Chapter 1

"Mom…" Dana tried to speak but her mother just glared at her cutting off any excuses or explanations she might give. Carol Lambert had been pacing the living room; Cody and Dana were sitting on the couch side by side waiting for her to talk. Frank had sent all the other kids upstairs, what he didn't realize was that they were eavesdropping on the conversation.

How could they not? Dana, who verbalized everyday how much she couldn't stand Cody, was caught making out with him. That's not something a person normally does with another person that they claim to hate. Every single one of the Lambert and Foster children wanted to know why they were sneaking around.

"Ok, I want answers and I want them now." Dana again moved to open her mouth but Carol cut her off. It was then that Dana realized this wasn't a lecture that Mom wanted her input on. She was going to vent and she was going to vent without any interruption from Dana.

"You are seventeen years old; Cody is twenty-two years old, mind explaining to me why he was sticking his tongue down your throat?" This time when Dana didn't speak Carol got upset. "I asked you a question Dana."

"Actually I'm twenty-two and a half." Cody corrected nodding his head really fast smirking over at Dana who was just shutting her eyes tightly.

Frank got in the middle of Carol and her eldest daughter; this was going to get ugly. "Honey, when you tell Dana to answer a question and she starts to you stop her and when she doesn't answer you get upset. If you want an answer you need to make up your mind." Your very crazy mind, he thought privately.

It wasn't that he's remarkably thrilled about Cody and Dana sucking face but he didn't see it as that big of a deal as Carol did apparently. After all Cody wasn't a killer, rapist, or any other kind of crazy 'I'm going to tear your head off' kind of guy. That's not to say he's not a little—odd. All he wanted to know was why they kept their relationship a secret.

"Now my first question, how long have you two been together?" Frank calmly asked.

"Since I lived in the backyard Uncle Frank." He didn't add his normal 'Yah-ah' at the end of his sentence; he had the distinct feeling it wasn't the appropriate time. Carol was about to explode but Dana stood up placing her hands on her shoulders.

"Whoa Mom. He thought Frank meant how long we've been together as in known each other. We didn't start dating till a couple of months after my seventeenth birthday." She'd been with Cody for almost nine months so she knew how to decipher Cody logic.

"Why didn't you ever tell us? Why keep it secret?" Frank didn't think Cody would keep the fact that he's dating Dana a secret. He'd want to shout it from the rooftops. So why?

Cody stood up and took Dana's hand in his, she smiled up at him then told Mom and Frank why. "We didn't want to keep it secret. Really we didn't. But Mom you're not exactly the most sane person to tell that I'm dating a guy nearly six years older than me."

"Dana what do you expect, he's six years older than you of course I'm going to be a little crazy." She admitted.

"A little? Sheesh, you were about to rip our heads off." Cody scoffed.

"That's not helping Cody." Dana muttered. "We were going to tell everyone after I turned eighteen. It would have been one hundred percent legal then." She admitted to them.

Carol took a deep breath; there was one question that had been plaguing her mind since they saw them out in the back, a question she didn't want to ask but needed the answer too. "Have you and Cody…are you and Cody having a sexual relationship? I want an honest answer."

"Carol I doubt they have I mean Cody is still as pure as driven snow and Dana's not exactly one to sleep with anybody after only nine months." He glanced toward his nephew and stepdaughter catching their gazes. Oh boy, Carol was going to blow her top.

Another deep breath was sucked in by Carol and her breath shook as she exhaled. Before she could even say a word the sound of their children shouting came down the stairs. "OH MY GOD!" Five pairs of stomping feet follow the shouts.

"You two slept together." JT shouted appalled at what he just learned. That was just sick, how could Cody be with Barky. He could understand why Dana was with the Code-man he's a babe magnet; everywhere they went girl's flocked around him, but Dana…who would want her? She's rude, she spewed insults at every turn, and she's not exactly a babe.

"I seem to recall a time not too long ago, about five months ago, we went on a double date with those two hot babes and you turned them down saying you were saving yourself for your lady love. What about that?" JT demanded to know.

"At the time I was still waiting for my lady love. She wasn't ready so I wasn't ready. The only reason I even went on that double date was because that was the only way the girl you were after would go out with you. I did it as a favor for you." Cody poked JT's chest.

Dana remembered that date too. She and Cody got into a bit of an argument over it. In the end though Cody assured her nothing would ever happen with him and either of the girls, this was all so JT could score points with his own date. It hurt that Cody went out with some other woman even in a friend/strictly platonic capacity but Cody kept his word and she never doubted he would for a second.

"All right, all of you upstairs now. Go, you have school in the morning." Frank commanded and this time he marched the children up to bed himself. It didn't mean they wouldn't hurry back to the stairs the second he left but at least he could say he took them up there.

"Did you two at least use protection?" Carol asked. She hoped everything she instilled in her daughter on safe sex penetrated…no pun intended.

Cody placed a hand over his heart. "Every time Carol. Dana's safety has always been my main concern. We've both been tested for any sexually transmitted diseases."

"And I'm on the pill Mom. Have been since a couple weeks after Cody and I began to date." She knew after only those first few weeks that she'd be sleeping with Cody. It only took her a couple months to know she'd marry him. There has always been something about him that drew her to him. He made her feel so special like she's the only woman in the room; all of her feminist speeches and beliefs got thrown out the window whenever he was around. No man had ever made her feel that way before. She still believed in what she had before but now she took a less extreme and drastic approach.

"Ok, listen you two it's been a long night. Why don't we pick this up tomorrow after you come home from school ok Dana?" Carol suggested.

Dana nodded agreeing fully with her. "I'm just going to say goodnight to Cody. Is that ok?"

Reluctantly Carol nodded and left the couple alone against her better judgment. Maybe she should have stayed down there but she's positive she could trust them to not do any hanky-panky in her living room.

As soon as Carol was upstairs Cody took Dana into his arms resting his forehead against hers. "Everything's going to be alright. I promise." He assured her.

"I know. Can you pick me up from school tomorrow? Now that we're out to our family I don't really see the need to hide anymore." There were times like these when she's in his arms that she was completely sure that nothing could harm them.

"You bet Dana-burger." He kissed her nose.

"Thanks Cheese-brain." She gave him a quick peck on the lips.

"I love you Dana." Cody whispered to her. There were times when he's with Dana that he could keep the 'Dudesy's' and 'Yah-ah' out of his speech. Even though Dana told him he didn't have to stop, in fact she thought it's kind of cute when he spoke 'Code-man'.

"I love you too Cody." They give each other a final kiss before parting, Dana going up the stairs toward her room and Cody going through the kitchen and to his van. Tomorrow wasn't going to any easier on them. JT would be a huge pain. She knew it.

TBC