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When their kiss finally ended, Nick was staring down into Elisabeth’s enchanting, chocolate eyes. He had been caught off guard when she pulled him into a soul searing kiss; however, he quickly recovered and gave in completely to her soft, warm lips. He could still feel the kiss lingering on his lips and he gave her a questioning glance. “I…uh…um…” he stumbled over his words not knowing what to say.

“Oh, God, I’m sorry,” she quickly slid away from Nick and hugged her knees tightly to her chest. Closing her eyes, she rested her chin on her knees. “I shouldn’t have done that; I’m so embarrassed.”

“No,” he cried and closed the gap she had put between them. Letting out a deep breath he smiled and gently moved a few silky strands of hair away from her face so he could see her. “I don’t know what to say, but that’s not a bad thing.”

“I shouldn’t have done that, Nick. I’m really sorry,” she nervously ran a hand through her hair. “We can just go back now if you want to. I know you have to be busy.”

Scooting around so he was sitting directly in front of her, Nick took her hand in his and laced his fingers through hers. “I don’t want to go back yet. Is that okay with you? You just surprised me, that’s all.”

Elisabeth looked up and looked into Nick’s eyes. He looked desperate; like a little boy begging his parents to let him stay just a little longer. Gently easing her hand from his, she gave him a tight smile and nodded slightly. “Okay, we don’t have to go back yet. I really am sorry though. I feel like such an ass…”

***

“Get out of here,” Elisabeth laughed as Nick told her about the time he got caught filling all of Graham’s shoes with cement. She soon had tears in her eyes from laughing so hard. “What happened?”

“Well, he told my Gram and I had to replace all his shoes,” he said with a shrug. “He still doesn’t know it was me that put electric blue dye in his shampoo…he thinks that was Chase.”

“I cannot believe that,” she laughed and turned her gaze back to the sky. “I never did anything like that when I was younger. The worst thing I did was lie about where I was going to be and then I went to a party instead. I guess I got mine for that though,” she said with a cynical laugh. Suddenly it seemed like she wasn’t there with him.

“Well, what was that?” Nick asked and rolled on his side, propping his head up on his hand.

“Huh?” she asked and realized what she said. “Oh…Well, nothing important.”

“Oh, okay,” he gave and understanding smile.

Looking back toward the sky, Elisabeth let out a soft sigh. What did she have to worry about if she told Nick? He had spilled his guts about so many things in the last few hours and he didn’t even know her. “It’s kind of funny really. See, that was the only time I had ever done anything like lie to my parents and that’s the one time everything happened. Do you want to know what happened that night?”

“You don’t have to tell me. I understand it’s personal.”

“I got knocked up,” she said bluntly and watched as Nick’s eyes grew larger. Offering a small smile, she shrugged. “I was 16. I went to a party and told my mom I was at choir practice. I met a guy named Joshua, and well, everything happened really fast so it’s only a blur to me now.”

“Oh,” he said quietly not knowing what else to say. That was the last thing he expected her to say.

“I was young and stupid…you know? I didn’t think something like that could or would ever happen to me, but I was dead wrong. And I’m still paying for my mistake to this day.”

“What happened?” he asked curiously, but afraid he was prying a little too much. He didn’t want to make her mad.

“I had my baby when I was 17. Kaitlyn Olivia Walker,” she said with a smile. “And I got married, which is the only thing that I really regret.”

“Well, why don’t you get a divorce?”

“It’s not that simple,” Elisabeth said, sadness suddenly filling her voice. “I wanted to stay together for my children because I wanted them to have both of their parents like I did. They are the only reason that I’m still with Joshua. God, if it weren’t for Katy and Jake, I’d be single now.”

“Don’t you think that it’s better to be happy and single with your children than to be stuck in a bad marriage?” Nick asked, dipping his head so that he could look into Elisabeth’s eyes.

“Kaitlyn hates me enough already. I can’t even imagine how bad it would get if I left Joshua…she worships the ground he walks on. Jake is a mama’s boy and I know he would deal with it eventually, but not Kaitlyn. We don’t have a good mother-daughter relationship and I know if I left her father, she would blame me for everything. Even if he is the one running around with other people and leaving me to wonder where he is and what he’s doing.”

“Elisabeth,” Nick’s voice was soft and caring, “don’t you think you deserve to be happy?”

“Hmmph,” she snorted. “Happy? I don’t even know the meaning of the word anymore. I can’t even remember the last time I was ever really happy, well, until tonight.” Looking into his crystal blue eyes, she had to smile. He was a breath of fresh air if she ever needed one.

“I think that you need to do whatever makes you happy and stop worrying about other people. Kaitlyn will be upset if you leave Joshua, but trust me, she will get over it, and eventually, you two will get closer. I promise. I hated my mom for the longest time, but then I grew up and I realized that letting Gram and David raise me was the smartest thing she ever did. And I thank her for that now. I’m not gonna lie, it’s hard not knowing my dad and barely knowing my mom, but when I stop and look back on how I grew up, I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. Kaitlyn is 13, right? She’s gonna be a brat, so don’t even worry about it,” he grinned. “You don’t have to take my advice, but just think about it. Make yourself happy for once.”

***

Elisabeth crept through the front door of her parent’s house, trying to be as quiet as possible. It was nearly 5 in the morning and she had not called and let anyone know where she was or if she was okay. Heading for the stairs, she was sure she was in the clear.

“Where have you been?” her mother’s voice startled her. “I’ve been worried sick.”

“Good grief, Mother, don’t you know not to scare someone like that?”

“You didn’t answer my question, Elisabeth. Where have you been?”

Sighing in annoyance, Elisabeth walked to the stairs and started for her room. She didn’t want to have to deal with this right now; all she wanted to do was get in her bed and get at least a couple hours of sleep.

“Elisabeth, I want to talk to you,” her mother’s voice was stern.

Stopping on the third step, Elisabeth looked up at the ceiling and groaned. “Why right now? Can you please tell me why this can’t wait for a few hours?”

“It can’t wait because you have been gone for nearly ten hours without calling and letting anyone know that you were okay. And let’s not forget the fact that you have two children. Do you know how it looks for a married woman to be hanging around a younger, good-looking man? It does not say much for your reputation.”

“Mother, please, just because I got knocked up when I was 16 does not mean I’m dumb enough to let that happen again. Besides, I did not sleep with Nick, despite what you might be thinking,” she spat, rolling her eyes.

“How dare you speak to me that way? Now, you’re beginning to sound like Kaitlyn.”

“You know what?” Elisabeth turned and looked at her mother. “Maybe I don’t care what anyone else thinks. So what if I went out with a younger man. And yes, he is damn good-looking, but what does it matter? Why can’t I enjoy myself while I’m here? All you care about is your own reputation and what people are saying about “Little Lizzie Butler.” Who cares? I sure as hell don’t and neither should you! Besides, you don’t know how I feel right now and if you did, you would probably feel like shit for trying to make me feel worse than I already do. I’m sorry that I couldn’t be perfect for you and Daddy, but everyone has their flaws. As it turns out, mine was stupidity. If you would like to continue this conversation later, that’s fine with me, but right now, I’m going to bed. I’ll be up in a few hours.”

Abigail watched in astonishment as her daughter stormed up the stairs and slammed the door behind her. She would definitely be continuing that conversation.

***

Nick walked into his house and tried to be quiet enough not to wake anyone up. He had left his grandmother a note explaining that he was going to get some dinner with a friend and they might go sailing, so she knew not to expect him home early. She was well aware that when he went sailing, it was for hours at a time, but he was sure she was shocked that he’d taken someone with him.

Tip-toeing to his bedroom, he began to strip off his clothes so he could put his pajamas on and crawl right in bed. He was going to be half dead tomorrow, but it was well worth it to him. Going to his dresser, he didn’t even realize that his window was open.

“Nick,” a voice scared him, causing him to cry out.

Turning to see who was in his room, he flipped the light switch and flooded the room in a bright shower of light. “Jesus, Dee-Dee…what are you doing here?”

“I needed to see you, Nick. I’m sorry, I didn’t know what else to do, so I climbed in your window.”

It wasn’t until that very moment that Nick realized exactly how crazy this girl was. “Okay, Dee-Dee, do you know what Gram would have done if she would have found you in here? You can’t just go around climbing through windows whenever you feel like it. That’s against the law, in case you didn’t know.”

“Nick…I had to see you,” she pleaded with him. “I love you.”

“Whoa…hold it right there,” he held up a hand and backed away as she slowly advanced on him. “Look, I dunno if you’ve been drinking or what, but I really think you need to leave, okay?”

“You don’t understand,” she began to cry. “I thought we were gonna be happy…together forever, ya know?”

“Dee-Dee…sometimes you just don’t click with someone. Look, you really have to go before you wake up my grandparents,” he told her and motioned toward his open bedroom door. “I’ll show you out, okay?”

It wasn’t until he put his arm around her shoulder that he realized she had in fact been drinking. “But Nicky…I don’t wanna leave…I wanna stay here with you.”

“Nope, c’mon, Dee-Dee, I’ll take you home, okay?”

“No, it’s not okay,” she slurred, slinging her arms around his neck. Placing a sloppy kiss on his lips, she smiled. “I wanna stay here with you.”

Nick grabbed her by the arm when she began to disrobe. “No, I can’t let you do this…you’re only gonna embarrass yourself. And Gram will kill me if she wakes up and finds you here,” he said as he desperately tried to drag her out of the room. He had to get her home and he had to do it fast; David was an early riser.

“NO!” Dee-Dee screeched drunkenly and pulled away from Nick’s grip. Tossing her top to the floor, she gave what she thought was a sexy gaze. “Don’t you want me, Nicky?”

“Darla Dawn Matthews! What on earth are you doing?” Winnie’s voice filled the conversation. She watched as Dee-Dee sat down on the bed, but kept her eyes locked on Nick. “Nickolas! I cannot believe this.”

“No! Gram, it’s not how it looks…Dee-Dee went to that party tonight and I just got home from sailing a few minutes ago. She was here when I got home.”

“I think you should get her home,” Winnie said in a firm voice and glanced towards Dee-Dee who had already fallen asleep.

“Yes, ma’am,” he said, trying his best not to snicker. Now he had to figure out a way to get Dee-Dee home without waking her up. He was praying she wouldn’t get sick, either.

***

“Good morning,” Abigail greeted walking into the kitchen where her husband and grandchildren were eating breakfast.

“Morning, dear,” Robert greeted.

“Hey Grandma,” Jake grinned. “Guess what! Papa is taking me fishing today!”

“That’s wonderful sweetheart,” she smiled. “I hope you catch a fish bigger than you. Good morning, Katy.”

“Morning,” came Kaitlyn’s lifeless response.

“Where’s Elisabeth?” Abigail asked while pouring herself some coffee.

“She went to the grocery store. She should be back in a few minutes,” her husband answered.

“Yeah, then her and Katy are going shopping,” Jake smiled and shoveled a spoonful of cereal into his mouth.

“That sounds like fun,” Abigail smiled.

“Not really, but according to her I have no choice,” Kaitlyn huffed. “She wants to spend some time “bonding.” What a crock.”

“You might have fun,” Robert offered as he flipped through the morning paper. “I thought all girls liked to shop.”

“Whatever. I’ll be in my room.”

Abigail watched as her granddaughter stormed off in the same fashion as her daughter had just hours earlier. “I honestly don’t understand why Elisabeth and Katy don’t get along better; they are just alike.”

“What’s that mother?” Elisabeth asked as she entered the bright kitchen. “You know you really shouldn’t risk saying something like that when Kaitlyn is so close. There’s no telling what she would do if she were to hear that.”

“Well, darling, Jake and I are gonna go get our fishing gear,” Robert announced kissing his wife on the cheek. “See you later, pumpkin.”

“Bye Daddy,” Elisabeth smiled. Stooping down to Jake’s eye level, she wrapped her arms around him tightly. “I love you, baby. Go have fun.”

When Abigail was sure that Robert and Jake were out of the kitchen, she sat down across from her daughter at the bar and gave her a worried glance. “I’m concerned about you, Lizzie.”

“Why?” she asked as she spread cream cheese over a bagel. “Because I’m not sitting on my ass and dwelling on my problems like I always have? Is it because I’m actually enjoying myself while I’m here?”

“Elisabeth, you need to lower your voice. I don’t appreciate your tone.”

“You know what? You don’t appreciate anything about me. Ever since that night when I met Joshua, you have treated me like an outcast. Am I not good enough to be your daughter because I got pregnant before I was married? I’m the same person I was then, in case you haven’t noticed. People make mistakes,” she said and gave her mother a hard look.

“I just think you need to think before you hang out with that Nick boy again, Elisabeth. I’m only looking out for your best interest,” Abigail softened her tone. “You’re not an outcast and I love you just the same, but I’m worried that you’re going to get in trouble. It’s wrong.”

“First of all, Nick is not a boy. He’s 23 years old,” Elisabeth dropped the uneaten bagel into the trashcan. “And have you forgotten that I’m 30? Stop worrying about what I’m doing and how it’s going to tarnish your upscale image because I know that’s the only reason you’re even bringing this up.” Elisabeth decided that she was going to go out and occupy her mind instead of staying and fighting with her mother. Glancing briefly back at her mother she took a breath. “And you know what else? It might be wrong to everyone else, but nothing I’ve done has felt wrong. If anything, it has felt right, so let’s just drop it.”