Thanks to all of my reviewers, favorite-ers, and followers!

Also, I want to thank the best betas ever kismet4891 and katnissinme.

In Name Only

Chapter 10

The days leading up to Christmas flew by, yet the preparations were never ending. It was a flurry of work for Katniss, both at home and the bakery. Every morning she would help in the busy bakery, checking out customers, gathering supplies, or doing anything else that was needed. Sadly, her and Peeta's time alone was affected by the holiday rush. They had to settle for quick, heated exchanges that ultimately left them both wanting more. Katniss missed Peeta's touch, as the jingle bells attached to Prim's door jangled loudly when she rose to get a glass of water during the only bonding time that they'd been able to squeeze in before bed. The only thing that kept them both sane was the promise of what was to come in a few days' time. On occasion she and Peeta would catch each other's eye and beam at each other dreamily. At lunchtime, Peeta would pull her into his office, kissing her senseless and proclaiming how much he loved her before they would each eat and then return to work. Peeta would remainat the bakery and Katniss would return to theirhome. Peeta worked late every day to keep up with the holiday special orders, and often did not come home until dinner time.

In the afternoons Katniss and Mrs. Seeder worked tirelessly in the and prepping the house for her in-laws' visit had become Katniss's mission. She was determined to make the house shine and to impress. They scrubbed, dusted and polished every item in the house. Katniss truly enjoyed spending time with Mrs. Seeder – she was pleasant, easy to talk with, and tried her best to teach Katniss all about how to be a good hostess.

Mrs. Seeder warned Katniss that her new sisters-in-law, especially Graham's wife, Agnes, were very critical of every aspect of keeping house. The maid, who had worked for the family for nearly fifteen years, also related to Katniss several interesting stories about the Mellark family. "Now, it's not that I like to gossip or tell tall tales, but I think that you should know what you're going against with this group," Mrs. Seeder prefaced her story.

She explained to Katniss that about a year before Mr. Mellark died he had a major stroke, leaving him bedridden, and that Peeta had hired a lovely, very professional woman, Nurse Paylor, to help take care of his father around the clock. Nurse Paylor lived in what is now Prim's room and was by all accounts a wonderful caretaker and employee. Once, during one of her and Rhyes's rare visits, Ethel Mellark got caught searching Nurse Paylor's room. When confronted, Ethel stated that she was just making sure that their inheritance wasn't being skimmed, convinced that the nurse was stealing.

"Oh, those stuck-up women just make me so mad!" Mrs. Seeder huffed on Tuesday afternoon while they were polishing the staircase railing, surprising Katniss with her obvious annoyance; the housekeeper was usually pleasant and very even tempered. "I swear they just married into the family thinking that there was a ton of money locked up in this house somewhere and that the Mellarks were all loaded. But the joke is on them,'cause only Peeta's the wealthy one these 's no Rockefeller, but you'll probably never have to worry about anything as long as you live within your means." Katniss's mouth dropped at Mrs. Seeder's comment. When she saw the young woman's response to what she'd said, Mrs. Seeder remarked, "What, you didn't know, honey?"

Katniss's hand stilled. "No," she replied, still in obvious surprise. "I just thought that Peeta was a good baker."

Mrs. Seeder came and sat on the same step as Katniss, laid her hand on Katniss's shoulder and asked, "You really had no clue, did you?" Katniss shook her head. Mrs. Seeder kindly explained. "This is between you and me, and the only reason I'm telling you this is so you can understand why things are the way that they are between Peeta and his brothers. I only know because ol' Mr. Mellark told me, he was so proud of Peeta…Although it doesn't surprise me that Peeta wouldn't tell you. He doesn't like to talk about money much, he thinks that it causes too many problems, just like it did for his parents. Old Mrs. Mellark came from money, and she held that over Mr. Mellark's head. After Peeta's mother died, Mr. Mellark spilt her money three ways so the boys could use it as they saw fit. Peeta spent a good bit of his on that ring of yours."

Katniss looked at her ring in disbelief, as Mrs. Seeder rubbed her back and continued. "His brothers told him that he was crazy and frivolous and that he should invest like they did. But Peeta's ring ended up being a better investment than all those bonds his brothers bought. After that Fields girl turned him down, Peeta used the ring as collateral on his first business loan that he used to buy the bakery from his father. Then a few years later he designed a new sort of oven, he had a patent or something like that,and then he sold it for a large amount of money. Although most people don't know, seeing as how Peeta is too modest to say anything."

Katniss tried to understand why Peeta would never tell her about how wealthy he was. She soon realized though, that perhaps he wanted to be sure that she loved him for who he was and not for his money. Or maybe he knew how Katniss didn't care about money and didn't like to talk about it could understand now why his brothers were under the assumption that Katniss was after Peeta for his money alone. Now so many of Peeta's past actions were easily happy insistence on buying both her and Prim all new wardrobes, and never batting an eye at putting her mother in an expensive, private hospital. Katniss had never thought about it before, as she didn't really care about money had been able to survive off of bartering. As long as she and Prim had a warm house and full bellies she felt like she was doing alright.

"Are you alright, honey?" Mrs. Seeder inquired.

Katniss replied almost sadly. "I can see why everyone thinks that I'm a gold digger now."

"Oh, sweetheart," Mrs. Seeder soothed, and chuckled a little. "Like I said, very few people know how well-off Peeta is. I watch you two everyday, and I know that what you two feel for each other is real. I see how happy you've made each other. I think most people are coming to realize that now, too." She wrapped Katniss up in a big motherly hug; it felt so good to have that sort of affection again that Katniss relished the physical connection.

"Thank you, Mrs. Seeder," Katniss whispered, and gladly returned the hug, "for everything."

"You're welcome, child," Mrs. Seeder smiled and rose to continue her earlier task. "Oh, and Katniss, it is none of my business – nor do I care – but you may want to move your things down to Peeta's room. I wouldn't put it past your sisters-in-law to go through every room in this house."

Katniss looked at the elder woman with her eyes wide. She'd never thought her and Peeta's sleeping arrangement would be known to anyone else, but she just now realized how foolish that had been. Prim was one thing, she was young and naïve and bought into Peeta's 'snoring' story. She hadn't ever thought about Mrs. Seeder knowing all of their secrets. After a moment of thought she replied evenly, "I'll take that into consideration."

The days continued to inch by and time alone with Peeta was still a sparse commodity. By the time Thursday evening came around it seemed like they'd not had but a few moments alone together. They dressed in their Sunday best and attended the school's Christmas pageant. Hand-in-hand, Katniss and Peeta watched the elementary students act out the Nativity. Prim was wonderful as the angel of the Lord. Katniss had always considered her sister to be akin to an angel, not only because of her angelic appearance, but also because her birth had brought such peace and happiness to her family.

While the rest of the audience chuckled at the wise men tripping over their robes, Katniss relived some of the sadder moments of her childhood. She recalled her mother's multiple miscarriages. While they were all terrible, the last one before Prim was born had been the worst. Katniss could remember her father crying as he clutched her tiny, lifeless brother, wrapped in a blanket. She also remembered the feeling of immense sorrow that filled the house the weeks after the baby was buried. Mama had laid in her bed, and Papa had taken care of everything as best he could and begged Mama to come back to him. Eventually she did. About a year later Mama's belly got big again and she told Katniss that she was pregnant, and that this time she was sure that Katniss was going to be a big sister. Katniss remembered praying every night that this baby would be born alive and well for her parents' sake. When Prim was finally born, her Mama and Papa were so happy. Katniss was too, and had fallen in love with her tiny sister at first sight.

A new fear popped into Katniss's head. What if I have the same problems that Mama had? Now that their marriage was soon to become a fully-fledged one, pregnancy was a likely result. Katniss wanted to give Peeta children, although the thought of him having to go through the same things that Papa did gave her a chill. Peeta had already known such terrible pain. Peeta looked at her and mouthed, "You cold?"

She lied and nodded affirmation, prompting Peeta to wrap his arm around her and pull her in close. His warm embrace calmed her some, but she now had a whole new set of fears that she would have to face down someday.

Later, Katniss and Peeta found themselves finally alone on the couch listening to Christmas music on the radio. Prim had gone to bed a little earlier. Katniss and Peeta held each other tight, but did little else. It was like an unspoken agreement that they would resist their carnal urges for just a while longer. Not to mention the fact that poor Peeta had been going non-stop since three that morning. "Oh, Peeta," Katniss whispered.

"Yes, dear?" Peeta responded and nuzzled his head on her shoulder.

"I just wanted to tell you that I moved my clothes down to your room today," Peeta sat up and looked at her curiously. Katniss continued, "Mrs. Seeder warned me that your sisters-in-law might be looking through the rooms and I thought that, you know, it was about time anyway… Was that alright?"

"Yes, of course," he said happily, and resettled his head on her shoulder. "It just makes it seem more real now. I guess I just hadn't thought about it." A few moments of silence passed, then Peeta asked in a serious tone. "Are you still sure?"

Katniss didn't hesitate as she placed a sweet kiss on his lips and then answered, "Yes, I'm still very sure."

It had been a very long day and they both found themselves comfortable and content in each others' arms. They dozed off and around midnight Peeta roused Katniss. "Come on Katniss,let's go to bed."

Katniss groaned in protest – she didn't really want to go to all of the trouble of going up the stairs and crawling into bed. "But I'm comfortable," she playfully protested as Peeta lifted himself from the couch.

"How about I let you sleep in my bed?" Peeta offered and then extended his hand to her. Katniss looked at him through sleepy eyes for a moment, thinking that he was teasing her. "Come on, I sleep better when you're with me."

Katniss whispered, "Really?" Peeta nodded and then Katniss took his hand. While Peeta changed in the bathroom, Katniss changed into her old flannel night gown in what was soon to be "their" room. She was snuggled under the blankets by the time he knocked on the door to see if she was "decent." Peeta came to bed in pajama pants and an undershirt and then slid into the bed behind Katniss, pulling her close. He kissed her brow and wished her goodnight. And it was. Katniss fell asleep almost instantly and did not rouse until Prim started to knock loudly on the bedroom door at seven o'clock the next morning.

"It's Christmas Eve," Prim announced gleefully. "Wake up, Katniss!"

"In a minute, Prim," Katniss grumbled, then she quickly sat up and looked at the empty side of the bed. It was here, the day that they'd been waiting for. Even though it was only hours away it still seemed so far, they still had to get through the dreaded Mellark family dinner. Her eyes caught a glimpse of a small sheet of paper on Peeta's pillow. It read:

Katniss,

I wish that I could compose lovely words for you, but Charlotte Bronte already said best what I feel for you: 'I have for the first time found what I can truly love–I have found you. You are my sympathy–my better self–my good angel–I am bound to you with a strong attachment. I think you good, gifted, lovely: a fervent, a solemn passion is conceived in my heart; it leans to you, draws you to my centre and spring of life, wraps my existence about you–and, kindling in pure, powerful flame, fuses you and me in one."'

I love you so much, Mrs. Mellark.

Love, Peeta

Katniss nearly cried happy tears when she read his loving words and decided that she could face whatever the day might hold.

Peeta and Katniss had already determined that she would stay home and get ready for the family meal while he went to the bakery. Mrs. Seeder would typically have helped with the preparations, but Peeta insisted that she have the entire day off since her son, Thresh, was home from college. So she left careful instructions on how to prepare the ham and vegetables, and Peeta would bring home the baked goods. Everything was as fool-proof as it could be, for which Katniss was grateful.

Peeta came home a little early in the afternoon with his arms full of bread, dinner rolls, cookies, and pies. After a quick lunch of soup and sandwiches, Peeta announced with an innocent smile on his face, "I'm going to go take a nap." He caught Katniss's eye and gave her a wink. "I'm going to need to be well rested for later."

Katniss tried, unsuccessfully, to suppress a grin and blush, and then rolled her eyes. An hour before the guests were due to arrive everything was table was set with Peeta's mother's china, crystal, and silver. It looked so lovely that Katniss thought even Emily Post would be impressed.

Peeta looked handsome in his charcoal suit pants, matching vest, crisp white shirt, and a blue striped tie. Prim was dressed in a ruffled pink dress and patent leather shoes. Katniss donned her new red plaid dress with full sleeves along with her brand new, two-toned, heeled saddle shoes.

When Peeta saw them he proclaimed, "My, aren't you two the prettiest pair of ladies that I've ever had the pleasure of seeing." He then wrapped an arm around Katniss's waist and pulled her in close under the guise of kissing her on the cheek while she fussed over the table cloth, and whispered lowly in her ear, "I hope I have the pleasure of seeing even more of you later."

"That is the plan, isn't it?" Katniss returned confidently. "I loved my note his morning, by the way," and gave him a chaste kiss on his lips. Their tender moment was halted by the sound of a knock at the door.

Peeta sighed and then whispered in a sincere tone, "No matter what happens tonight, just remember that I love you." Katniss nodded and then Peeta went to the door.

It was Graham and Agnes and their two sons, Chip and Fred, who looked to be about Prim's age. A few minutes later they were joined by Rhyes and Ethel with their two daughters, Vera and Margie, who were slightly younger than their cousins. The children oooh-ed and ah-ed over the Christmas tree and seemed to be happy to see Peeta again. Prim got things rolling with the other children by inviting them to play board games with her. Katniss relaxed a little when she saw that the other kids were at least willing to play nicely with Prim.

When the children left the room the tension was thick. Katniss tried to be polite and friendly, but unlike Prim, it was not her talent. It also didn't help that she could see the women examining the house from where they sat. Peeta and his brothers were able to make passably polite conversation about the weather and what the children were up to. At least the men were trying.

Graham looked much like Peeta, only older with a large pot belly. Agnes was tall and round, with a pretty face and sandy blonde hair. Judging by the plumpness of Graham and his sons, Katniss guessed that Agnes must have been a very good cook.

Rhyes was slightly smaller than Peeta and very bald. Ethel was of medium height and was rail thin, with pinched features and very pale skin, framed by strawberry blonde hair. Their daughters lucked out and favored their father, their pretty blonde hair done up in sausage curls and tied back with large bows. Katniss felt very out of place with her olive skin and nearly black hair.

Things were quiet until dinner was served, with the exception of Agnes lecturing Peeta for allowing the help to have time off. The children ate at their own table while the adults sat around the dining room table. Multiple times Katniss noticed Ethel looking at her ring. After a few moments, Ethel broke the silence and said, "So Peeta," she smirked, "you've heard about Clove? Of course, it's too bad she didn't decide to divorce Cato sooner or she might have gotten that ring after all."

Katniss was surprised. Cato and Clove must be the divorcing couple that everyone had been gossiping about. She felt a slight pang. Peeta looked up at his sister-in-law, relieving his wife when he calmly replied, "No, that ring is exactly where I want to be. I was done with Clove years ago." He then gave Katniss a reassuring smile from the head of the table.

Ethel was visibly disappointed that she didn't get a bigger reaction. Katniss swore that she saw Rhyes nudge his wife and give her a sour look.

"Katniss, how is your mother? I heard that she wasn't well and needed a rest." Agnes feigned concern, but it was an obvious attempt to get Katniss to admit that her mother was in a mental hospital.

"She is doing much better, thank you," Katniss answered as sweetly as she could. The reply would have been enough to silence polite people.

"What hospital is she in?" Agnes smiled triumphantly.

Peeta responded before Katniss could, speaking low enough so the children could not hear, "The same hospital that your parents sent your brother when they caught him wearing ladies clothing…Tell me, does he still think that he is Greta Garbo?" If the tone of Peeta's voice hadn't been so serious one would have thought that it was a joke. Katniss had to bite her tongue to keep from giggling at Agnes and Ethel's shocked reactions.

Agnes looked down at her husband like he was supposed to defend her. Graham said nothing and took a bite of ham. Rhyes snickered, earning cross looks from both Agnes and Ethel. "What?" he said lowly. "He did think he was Garbo."

The table was tense when Graham looked to Katniss. "Katniss, so how did my baby brother win you over? No one even knew that he was seeing anyone, and then he calls us up one day and announces that he was married." The last sentence was spoken in a somber tone. Katniss could tell that he was asking out of true concern.

Katniss could understand why Peeta's brothers were dismayed by their hasty marriage, she had to admit from the outside looking in what it may have looked like. She took a deep breath and told her version of the story as positively as she could. "Well, to be totally honest, I was very keen on him when I was a little girl." Peeta smiled at her warmly, urging her on. "Then I grew up and it turned out that he was keen on me, too. He has the prettiest blue eye and makes the best cheese buns ever. How could I turn that down?" Peeta beamed at her just like a groom would his bride on his wedding day.

"That's a very sweet story," Ethel retorted curtly, while Rhyes cringed a little. "But why didn't anyone know about your courtship? Nobody even knew that you two were seeing each other. Why the rush to get married?"

Peeta was again ready with a witty answer. "Well, why not? Once we both knew how the other felt, why wait? I had a home and a livelihood, we didn't care for a big wedding or anything like that. It made sense to get married as soon as we could. There was noreason other than that." The last sentence came out with such a sense of finality that no one dared ask the lingering questions they may have still harbored.

Katniss looked around to see that most of the plates were empty. She thought it a good time to start a pot of coffee and offer pie. Peeta followed her into the kitchen and gathered her up into his arms, kissing her breathless as soon as the door shut behind them. When he finally broke the kiss he whispered, "Thank you."

"For what?" Katniss asked in genuine surprise.

"For putting up with all of that," Peeta sighed and pointed to the dining room.

"Oh, well, now we're even for when my mother berated you for eloping with me," Katniss giggled. "That had to be awful. Mama doesn't get mad often but when she does it is horrible."

"It was," Peeta grinned at the memory.

"So, Agnes's brother thinks he's Garbo?" Katniss questioned with a grin.

"Yeah," Peeta deadpanned, "but he always looked more like Mae West to me."

Katniss had to cover her mouth to keep the others from hearing her laugh. Peeta, like he always did, had lifted her mood.

Dessert was eaten in peace, no one dared to say anything more. The mood was lightened when Peeta suggested that the children open their gifts. Peeta and his brothers had stopped exchanging gifts years ago. Katniss was relieved that she did not have to stress over what to give her in-laws. The children were thrilled with their gifts and Peeta played along with them on the floor. Much to Katniss's surprise, each couple had brought small gifts for Prim, paper dolls and hair ribbons. Maybe there is hope yet.

Thankfully, by eight o'clock, the company was ready to go. At least the wives were. They had the children in coats and the toys loaded in the car at the first opportunity they saw without even saying goodbye. Peeta and his brothers were talking in the entryway after everyone else was waiting in the car. Katniss and Prim were stacking up the rest of the dishes when Peeta called for her.

Rhyes put his hand out to Katniss. "We wanted to say thank you for dinner," Rhyes said pleasantly while they shook hands. "And I want to apologize for earlier. Don't worry about the women, they'll come around eventually."

"Welcome to the family," Graham told her and held out his hand. When she took it she was caught off guard as he pulled her in for a tight hug.

When he let her go she told him, "Thank you for telling Peeta about Dr. Aurelius. He has helped my mother so much."

"You're welcome," Graham smiled and adjusted his hat. "I hope he can help her more than he has Agnes's brother. It turns out there is nothing the good doctor can do for him, it's just the way he is, probably born that way. At least they got him convinced to dress like a man when he leaves the house and he's stopped asking to be called Greta."

They all exchanged goodbyes and Peeta seemed content with how they all parted. "Well, that went better than anticipated," Peeta breathed out when he saw their cars leave.

"I think that they were just concerned," Katniss reasoned. "I would have been, too, if I were in their shoes."

Katniss and Peeta did dishes while Prim picked up. Soon the house had been set back in order. Peeta brought out a bottle of blush wine that he had set out on the back step. The wine was chilled and very sweet, and even Prim was allowed to have a third of a glass. Peeta read The Night Before Christmas aloud for them in front of the fireplace. Prim's eyes started to get heavy and she wished Katniss and Peeta goodnight. As soon as they heard her door shut, Peeta started to get presents from the closet shelf and stacked them under the tree while Katniss stuffed Prim's stocking. Peeta got them each one more glass of wine, and they sat on the couch, both of them silent as they finished their drinks. Katniss was suddenly nervous. What if I'm terrible? What if I can't make him happy?

Peeta must have sensed her trepidation. He took her empty wine glass from her hand, pulled her into his lap, and playfully asked, "A penny for your thoughts?"

She smiled at him, understanding that she was being silly, but she couldn't help it. "I'm just afraid that I won't make you happy, that I'll just mess everything up."

Peeta lovingly kissed her lips and reassured her, "Everything we've done so far has been wonderful. I doubt that you'll mess it up." Then he started to pull the pins from her hair and unwind her braid. "Besides, do you know what the beauty of being married is?"

"No, what's that?" Katniss smiled slightly and fiddled with his collar buttons.

Peeta raised an eyebrow and gave her a cheeky smile, teasing huskily, "We can try again, and again, and again, until we get it right."

Katniss blushed brightly and giggled. She knew that she was over-thinking things and that Peeta would take care of her, just like he had every step of the way. She kissed him in earnest, enjoying the taste of wine on his tongue along with the wonderful combination of bakery scents and after shave that always incited longing in her. Her body was heated, she couldn't get enough of him. When they broke apart she looked into his darkened eyes and whispered, "Peeta, I'm ready."

Katniss rose from his lap and offered her hand to him, which he took. When he got to his feet he dropped her hand and scooped her up bridal style. Katniss gasped at the unexpected move. "What?" He asked in part jest, "Did you think that we weren't going to do this right? A groom has to carry his bride."

Katniss settled in his arms and kissed his cheek, wrapping her arms around his neck. "I love you, Mr. Mellark."

"I love you too, Mrs. Mellark," he replied, and opened the door to their room.

I apologize to all the smut lovers, you'll have to wait until next time. But to anyone who has been through a wedding knows, you have to deal with a lot of crap and drama before you get to the good stuff.

Hope you enjoyed it, thanks for reading!

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