AN: This is probably the last chapter I get to write before the season comes back next week. Here's to hoping S5 has lots of happy Javery! Reviews welcome!

Avery decided to give Cadence her bath instead of going back downstairs. He'd placed her in a laundry basket that was set in the tub. He'd read a tip in a parenting magazine about using a basket so she wouldn't slide around the full bathtub and it did make things a little easier but just to be safe, he kept a hold on her with one hand as he bathed her with the other. He was on his knees, elbows on the lip of the tub and arms in the water. The strain of kneeling in that position was killing his back but Cadence was enjoying herself so much that he let her linger longer than he normally would have. She loved bathtime; she liked to splash, to reach for a cluster of bubbles floating nearby or dunk her rubber ducks beneath the water so they bobbed up again. She chattered as he washed her, giggling and flailing her legs when he tickled her feet under the water. Avery gave her the washcloth and she put it on her head, then closed her eyes and sputtered as the water ran down her face.

He chuckled, squeezing the towel out so he could wipe her face. "Are you trying to help me wash your hair?" She opened her eyes and blinked up at him, her long eyelashes appearing even darker since they had gotten wet. It made her eyes resemble Juliette's in shape if not color. He poured a dollop of baby shampoo on the top of her head and lathered until she had a crown of suds.

"Hey." Juliette walked in behind him. "There you two are." She crouched next to the tub, glancing at him before turning to Cadence. "Look at you," she said to their daughter. "Princess Bubbles."

Cadence grasped the head of a rubber duck and held it upside down, offering it to her mother. "Duh," she said, waving it in the air.

"Duck, that's right." Juliette said. "What do duckies say, Cadence? Quack quack." She put the duck back in the water and motored it over to the baby while continuing to quack.

"You want to finish?" Avery asked.

"Sure."

She moved her hand to support Cadence's back and he stood up and stretched, folding his arms across his chest as he watched Juliette rinse their daughter's hair. She was careful, tilting the baby backwards so the shampoo wouldn't drip into her eyes as the water poured over her head. Cadence kept babbling, squeezing the rubber duck so that water squirted from the bottom, soaking the front of her mother's shirt.

"Oh, good grief, girl," she said. "How does that keep happening to Mama, huh? You do that every time."

The sound of her laugh and Cadence's answering giggle should have made him happy; it was a scene he'd only hoped to see after Juliette abandoned them, but he was too worried about her to really enjoy it. He'd thought that as she'd gotten better, she'd grown past the reckless need to chase stardom regardless of the consequences. She'd been sick the last time she'd put her career first but it had ended in disaster for them. Though she'd ultimately decided not to return to Luke's tour, it was upsetting that she'd considered it at all when it was clear, at least to him, that it was a terrible idea. And she hadn't even bothered to talk to him about it. She'd dismissed him - not unkindly, but asking him to leave her alone so she could talk things over with Glenn amounted to the same thing.

"Do you have a towel?" Juliette asked as she lifted Cadence from the tub. He handed it to her and she wrapped it around the baby, using the end to cover their daughter's head like a hood. She walked to the sink and pointed to the mirror above it. "Who is that?" She asked. "Who's that little girl?" Cadence peeked out from under the towel and pointed along with her mother. "That's you, baby. You and Mama."

Avery knelt back down to let the water out of the tub. He wanted to talk to her - talk and not argue, but realized it might be better to wait. With her late nap, Cadence wasn't likely to fall asleep any time soon and it would probably be a long night for both of them.

"I'm gonna get her in a diaper before she goes,"Juliette said.

He nodded his head but kept his back turned and soon heard her footsteps as she left. He took his time cleaning up, wringing the water from the washcloth and gathering the toys in a mesh bag. When he left the bathroom, he could hear Juliette singing to Cadence as he walked towards his old room. He chose to stand just inside the doorway. She'd laid the baby on the bed, diapered her and started massaging lotion onto her legs.

"Look at these pretty feet." She put one of the baby's feet in her mouth and gummed her toes. "I could just eat you up." Both she and Cadence laughed and she looked up at Avery, frowning when she saw his face. "Are you okay? You've been kinda quiet since dinner."

He shifted his weight from one foot to the other as he leaned against the doorframe, hesitant to bring it up while Cadence was still awake, but he wouldn't lie. "Did Glenn talk you out of it?"

"Out of what?" She gave him a confused glance. "The tour? No, he didn't have to talk me out of it." She dressed Cadence in her pajamas, tucking her chubby arms through the flannel sleeves of the one-piece. "I didn't want to go back, Avery, but I had to consider what Luke was saying about how all of this impacts my career." She stood, settling the baby on her hip. "I can probably think of twenty reasons why jumping back on that tour isn't a good idea and you and Cadence are at the top of the list. I think I just needed to hear someone say I didn't have to do it."

She swayed, rocking the baby with her hips, and reached up to rub at her forehead. The gesture made him remember that she'd said she was tired and part of him wanted to let it go. After all, she hadn't rejoined the tour and they were together, which he thought was a miracle after everything they'd been through. But there was another part of him that couldn't let it rest without saying, "Babe, I get that you're struggling with your next move but I wish you would have talked to me."

"I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to make it seem as if your opinion doesn't matter. It does. Very much. But…"

At her hesitation he left the doorway and came inside the room, closing the door behind him. "But what?"

"I don't…" She moved her eyes away from him as she trailed off, choosing to look down at Cadence instead.

"What?" he asked, stepping closer. She didn't respond and he tipped her chin up with his fingers, surprised to see she had tears in her eyes. "Baby? Tell me."

"I didn't want to burden you with all this."

"What do you mean?"

She stepped away to put Cadence in the crib, watching her for a moment before she turned back to him. "I'm trying to think of everything - what's good for Cadence and for us and my career. It's a lot to deal with and I didn't want to put anything on you if I didn't have to."

"It's not a burden, Juliette. I just want you to think about you. Not Juliette Barnes the superstar."

She sighed. "But don't you see that it's all tied up together? I don't know what's going to happen with my career. Maybe this will be the final straw for the fans. And if it is really over, I don't know where that leaves me. I don't want this to be the way I'm remembered." Her voice wavered as she spoke. "I've been thinking about her," she said, gesturing to Cadence. "What will this look like to her when she's older? Her grandmother killed a man and herself and then a man died saving her mother from committing suicide. I don't want her to think that I…" she trailed off, taking one more glance at their daughter before looking up at him. "That I wasn't strong enough to want to live for her. That's what I wanted from Mama, for her to be strong for me. And she never was, not until the end."

"Juliette." Avery pulled her into his arms and held her, rubbing her back until she stepped back. "Come here." He sat on the bed and patted the mattress, waiting until she sat down. "This is a lot," he agreed. He reached for her hand, warming her fingers with his. "Unfortunately, Cadence probably will find out about all of this one day. Nothing disappears anymore and as much as I wish we could, we can't change any of it. But I don't believe she'll think of you as anything but strong. You were sick and she'll understand that. She'll be as thankful as I am that Jeff saved you and that you were able get help." He shifted, moving close enough to bump knees with her. "There's a lot of uncertainty for both of us but I don't think this is the end for you, Juliette. Your sincerity will count with your true fans. I believe that. Whatever happens with our careers, we'll face it together. Don't feel like you need to spare me. You were my best friend too and I want that part of our relationship back. I cherished that about us. We've gotta be honest with each other."

She nodded and reached out for another hug. "Can I ask you something?"

"Anything," he said.

"Well, two things. I still need to check-in with Dr. Kitley every so often. Would you be okay with taking part in…"

"In your therapy? Yes, absolutely," he said. "I'll support you in whatever way you need me." He pushed her hair away from her face and kissed her forehead. "What else?"

"Stay with us tonight?"

He smirked. "I was gonna do that anyway, babe."