A/N: Thanks so much again to everyone who has reviewed/favorited/followed this story! Not only does it mean the world to me, but it gives me great motivation to write up the next chapter(s)! &*
"Now you gotta be gentle," Coop directed as he hovered over Jesse, showing him how to work with a new type of wood. "Cypress is pretty delicate."
The smell of the cypress board filled Jesse's nostrils as he softly smoothed out the uneven surfaces. He tried to keep his pressure as light as possible as he pushed the sander across the wood.
Coop watched as Jesse worked, noticing how much effort Jesse put into his pieces. Though he wasn't quite a skilled carpenter yet, Coop was proud of how much his employee had improved since he first started. And he knew Jesse would never half-ass a project; he put all of his energy and effort into his work.
"Ah, jeez, kid, why don't you take the lead on this project?" Coop asked.
"Me?" Jesse wondered as he looked up at his boss.
"Yeah, you know, I'll supervise everything and help when needed, but I think it's time you take on a project alone," Coop answered.
Jesse looked at all the large pieces of cypress wood in the shop. Suddenly, the project seemed very daunting and exhausting. "This is a big project, Coop," he pointed out. Go figure his boss would give him the lead on the biggest project they've done since he started working there.
"Nothing you can't handle," his boss defended. "Look, you're not going to screw anything up. I'll supervise everything you do, but I want you to do most of the work on your own to get a good feel for this. I want you to have a little more responsibility in the shop."
Jesse looked at all the wood once more then back at his boss, wondering if this was his way of preparing him to run the shop; he wondered if Coop changed his mind about letting him take over. "Okay," he replied, nodding. "I can do it."
"Of course you can," Coop agreed, patting him on the back.
The crunching of gravel could be heard as a car, presumably Jolie's, rustled up the rocky driveway. The late September air breezed into the shop through the open garage door as Jesse looked up to see Lia jump out of Jolie's car and rush toward the shop. Her backpack bounced all around her back as she gripped a piece of paper in her hands.
"JESSE!" Lia yelled as she ran into the shop. "LOOK WHAT I GOT!" She stopped dead in her tracks and held up the paper proudly.
Jesse put down the sander and walked over to her.
"What is that?" He asked as he leaned over to read the paper.
It was a certificate from the spelling bee. Lia had won.
"You won?" He asked with wide eyes.
Her smile stretched from ear to ear as she nodded proudly. "I won! I won the whole entire spelling bee!"
Happily, Jesse picked up the girl and threw her over his shoulder just as Jolie was walking into the shop carrying Lucy on her hip. "Look out, Jo! I found the smartest girl alive! Her head is so big because she has a ginormous brain!"
Jolie and Coop both smiled at the sweet interaction as Lia giggled wildly over Jesse's shoulder.
"Heeey, I don't have a big head!" Lia protested with a laugh.
"Well you should," Jesse said as he slowly put the girl back on her own two feet. "Because your brain is HUGE because you're a GENIUS."
Lia giggled again and put her hand on her hip. "You're just saying that."
"Am not," Jesse replied. "You're much smarter than I am. I've never won a spelling bee."
"Never?" Lia asked with wide eyes.
Jesse shook his head. "Never. Not once."
"Hey, congratulations, spelling champ," Coop called over to his granddaughter.
"Thanks, Grandpa," she said as she ran over to him. "Look at my certificate!"
Jolie walked over to Jesse, still holding Lucy.
"Hey, Luce," Jesse greeted sweetly. She stared at him in her typical fashion.
"You were the first person she wanted to show her certificate to," Jolie told him. "Because you helped her practice so much."
He smiled. "That's sweet."
Jolie smiled back at him, holding her stare for a few seconds. They shared a subtle moment, as they had been doing often since their emotional day together in New Orleans. She thought about him constantly. He thought about her even more.
They both knew that their situation was different and, consequently, a little difficult.
Jesse knew that eventually he would have to be truthful about his past to Jolie. He didn't want to lie to her; she deserved to know the truth. But he feared her reaction. She would never allow him to be in her life or the girls' lives if she knew about the horrible things he's done, and understandably so. Not to mention, he worked for her father and lived in her parents' house. And he didn't want that to change anytime soon, but he knew his job and home security would be taken away from him if she found out what a piece of shit he really was.
And on Jolie's end, she was worried about the girls. She came with a package. Not only would Jesse have to be a boyfriend, but he'd have to eventually be a father too. She knew that was a lot to ask. And she hadn't worked out the details for herself yet either; she hadn't figured out how to nurture, or even begin, a relationship as a single mother. Plus with Jesse's close proximity to her home, there would have to be extreme boundaries.
So for the time being, they remained silent about both their wants and worries when it came to each other and just enjoyed their moments together.
A few nights later, Jesse sat on the side of the lake, watching the water ripple through the reflection of the moonlight. He had finished his pack of cigarettes almost an hour ago, but he was still enjoying the peace and quiet, trying to clear his brain of all his racing thoughts to reach total silence.
In order to move forward with his life, he tried to rid his mind of his past. And not just the last two years, but all of it. He tried not to think about all of his wrongdoings and mistakes and how much pain he's caused other people and himself, yet he couldn't help but compare how different his life was in Louisiana. What a difference a year can make.
He knew that even if he decided to move again in the future, he would never go back to his old ways. Louisiana and the Quinn family had changed him – for the better and for the rest of his life.
And he was so thankful for that.
He was nearly startled by the sound of grass and leaves rustling beneath someone's feet behind him, but as soon as he glanced over his shoulder and saw her, he relaxed.
"Hey you," Jolie spoke as she walked up to him.
"Hey," Jesse replied softly.
"Mind if I join you?" She wondered, reciting their usual self-invitation to one another's relaxation spot.
"Not at all," he answered honestly.
She sat down beside him and exhaled softly, as if her body was finally relaxing. And truthfully, she was finally relaxing. Smelling Jesse's cologne mixed with the smell of cigarettes, feeling his warmth next to her – it all put her at ease.
"What's on your mind tonight?" He asked her, noting her subtle sigh.
"I just had a rough conversation with Lia," she answered.
He looked over at her, smiling softly to himself when he saw her cute little ear poking out from her hair that was tucked behind it.
"About what?" He wondered, even though he was fairly certain he already had a good idea of what it was about.
"She asked if she could go to Heaven to see her parents," Jolie said with a heavier sigh, looking out at the lake.
Jesse's face fell. Though he understood her need to talk about the painful things in her life, he truly hated hearing heartbreaking things like that. He wanted to reach out and hug her. Hell, he just wanted to touch her. But he wasn't sure if it was an appropriate time or not, so he forced his hands to keep to themselves.
"I mean, what do you even say when a six-year-old tells you they want to die to be with their parents? All I did was tell her that one day she will be in Heaven with them," she scoffed, feeling tears well up in the rim of her eyes. "She accepted it as an answer, but hell, I didn't comfort her or try to explain anything or try to make her feel differently about it, I just–"
"Hey," Jesse interrupted her ramble as he glanced at her, stopping his hands again from reaching out to touch her. "I don't think there was a right or wrong way to respond to that. She's six. She doesn't even understand the meaning of what she's saying. Keeping it simple was the best thing to do. And you did just that."
She looked over at him, seeing an expression on his face that was hard to explain. It looked like he was in pain or worried. Or both.
"I wish you wouldn't beat yourself up all the time," he continued, noting the tears in her eyes. "You're a great mom."
She pressed her lips together, feeling overly emotional with him yet again. "I'm sorry, Jesse."
"For what?" He asked with a confused expression and tone.
"I'm always getting so emotional around you and whining about having to be a parent and dumping all of my personal thoughts and conflicts onto you," she admitted, sheepishly.
Jesse let out a small, almost sarcastic, chuckle. "You don't do any of those things," he reassured.
"Yes, I do," she insisted, looking back out at the lake.
"That's not the way I see it," he replied. "I like that you're comfortable enough with me to be open and honest and show your emotions. I don't think of it as a bad thing." Succumbing to the overwhelming desire to simply touch her, he put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her into him for a sideways hug. "C'mere."
He had intended to only hug her for a moment, but when she scooted closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder, he kept his arm around her. She relaxed into him, putting her arm around his waist, welcoming his hug and returning with her own. She embraced his warmth and inhaled his scent up close, feeling flutters in her stomach. His heart was experiencing flutters of its own.
Feeling more confident and more content than before, Jesse pressed his lips to the top of Jolie's head. He kissed her comfortingly but his lips lingered as he inhaled. Her hair smelled sweet – not like flowers, but like berries – and he thought that was very fitting for someone like her.
"Thank you," she sighed.
"For what?" He mumbled into her hair.
"You make me feel better," she said. "Whether you intend to or not."
His lips curved into a slight smile, and he kissed her head again to let her know the feeling was mutual.
He never had to think too much when it came to Jolie. She was simple and so was he.