JC looked at Kaela and grinned his crooked grin. "C'mon punkin. Let's go wake Princess Isabella up." Kaela grinned and held her arms up. He smiled and swung her up onto his shoulders and headed inside.
Corinne sighed and smoothed her skirt. A woman that looked to be about 29 or so answered the door and smiled. "Hi, you must be Corinne? I'm Rae. Come on inside." Corinne followed the blonde into the spacious house and looked around in awe. "Wow." Rae laughed. "Yeah, I know. It's big for the two of us. But my husband insisted. He should be here shortly..." Corinne smiled. "Ok." Rae grinned. "Are you married?" Corinne shook her head. "Ah, no." Rae smiled. "Boyfriend?" Corinne shook her head. "Daughter." Rae nodded. "Oh. What's her name?" Corinne smiled. "Kaela." Rae sighed. "I want a son. But, Chris, my husband, his work keeps him pretty busy, so, there's just no time, right now. However, his friend has a daughter, and THEY do just fine..." Rae trailed off, blushing. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bore you. You're here on business. So. As soon as Chris gets home, we can get down to it."
"Raeeeeeee, where are yooouuu?!" Rae rolled her eyes. "Speak of the devil. In here!" He swooped in, throwing her over his shoulder, skipping around. "Ack! Put me down!" He grinned and set her on her feet, pecking her on the nose. He turned to Corinne and smiled. "Corinne! Hey girl!" Her mouth dropped open. "Chris... I... hi. I didn't know you were married." He laughed. "Yeah, I'm a slave now." Rae glared at him. "Ahem." She turned to Corinne. "How do you two know each other?" Chris smiled. "She's JC's friend." Rae nodded, slowly, before a smile spread across her face. "Ohhh." Chris smiled, cheekily, before clearing his throat. "Anyways. Our house. It's bare and needs your help. So! Let's get down to it, shall we?" He slipped his hand in Rae's and headed downstairs, talking. "So, yeah, we gotta have a Star Wars home theatre. You like Star Wars, don't you, Cor? Yeah, Chewbacca's the best.... I bet you dig Han Solo don't you? Yeah, I'm better looking than him, if I do say so myself..." Corinne shook her head, smiling to herself, following them downstairs.
Corinne sighed, glancing at her watch and groaned. She didn't expect to be back so late, and hoped JC wouldn't be upset. She knocked softly and waited for him to answer. After a few minutes, she turned the knob and was surprised to see it open. She saw a note attached to the rug and shook her head, doing as it said. She lifted it and laughed as she saw the key taped down. 'He must have known, I'd be late.' She opened the door and crept inside, to the living room. The sight before her made her stop dead in her tracks.
Stretched out across the couch, JC slept, his arm dangling over the side, down to where Isabella slept peacefully. But what made her weak in the knees, was her daughter stretched out on him, his arms wrapped protectively around her, her head against his chest, asleep as well. Corinne sighed and knelt down beside them, and stroked her cheek. She smiled and looked at JC. Not wanting to wake him, she tried to pick up Kaela without waking him. He woke with a start and looked around defensively. Corinne rested her hand on his and squeezed. "It's ok. It's just me." He sighed, as his eyes rested upon her figure. "I thought maybe it was someone else.. I didn't know.." She shook her head. "It's ok. Help me carry her outside?" He nodded, taking her from her and walked out to her car. He placed her inside and kissed her forehead. "Bye angel."
Corinne watched, in silence and awe, and forced a smile as he shut the door, walking to her. "Thanks again for watching her." He smiled. "Anytime. She's good for Isabella." Corinne nodded, "I should go." He nodded. "Yeah." The two stood awkwardly, looking down at the ground. "I guess I'll see you at Chris's tomorrow, then? You're going right?" He nodded. "Yep. We never pass up a good pool party. Or barbeque for that matter." She nodded. "Ok, then. I'll see you tomorrow." He cleared his throat. "Tomorrow." He watched as she climbed inside her car and drove off into the night. Running a hand through his hair, he trudged inside.
Five