"Come in, Seth, I'm almost ready."

Seth walked up the steps of Jennifer's townhouse. He looked around the now familiar living room wondering if now was the right time.

"I'll just grab my coat and we can go," Jennifer said as she picked up her evening purse.

"Great."

"Is something wrong?" Jennifer asked, eyeing her beau for a minute. His "great" hadn't sounded quite right.

"No, no, nothing's wrong," Seth tried to assure her.

Jennifer smiled. "Then let's go."

Seth walked her down the steps and out to the car. He opened the door for her and waited till she was comfortably seated before closing the passenger door. He walked around to the driver's side and climbed in. "Ready?" he asked.

"I'm always ready for you," Jennifer said with that little laugh that made Seth melt inside.

Yes, tonight was definitely the night. Seth backed out of the driveway.

 

*****

 

Brian drove up the lane to Edna's Treasures. He was later than he had intended to be. He wondered if Bree would be in bed already. He could use a goodnight kiss. He pulled the car to a stop and got out, retrieving his briefcase, before heading to the front door.

"Dada!" Bree squealed as the front door was flung open.

"Squirt!" Brian replied with the same enthusiasm as his daughter and a big smile just for her.

"She heard you coming," Justin said with a chuckle as he stood by the door watching Brian scoop up their daughter and kiss her all over her face.

"You always know when I'm home, don't ya, Squirt?"

Bree nodded her head emphatically.

"Her Dada-dar was in full force. She's been waiting for you rather than going to bed like a good little girl," Justin explained.

"I had kisses for Dada," Bree replied like that made her refusal to go to bed perfectly sensible.

"And very good kisses they were too," Brian said giving her a few more of his own. She giggled happily.

"You come to school with me tomorrow," Bree stated.

"Tomorrow? Shit!"

"You promised, Dada," Bree said with a big frown.

"Yes, I did," Brian agreed reluctantly. "So tomorrow we'll both go to school."

"Good, Dada."

"Yes, very good Dada," Justin laughed.

"I'm doing this for you, you know," Brian said.

"And it's greatly appreciated."

"Time for bed, Squirt," Brian said setting Bree down.

"Tuck me in, Daddy," Bree requested of Justin.

"That means a story," Justin said with a grin. "I'll be a while."

"That's fine," Brian said. "I'm going to grab a sandwich."

"We saved you some chicken. It's in the oven."

"It's real good," Bree informed her Dada as she took her Daddy's hand and they marched off down the hallway to her room.

Brian watched them go before heading for the kitchen.

 

*****

 

"Seth, this was a lovely dinner." Jennifer looked around the elegant restaurant that Seth had taken her to for their meal. The food had been excellent. They were currently having coffee and debating about whether they had room to share a dessert.

"Only the best for you, my dear."

Jennifer smiled. Seth was always so gallant, so controlled, and so sweet. She wondered what he would be like as a lover. They had kissed … a lot. They had necked … some. They had been close to taking the next step … a couple of times. But something had always held them back. Jennifer stared at her handsome dinner companion.

"A penny for your thoughts," Seth said as she continued to stare.

"I don't think you really want to know."

"Don't be so sure."

Jennifer giggled. Seth had the ability to make her feel like an infatuated schoolgirl. "I'm in the mood for something really decadent." She looked meaningfully into Seth's eyes. "Something chocolate."

Seth grinned. "Chocolate it is … for now." He signaled the waiter.

 

*****

 

Lacy walked up the steps to the front door of the house. She rang the bell and waited. Her breath came a little faster than normal. Her heart was pounding. "You can do this," she whispered to herself.

The door opened. "Hi, Lacy," Michael said. "Come on in."

Lacy stepped across the threshold, feeling a bit like the sacrificial lamb going to the slaughter. She slipped her messenger bag over her head and unzipped her jacket.

"Did you bring the drawings?" Michael asked.

"Of course I did."

"Hi, Lacy," Ben said as he came out of the kitchen. "Would you like something to drink?"

"A soda would be great," Lacy replied. She smiled at the big man. He always seemed so kind. A soda might give her a mouth that wasn't as dry as the Sahara Desert. She licked her lips as she opened her messenger bag to get the drawings she had made.

She had barely taken them out of the bag when she felt Michael snatch them from her hand. She was about to protest, but she looked at Michael's intent face as he studied the drawings he was holding. Lacy sighed and didn't say anything.

"Here you go," Ben said handing her a glass of soda. "Come into the living room and have a seat." He guided her to the sofa. "Michael seems so intent on studying your work that he has momentarily forgotten his manners."

Michael looked up at the mention of his name. "Oh, sorry, I've been waiting for days to see what your drawings would look like. They're…" Michael hesitated. Lacy held her breath. "They're quite good."

"Thanks," Lacy said trying not to sigh too audibly. That was the first hurdle.

"I have a couple of suggestions though."

"I expected you would."

"I'll leave you two alone to discuss your project," Ben said heading up to the bedroom. "I have some papers to grade."

"Thanks for the drink," Lacy said. Ben nodded and disappeared up the stairs. "So what suggestions do you have?"

"I'd like this series of drawings to be a little more graphic, a little more violent," Michael said. "We really want to make the bad guys despicable. Then when Rage destroys them the readers will cheer."

"Okay," Lacy said thoughtfully. "I see what you mean. I can fix that without too much trouble."

"Great."

"Anything else?"

"Not really. I … I have to admit that these are better than I expected they would be. They are very much like Justin's drawings … but also different. I guess that means they're really your own work."

Lacy smiled a little bit. She let the corners of her mouth fluctuate up ever so slightly. Michael couldn't have said anything better about her drawings. She wondered if he realized that. "I'm glad you think my work will fit Rage. I'm looking forward to drawing the comic."

"I think we can make this work," Michael replied with a smile.

Lacy took a sip of her soda. Now came the tough part. "Since we seem to be on the same wavelength for this issue of Rage, maybe we should discuss the next one."

Michael looked at the young girl sitting in front of him. "I've given a lot of thought to the Sateeena idea. I think we can make it work. With the understanding that Rage and Zephyr and JT are still the primary superheroes, at least for the time being. We'll see how the readers respond to Sateeena before we give her a big role."

Lacy smiled. "That's a very fair way to approach this. I agree totally."

Now it was Michael's turn to smile. "Then let's get to work on the rest of this issue. We can figure out what we're going to do with Sateeena next time."

Lacy pulled out her pencils and sketchpad. "I'm ready when you are."

 

*****

 

"Justin, I have something to discuss with you," Brian began as he stripped down to his briefs and joined Justin under their warm thick duvet.

"Look, I know tomorrow is going to be a pain in the ass but I'll make sure I pack everything that you'll need for your demonstration," Justin said thinking he was making a preemptive strike.

"Thank you, Sunshine," Brian snarked, "but that's not what I was going to discuss. Besides, if I get in a bind I'll turn the art demo into how I create an ad. Maybe I can dazzle the kids with my advertising genius."

"Bri, they're a bunch of four and five year olds," Justin gave snark as good as he got snark.

"And just who is the target of all those Happy Meal ads? And those old disgusting Cabbage Patch doll ads?"

"Oooo, I had one when I was a kid!" Justin blurted out then blushed a crimson red as Brian burst out into laughter.

"Sorry, Sunshine, but you must have been the cutest thing ever known to man with your perky little nose, big blue eyes and your coleslaw doll under your arm."

"Asshole," Justin grumbled as he smacked Brian's chest. Brian quickly grabbed the marauding hand and brought it to his lips. "Anyway, it was Molly's doll," Justin mumbled. Brian kissed his lover's temple as he drew the younger man closer.

"I was only teasing," Brian reassured his spouse.

Justin nodded against Brian's chest. "What did you want to talk about?" Justin returned to the original subject matter.

"Rage. There's a nasty rumor floating about on Liberty that you're going to kill off Rage and JT. Zephyr is going to be the main man, so to speak."

"What the fuck?! How the hell did that happen?"

"Don't know. Ted told me about it today and now all those weird looks I've been getting lately make sense."

"What weird looks?" Justin turned to see Brian's face more clearly, as Brian told him about the funny looks his was getting on the avenue and how all conversation stopped when he graced the diner.

"Well, that just fucking sucks," Justin exclaimed. "So how do we stop the rumors?"

"Why should you stop them?" The adman in Brian spoke. "It's all free publicity. When the next issue comes out, it'll be sold out before Mikey unpacks the boxes."

"Do you really think so?"

"Am I not the greatest adman there ever was?" Brian asked smugly.

"Certainly the greatest one within earshot," Justin retorted.

"Why you little...." Brian pounced on his snarky, witty spouse, tickling Justin until he cried uncle then loving Justin until he fell asleep thoroughly sated.

Brian gently cleaned his partner as he slept with a satisfied smile on his lips.

 

*****

 

"Hunter?" Curtis said quietly in the dimmed light of the drop-in center.

"What can I do for you, Curtis?" Hunter and Nick were doing the overnight shift.

"Can we find out about Alfred?"

"Alfred?"

"My cat," Curtis answered.

"Okay, I'll see what I can arrange but don't you think..."

"I know," Curtis sighed. He couldn't keep hiding. Curtis had to face up to his crimes. "Mr. Hunter, I should talk to the police," the boy said sadly. He was ashamed of his crimes.

"Very good. I'm proud of you. Let me see what I can arrange. We do this together. I won't leave you and you may be surprised at the outcome."

"I hope so, sir. What I did was wrong. I know that and I'm prepared to pay for my crimes but I'm afraid." Curtis slumped, looking so small, so much younger than his mere fourteen years.

"I know you're afraid but I promise, whatever happens, you won't have to go back to the Hardigans. I promise you, Curtis. I have a lawyer looking into your situation and the police seem to want to resolve this without you going into detention. We'll work it out."

"But I cut that last guy!"

"No you didn't. The knife connected but didn't cut. However, he is a very prominent businessman. What he says goes around here, but I think I can convince him not to press charges," Hunter said confidently.

"How can you be so sure?" Curtis was still skeptical.

"He and I are just like that!" Hunter stated as he held his hand with his middle finger crossed over his index finger. "Now, off to bed with you. We're going to be very busy over the next few weeks."

Hunter made sure Curtis was tucked in for the night. He secured the clinic, made a few more notes then went to bed.

 

*****

 

"Lindz, can I ask for a favor?" Since their vacation, the girls were getting along so much better. And JR was practically beaming with pride as both of her moms went to the day spa with her. The girls were snuggling together in bed.

"If I can, sure."

"Brian..."

"What about him?" Lindsay asked quickly, trying to keep the annoyance out of her voice.

"I have something to discuss with him and I'm not sure how to approach him."

"What do you have to discuss?"

"It's confidential," Melanie stated, knowing Lindsay wouldn't buy it. "I really shouldn't be discussing this with anyone."

"He's not in trouble, is he?" Lindsay recalled the time when Brian's poor judgment nearly cost him his career. He reluctantly came to Melanie for legal advice and representation.

"No, he's not. But his actions may affect one of my clients. I want to discuss the matter before it escalates."

"Then approach him honestly and professionally. Make an appointment to see him. He's not unreasonable, Mel."

"I see that now. I still think he's an asshole but he's a reasonable asshole. I'll call over to Kinnetik in the morning." Melanie sighed softly. Like Daniel she would have to have faith and brave the lion's den. Whatever it took to help her client.

"Sounds like a plan," Lindsay purred as she lovingly caressed her spouse's tummy, working her hand lower.

"Maybe I should make a habit of being nicer to Brian if it gets me this reaction."

"Mmm, maybe you should," Lindsay murmured as she began to make love to Mel.

 

*****

 

"Would you like to come in for a nightcap, Seth?" Jennifer asked as they approached the door of her townhouse.

They had had a lovely evening. Dinner had been long and slow and delicious. They had lingered over drinks afterwards, until they knew the restaurant was ready to close. Seth had taken a long route home, so it was already late. Jennifer expected Seth to say they both better get some sleep because they would be up early the following morning. That was often his reply to her question about a late night drink.

"I'd love another drink," Seth said, surprising Jennifer, and also pleasing her. She wasn't ready for the night to end just yet.

"Come in," she said with her most alluring smile.

Seth followed her inside and they removed their coats. Jennifer headed for the bar as Seth said, "Jennifer."

"Yes," she replied turning to give him her full attention.

"There's something I need to say to you."

"I have something to say to you too, but I think I need a drink first."

"Okay," Seth agreed knowing that he could use a drink too.

Jennifer poured them each a drink and then joined Seth on the sofa. They each took a sip of their drink before turning to look at the other. "Seth." "Jennifer." The words came out almost simultaneously and they both chuckled.

"What do you want to tell me?" Jennifer asked.

"Um … maybe you should go first."

"I think you should go first," Jennifer replied sweetly.

"I … um … I don't quite know how to say this," Seth stammered. "I usually don't have any trouble talking to you." He smiled weakly at Jennifer wishing the floor would open up and swallow him.

"Maybe talking's the problem," Jennifer said seriously. "Oh, fuck it, kiss me."

She set down her drink, as did Seth who swept her into his arms and kissed her in a way that he had never done before.

"I want you," Seth whispered against her ear as the kiss left them both breathless.

"I thought you'd never say those words," Jennifer whispered back. "Let's go." She stood and held out her hand.

"Are you sure?" Seth asked as he claimed the offered hand.

"I've never been surer of anything, Seth Harris. Come to bed … immediately."

Seth smiled a blazing smile that reminded Jennifer of her son. She quickly banished that thought, as she tugged on Seth's hand and they ran up the stairs giggling like two teenagers.