give this to you," he began. "I didn't want you to think I was pressuring you, or pushing you into something before you were ready for it...but I had this done two days ago." One side of his mouth quirked upward as he added, "At the same clinic as you did - and on the same day. I'm surprised we didn't run into each other." He grinned. "But that would have spoiled your Christmas present to me, then." He reached over to lightly stroke Justin's cheek as he told him, "And it's the best Christmas present you could have ever given me."

Justin's face flushed as he told him, "And me as well." He reached up to clasp his hand over Brian's as he told him, "I've been waiting for this ever since we got back together," he divulged. "Brian, I love you so much. Only you. Always and forever you."

Brian leaned in so their foreheads were touching as he whispered back, no longer worried about how lesbionic it might sound, "Me, too." He sucked in a breath and let it out. "Me, too."

They pulled back to stare into each other's eyes, the immensity of what they were about to do - and the underlying significance of it - almost palpable in the room. Of one accord, they both pulled their sweaters over their heads to remove them before unbuttoning their pants and standing up beside the bed to tug them down their legs and step out of them along with their briefs. Quickly discarding their socks and shoes, both men were back in bed within a minute as Brian drew his husband into his arms and draped his body over his, staring down into the younger man's blue eyes and feeling like he was about to drown in them - along with the wondrous sensations flowing through him at the thought of finally having no barriers between them. It had been so long; so very, very long.

Leaning down, he began to kiss Justin languorously, finding that he wanted to take his time to savor this moment instead of rushing headstrong into it. He wanted to remember every moment of this night: each touch, each caress, each sigh, each whimper, for the rest of his life. His hands slowly explored every inch of his husband's body as Justin did the same, making him shiver as Justin's fingernails lightly scratched along his shoulders and then down his arms.

Linking their hands together, Brian's wedding band reflecting off the dancing flames skittering around the room, he began to mark a wet path with his lips from Justin's mouth down to his shoulders, lightly ghosting along the smooth, warm skin until he reached one erect nipple, his other hand trailing down Justin's belly to come to rest on his cock, finding it hard and ready, just like his own.

He laved the pebbled flesh studiously before nipping it with his teeth, feeling Justin squirm in reaction beneath him and let out a soft sigh of pleasure, before he traveled over to the other one to lavish the same attention on it.

"Brian," Justin breathed out in a plea of urgency. "Please..."

He lifted his head to stare into the beautiful face, practically glowing under the firelight. "What, Sunshine?" he demanded silkily. He loved it when Justin told him what he wanted him to do in bed. And now...the thought of what they were about to do was making him decidedly hard. "Tell me what you want." Was it really necessary, though? He knew it was precisely what he wanted, what he had been yearning for since the first moment he had laid eyes upon Justin in that condo in Chicago. The thing all of his most erotic wet dreams had been composed of; the moment in time, in the future, when they would be together with nothing between them. And now that future was finally here...

His breathing shallow and ragged, Justin told him, "You_ know _what I want. Brian, please...it's taken us so long...Do it...Fuck me. Love me. I want to feel you again; _all_ of you." To emphasis his point, Justin blindly reached out toward the gift box to grope inside it with his hand, producing the small tube of lube that was resting inside. Clutching the precious object in his hand, he brought it back over to thrust it into Brian's chest with a decided smack. "Is that clear enough for you?" he asked him with a breathless growl, his eyes dark and deep with desire.

Brian grinned down at him wryly. "Abundantly," he told him with a crooked smile as he reached to take it from his lover. Justin, however, shook his head as he held tightly onto it, grinning sexily as he flipped the top open. Squirting some onto his fingers, he reached between them to begin sliding his hand ever-so-slowly up and down the large, throbbing shaft. His eyes never left his husband's as he told him, "Just think, Brian. This is just a hint of what it's about to feel like when you're inside me. Hot, smooth, and amazing. Just skin on skin." He continued to slide his hand up and down the pulsating flesh, feeling it growing even impossibly harder over his touch and his words. He could see Brian's eyes darkening with desire and his breathing coming out in short bursts of air between his lips, his face flushed with arousal as he let out a moan in reaction.

"Justin...you keep doing that - and saying that - and this will be over before it starts," he admitted as he reached down and grabbed his wrist to stop him.

Justin blushed as he nodded, moving to roll over onto his stomach before Brian held him fast. "No," he whispered. "I have to see your face when we do this for the first time after so long."

Justin nodded as he grabbed the back of his legs to fold them against his body, his hole exposed invitingly. With any other man, he would have felt vulnerable in this position; with Brian, however, it just made him incredibly aroused at the look his husband was giving him. It wasn't just blatant desire and lust; with love mixed in, it made it that much more powerful.

He jumped slightly a few seconds later as he felt the coolness of the gel on Brian's fingers, spreading the substance around his hole, and winced slightly as one finger pressed inside up the knuckle, stopping until Justin nodded at Brian to keep going. The finger pushed in further, Justin moaning loudly now as he imagined Brian's cock going in there instead. "Enough," he gritted out. "No more. I want you, Brian. _You_," he demanded gruffly, leaving no room for misinterpretation.

Locking his eyes with Justin, Brian nodded as he kneeled on the bed and lined up his cock to press tentatively inside, both mean groaning in amazement as contact was made at last. This was what they had been waiting for, dreaming of, longing for. "Fuck," Justin hissed out as he felt Brian's cock filling him and stretching him. He could feel every slight ridge, every pound of his rapidly beating heart, every hot inch as Brian slid in a little deeper. The heat was almost too much to bear; it was like being on fire from the inside, and he fucking loved it. He had forgotten just how incredible it felt to have nothing between them. "More..." he demanded. He lifted his legs to link them around Brian's shoulders then, gripping his arms. The fingers dug into the bronzed skin as Brian thrust in stronger, feeling every slide, every change in angle as Brian began to rock in and out, his hips snapping in rhythm as he swooped in to kiss Justin's lips.

"Fuck, Justin," he grunted as he pistoned in and out fluidly, the lube creating a smooth, silky passage. "This ...this..." He gave up; he couldn't complete the sentence as he rode waves and waves of indescribable pleasure. He had no words for this most intimate of couplings. To be able to love this man, to marry this man, to have him mind, body and soul for the rest of his life and in his bed, was impossible to put into words adequately. He blinked to push away the moisture on his eyelids; but he knew it wasn't coming from the sweat on his face as he and Justin continued to make love. A half-smile broke out on his husband's face as their bodies moved in perfect harmony with each other; it was a knowing smile, a smile that revealed how laid bare Brian's feelings were at the moment, but he didn't care anymore.

As he plunged back in, angling his body to hit Justin's bundle of nerves that set his lover's body ablaze even more, Justin dug his fingernails deeper into Brian's skin as he began to turn his head to and fro blindly, letting out a deep moan as Brian pulled partially out, and then rammed back in to hit the same spot, over and over again.

"Br...Brian," he gasped out as their tempo picked up; he dropped his legs to link them behind Brian's back to deepen the penetration. He could feel his body coiling tightly, heading toward an eruption he had never experienced before. "I'm...I'm..."

"Let go," Brian demanded as both of them held on for dear life now, their pace fast and furious. "Do it, Justin; come with me," he panted harshly, feeling his body reaching its own, imminent crescendo of pleasure. "I'm...Fuck..." He reached down to grasp his husband's oozing cock, feeling it heavy and hard in his hand, just before he suddenly cried out loudly with something unintelligible, exploding his hot seed deep inside his lover's body.

Brian managed somehow to thrust in and out a few times longer while he stroked Justin's cock before Justin, too, called out his name and fell down into a pinnacle of drowning passion, streams of milky white erupting all over his and Brian's chests and bellies as he climaxed.

Brian collapsed on top of the slender frame, Justin's hands coming up to stroke his sweat-drenched back as he lay his head in the crook of his husband's neck. He could feel wetness between Justin's legs where some of his seed had dribbled out, and he couldn't help thinking it was the most fucking, erotic thing he had ever felt. No, he decided; it was the fact that he didn't have to withdraw right away as Justin whispered against him, "Stay inside me."

Brian closed his eyes for a few moments, feeling such an overwhelming feeling of belonging and contentment as he lazily stroked Justin's hair with one hand, while the other lightly caressed one pale shoulder. This time, there was no need to pull away, no need to hurry.

"No," Justin protested sleepily when Brian finally moved to twist away from him, afraid his larger bulk would become too constrictive.

Brian raised his head to peer into the deep, blue eyes, unable to resist the temptation to lean down and steal one more kiss. "I'm not going anywhere," he murmured as he finally flopped over onto his back, pulling Justin with him so he was lying half on, half off his chest, their legs intertwined, all sated and sticky. He lay there with his arm curled protectively around his husband's shoulder for several minutes, Justin's head on his chest as he played with the fine hairs there, until at last he suggested huskily, "Let's take a shower." He paused for a few moments before he added, "After all, turnabout is fair play, as they say."

Justin lifted his head to peer up at him. "Are you sure?" he asked softly, his heart beating erratically over the delicious thought.

Brian stared into his eyes before he nodded with a half-smile. "Yeah." Kissing the top of Justin's head, he gently pushed Justin off to rise from the bed, the remnants of their lovemaking crusty and dry on their bodies. "Come on, _Stud_," he teased him as he reached for his hand. "Show me what you got."

He couldn't help raking his eyes down the slender, beautiful frame of a thoroughly debauched Justin as he smirked. "Well? Bring your step stool and let's get to it." He laughed as Justin promptly threw a pillow at him, scowling. "Okay, we'll improvise," he agreed as he held out his hand toward him.

Justin rolled his eyes, but nevertheless rose from the bed with a smile to clasp his hand in his.

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen Minutes Later - Downstairs - Kitchen<em>

"You do know we're supposed to be in bed by now?" Kaylee pointed out as she watched her sister gulp a half glass of milk and then chomp down on the top of a big, icing-covered, Christmas-tree sugar cookie. She grimaced before popping a sweet potato chip into her mouth, followed by a small drink of her water. "You're never going to get to sleep after eating that!"

Katie snorted. "Watch me! I can sleep through anything. I have an iron stomach; whatever that means," she admitted, wrinkling up her nose. "That's what Dad says to me all the time, anyway. I think it means I can eat whatever I want, when I want."

Kaylee huffed. "Maybe now. Just wait until your teenage hormones kick in. Then _see_ what happens!"

Katie glared at her as they heard footsteps coming down the hall. "_Now_ you did it!" she hissed. "One of them must have heard us!"

"Well, I'M not the one who decided on a midnight snack," she pointed out.

"Did I force you to come down here?" her sister pointed out as Kaylee huffed in irritation.

They sighed in relief when they realized it was their mother instead.

Clad, in a mid-length, mint-colored terry robe and bare feet, Daphne covered her mouth as she let out a yawn, the events of today finally catching up with her. "I thought I heard voices down here," she told them. "What are you doing up this late?"

Katie gave her a sort of 'duh' look. "We were hungry," she explained simply.

Daphne grinned. "I can see that," she observed dryly as she noticed the large plate of Christmas cookies lying on the counter, and the family-size bag of chips that Kaylee was holding. She walked over to grab one of the sugar cookies, biting off a snowman's head as she let out a 'mmm' in appreciation. "This is SO good," she sighed after swallowing. "I love iced sugar cookies!"

"Me, too!" Katie told her excitedly. She frowned. "Aunt Daphne?"

Daphne smiled as she peered down at her. "Yes, Honey?

"Why don't we call you Mom? You're not our aunt."

Daphne's heart lurched. "Well..." _What could she say?_ Up until recently, she hadn't really given the name they used for her much thought. She had always been in their lives to some extent, but over the past several months - since the two fathers had reunited and gotten married - she had found herself becoming even more involved. Now, to her surprise, she found that the idea of being called 'Mom' didn't make her feel odd or fearful. She finally replied, "I guess it was because I was never much of a mother to you before, not in the real sense of the word. I always loved you and cared about you, though," she was quick to add, not wanting them to feel otherwise. "Your fathers have always been the ones to really take care of you," she explained.

She needn't have worried, though, as Kaylee interjected, "Well, you're still our mother," she told her. "We can have two fathers and still have a mother, too."

Daphne bestowed a wistful smile on her. "Yes, you can," she agreed softly. "I...I just never thought you would want to do that. I mean, call me that. I guess I never thought I really deserved it."

"That's ridiculous," Katie informed her. "You listen to us, you care about us, and you love us. And besides, we talked about it, and that's what we've decided," she told her firmly as Kaylee bobbed her head up and down in agreement. "Do you have a problem with that?" One eyebrow quirked up in typical, Kinney fashion expectantly.

Daphne flushed as tears welled up in her eyes. "No," she told them hoarsely, choked up. She smiled at both of them. "I don't have a problem with that at all. In fact...I'm honored, girls; very, very honored."

She impetuously swept both girls up into her embrace as they leaned into her side, hugging them tightly against her.

"Why does this not surprise me?" came a dry voice from several feet away. They broke apart to observe Justin standing there with Brian beside him, both men barefoot and clad only in pajama bottoms, having received an alert a few minutes ago from their alarm system upstairs. One of the sophisticated features Brian had insisted on installing several years ago was a series of motion-detector cameras set up in pertinent areas of the house; when he and Justin had returned from their shower, he had reached to set the alarm to "Stay," only to notice some familiar 'prowlers' downstairs in the kitchen.

Justin grinned over at them in amusement, his arms folded across his chest. "Daphne! You, too?" he teased her, noticing cookie crumbs around her lips. "And all this time I thought Katie got it from me; now I'm beginning to doubt that."

She smiled over at her friend sheepishly, her eyes twinkling as the two men walked over to join them. "I didn't want them to get stale," she maintained as she let both girls go. "And then we decided to have a girls' chat."

"I thought you 'girls' were told to go to sleep about an hour ago," Brian pointed out to their daughters, but there was no sting in his words, merely the same sort of amusement that Justin had expressed. "You'll both be grouchy as hell if you don't get to bed right now, because there will be a lot of people awake early tomorrow to get ready for Christmas lunch. Now say goodnight - for real this time - and get your butts back up in bed."

Both girls sighed. "Okay, Dad," Katie told him as the two girls walked over to place their trash in the garbage can under the sink, and their glasses in the sink.

"And NO more talking - straight to bed, okay?" Justin added. Kaylee opened her mouth to reply, but then shut it again as she noticed the look of finality on his face. She nodded as they walked back over to their parents.

"Hey, you're forgetting something," Justin told them as they turned to walk down the hallway.

Both girls rolled their eyes, but shuffled back over to give him, and then Brian a brief kiss on the cheek.

"Good night, girls," Justin told them as they turned to face Daphne.

"Thanks for the chat," Daphne told them with a smile as they both reached up on their tiptoes to kiss her on each cheek. "Sweet dreams."

They nodded. "'Night, Mom," Kaylee told her as Katie repeated the phrase before they finally headed back down the hallway, leaving both men with their mouths hanging open in shock.

Justin waited until the girls were climbing the steps out of earshot before he blurted out, "Did I just hear what I think I heard?"

Daphne nodded with a smile before a sudden thought occurred to her. "It was their decision," she explained. "I didn't encourage them to do it. Is that all right with you two? I mean, I would understand if you would rather they didn't..."

"Daphne," Brian interrupted her. "Sheesh! And I thought the girls could talk nonstop!" He looked over at Justin, who nodded back at him. "No, of course we don't mind."

Justin smiled over at her. "I think it's wonderful," he told her in reassurance. "The girls do love you. And I know you feel the same way. I think it's about time." Brian nodded next to him as Daphne swallowed hard. _Mother_. She had never really thought she would want or like that title - in a way, it made her feel so _old _- but now that the girls had decided to use it, she couldn't think of a bigger honor.

"Thanks," she told them simply. "I'm very honored. And...touched." She blinked back her tears. "They really are wonderful girls, aren't they?" she whispered.

Both men smiled over at her. "You bet they are," Brian told her firmly as he slid one arm around Justin's waist. "They came from good stock."

Justin snorted. "Thanks. Now I feel like a prized heifer at the county fair that was auctioned off for stud purposes."

"Well, I can attest to your prowess in that area," Brian whispered in his ear as Justin promptly turned red.

Daphne eyed them curiously as she watched the interaction, but she didn't ask about it; she didn't really have to hear what Brian said to know what it was about.

Stifling another yawn, she told them, "I'm going to head up to bed now, too. Let me know if you need any help tomorrow with anything."

Justin nodded as they told her goodnight, finally leaving both men alone once more. Brian reached over to turn off the kitchen light, leaving the house totally quiet, the lights from the Christmas tree in the grand foyer the only illumination in the spacious home. "Hear that, Sunshine?" he whispered as he turned to pull Justin into his arms.

Justin smiled up at him in amusement. "What? I don't hear anything."

"Well, _I_ do," Brian told him. "It's the best sound of all. It's what happiness sounds like. And I really like the sound of it, don't you?"

Justin nodded at him then, a smile on his face, as the two of them walked hand-in-hand back down the hallway and up the stairs.

* * *

><p><em>AN: That's the end (for now). Thank you to everyone who read this story. Your words of support have been very motivating to me. I hope you will leave me with some parting comments. _

_Also, on a different note, if you are wondering about the status of Midnight Whispers, it should be back up in about 2 - 3 weeks. It has NOT disappeared permanently. I have more info on my Live Journal if you want to check it out.:)  
><em>


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