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“Remind me again why you’re here.” Brian grumbled as he and Nick ascended the stairs to his parents’ home.

“Your mom invited me.” Nick grinned playfully. “You know that I can never say ‘no’ to your mom.”

“This isn’t a party, Nick.” Brian sighed. “This is a serious meeting. Peggy is probably going to grill my parents and pick apart their house.”

“I’ll stay out of the way.” Nick promised. “I really hope that your mom made that apple cinnamon coffee cake that I love.”

Brian rolled his eyes in mock disgust. “Are you hoping for cake? Or are you hoping to carve out some more time with the living version of cinnamon?”

Nick’s face lit up like a Cheshire cat. “Both.”

“You have a face like that and you still expect me to believe that nothing happened between you two on Tuesday night?” Brian paused with his hand on the doorknob.

“Bri, I swear to God that nothing happened.” Nick assured him. “I told you that Liliana fell asleep in Kayla’s arms while we were walking back to her car, so I didn’t even try to kiss her. I said ‘goodnight’ and she gave me her number. That’s it.”

Brian studied Nick’s face; he didn’t appear to be lying. “If I find out otherwise, I will kick your ass.” Brian threatened in a low whisper as he pushed open the front door. “Mom, dad, we’re here!”

“Is that my Nickolas?” Jackie Littrell charged into the hallway with her arms outstretched. She completely bypassed her son and wrapped her arms tightly around Nick. “I’ve missed you!”

“I’ve missed you too.” Nick returned the embrace and smirked at Brian. “I know that I haven’t visited in a while.”

“Nick, my boy! How are you?” Harold joined the group in the hallway and extended his hand to Nick. “It’s been way too long.”

Nick gently released his hold on Jackie and gripped Harold’s hand. He offered the older man a warm smile. “I thought you would be happy that I wasn’t around and taking up space.”

“Helloooooo” Brian pouted. “Remember me? Your SON.”

“Oh, Brian, don’t be such a sour puss.” Jackie laughed and gave Brian a tight hug. “Of course we’ve missed you too.”

“You could have fooled me.” Brian muttered; his face still forced into a deep pout. “Nick wasn’t even supposed to come.”

“Nonsense!” Jackie cried. She released Brian and began leading the way towards the kitchen. “I invited him for lunch.”

“Lunch?” Brian trailed after his mother while Nick followed his father into the living room. He could already hear the two of them jabbering on about football. “Who said anything about us having lunch? The C.P.S. workers are going to be here any minute.”

“I know that, dear.” Jackie soothed. “I made enough for them too. There’s no need to worry.”

“Mom, this is not a social event.” Brian could feel his heart beating wildly in his chest as he began to panic. “They’re coming here to determine whether or not you and dad are suitable occasional caregivers for Baylee. They’re not here to have lunch!”

“Don’t be silly, Brian.” Jackie scolded as she removed a steaming dish of homemade macaroni and cheese from the oven. She placed the dish on top of the stove and slid another item into the oven; the apple cinnamon coffee cake that Nick had been raving about while the two of them had been standing on the porch. Jackie set the timer on the microwave and turned to her son. “If someone is coming to your house, you always offer them something to eat. It’s just good manners.”

Brian took in the dish of macaroni, the fresh-baked rolls, the crisp salad, and the pitcher of iced tea. He could feel himself starting to sweat. He knew that his mother was going to insist that Peggy and Kayla sit down and eat, and he had a pretty good feeling that she was not going to let them decline her invitation.

“Mom, this is really not what today is about ...” Brian was cut off by the doorbell.

“I’ll get it!” His dad shouted from the living room.

Brian listened as his father’s footsteps padded towards the front door. “Mom, seriously, you NEED to put all of this away.” He could hear the front door opening and Peggy’s voice drifted down the hallway as she introduced herself and Kayla. “They are not here to eat fucking macaroni and cheese.”

“Brian!” Jackie admonished. “Watch your language!” She shoved the wooden salad bowl into his stomach with such force that he grunted in pain. “Put this on the table.”

Brian wrapped his hands around the large, wooden bowl as Peggy and Kayla stepped into the kitchen. Nick and his father were only steps behind them. “Hi.” He offered weakly.

“Hi.” Kayla returned the greeting and looked quickly around the kitchen. Her eyes settled on the salad bowl. “That’s a lot of salad.”

“I didn’t know how hungry everyone was going to be.” Jackie piped in. “Don’t worry, Harold and I don’t mind having leftovers.”

“Hungry?” Kayla’s eyes drifted to Brian’s mother.

“Yes, dear. It’s lunch time.” Jackie chuckled. “Have a seat.” She gestured towards the table.

“Mrs. Littrell, we’re not actually here for ...” Peggy started, but Jackie quickly cut her off.

“Please call me ‘Jackie’. There’s no need to be so formal.” Jackie wiped her fingers on a dishtowel before offering her hand to Peggy. “You must be Peggy Peach.”

“Y-yes.” Peggy stuttered as she accepted Jackie’s hand. Brian could see her eyeing the still steaming dish of macaroni and cheese. “Is that homemade macaroni?”

“Of course!” Jackie gushed. “It’s my grandmother’s recipe. I’ve been making it for years.”

“Come on now, everyone.” Harold interrupted. He walked around the cluster of people in the doorway and took a seat at the head of the table. “Sit down. I’ve been waiting to eat for an hour, but I was told that I couldn’t start until everyone arrived. I’m starving.”

Brian watched as Peggy and Kayla exchanged a quick look. Kayla shrugged her shoulders and Peggy quickly turned to his mother. “I guess we do have time for a quick lunch. It smells awfully delicious.” She sat down at the table to the left of his father and Kayla quickly sat down next to her.

“Wonderful!” Jackie tittered. “Nick, can you pour everyone some iced tea?”

“Of course, Momma-J.” Nick reached around Brian and grabbed the pitcher of iced tea off of the counter. He made sure to fill Peggy’s glass first.

“Brian!” Jackie chided. “Put the salad on the table so that people can have some. Why are you just standing there with your mouth open? You know that I can’t stand it when you give me that vacant look. You look like you don’t have anything going on upstairs.”

“I have plenty going on upstairs.” Brian muttered under his breath as he placed the salad in the centre of the table.

By this time, Nick had finished pouring the iced tea and had taken a seat at the opposite end of the table from his father, next to Kayla. He noticed that both Nick and Kayla were suppressing their laughter and he gave both of them a dirty look. Jackie placed the dish of macaroni and cheese next to the salad and sat down across from Peggy. Brian dropped himself down into the only seat that was left; in-between his mother and Nick and across from Kayla.

“Peggy, help yourself.” Jackie offered the macaroni across the table.

Peggy readily accepted. She scooped a heaping mound of the cheesy pasta onto her plate and took two rolls from the basket. “I can’t remember the last time that I had macaroni and cheese.”

Brian suppressed the need to roll his eyes as he placed some salad on his plate. He took a roll from the basket and offered them to Kayla. Their eyes locked as she accepted the basket, and he could see them flickering with amusement. A smile tugged at his lips and he kept his eyes locked on hers as he received the dish of macaroni from his mother.

“Bri, you wanna hurry it up?” Nick prodded.

Brian pulled his eyes away from Kayla and turned to stare at his friend. Nick was waiting for him to finish with the macaroni; his hand outstretched in anticipation. “Sorry.” Brian mumbled. He spooned some of the pasta onto his plate and handed the dish to Nick. He could detect a hint of confusion, or perhaps even jealousy, in the younger man’s face as Nick looked back and forth between him and Kayla.

An hour later, Brian breathed a sigh of relief as he watched Peggy and Kayla retreat down the driveway. They were both bursting at the seams with macaroni and coffee cake, and his parents had received a passing grade. Now that they had the C.P.S. seal of approval, Harold and Jackie were free to watch Baylee for extended periods of time. Better yet, Brian didn’t have to worry about encountering any negative repercussions in court; at least as far as his parents were concerned.

This couldn’t have come at a better time, as Brian had been planning to ask his parents if they would be willing to watch Baylee while he embarked on a short holiday tour in December. Baylee was so excited about school and Brian didn’t want to pull him out of class until it was absolutely necessary. If his parents were willing to watch Baylee in December, than Brian wouldn’t have to worry about removing him from class until February when he began the European leg of the In A World Like This tour.

Brian wandered back down the hallway to find that Nick and his mom were still in the kitchen. Nick was sitting at the table with another massive piece of coffee cake on his plate. His mom was in the middle of refilling his mug with coffee.

“Can I have another piece of cake too?” Brian sat down at the table next to Nick. He was well aware of the fact that he sounded like a jealous toddler, but he didn’t care.

“Of course you can, sweetie.” Jackie smiled and placed another piece of cake, one that was noticeably smaller than Nick’s, in front of him. She topped up Brian’s coffee before settling down at the table with them.

“It’s nice to have you two here.” She smiled. “Both of you ... together.”

“It’s nice to be here.” Nick affirmed. He put his fork down on his plate with a soft clink and raised his eyes to Jackie. “I know that I’ve been gone for a long time.”

Jackie reached out and placed her hand on top of Nick’s. “I was worried about you Nickolas, but I always knew that you would be back.”

Nick curled his fingers around Jackie’s slightly wrinkled hand and smiled. “Thanks, Momma-J.”

Brian watched the exchange between his mother and Nick in silence. He placed a forkful of cake into his mouth and chewed quietly. He felt like a spoiled brat for being jealous. His mother had watched Nick grow up. She had been there and cared for him when his own parents had turned their backs on him. Of course, she would be happy to see him; Nick was essentially her third son.

“So, is Baylee enjoying school?” Jackie released Nick’s hand and turned to Brian. “I know that it’s only been a couple of days, but is he keeping up with the work?

“Yeah. He’s really enjoying it.” Brian affirmed. He decided to keep the fact that he had called Howie two days in a row in order to figure out how to do Baylee’s math homework to himself. “He’s going to try out for the basketball team.”

“He’s becoming more like you every day.” Jackie smiled. “It’s like there isn’t even any of ... her ... in him.”

Brian sighed as he scooped up the last bite of cake. “You can still call her by her name.”

Jackie pursed her lips and took a sip of coffee. “I’m assuming that she’s responsible for all of this C.P.S. nonsense. What is she trying to prove? That we’re all wild and crazy fools who don’t know how to provide a safe environment for a child?”

“She’s contesting the fact that I was granted primary custody.” Brian swallowed his mouthful of cake. “She’s trying to prove that she can provide a better living environment for Baylee than I can. Her argument is that my life is too chaotic; that Baylee’s childhood will be disrupted if he stays with me for the majority of his life. The way that my lawyer explained it is that, as far as C.P.S. is concerned, they don’t think that I’m a bad father or that I’m intentionally putting Baylee in harm’s way. They’re not investigating me in the same way that they would look into a person who has a history of violent or abusive behaviour. The purpose of their visits is merely to either prove or disprove what Leighanne has claimed. Their reports will be entered as evidence during the final custody hearing in January.”

“It just seems so silly.” Jackie shook her head. “Why bother wasting everyone’s time when a judge has already decided what’s best for Baylee?”

“She’s entitled to an appeal, mom.” Brian shrugged. “I have to play along if I want to keep Baylee.”

“You deserve a nice girl, Brian.” Jackie got up from the table in order to refill her coffee. “I want to see you with someone who appreciates all that you do for her. I want you to be happy.”

“I’m not really in the market for a girlfriend.” Brian sighed. “Why don’t you put some of that pressure on Nick?”

“Well, of course I want Nick to find a nice girl, too.” Jackie added some milk to her cup and grinned. “I want you both to be happy. I also wouldn’t mind a few more grandbabies. I’m not getting any younger, you know.”