Suze's POV

December

"Soose? Can I watch my movie here? Please?" Catarina asked with her eyes about as wide as they would go, almost as soon as we walked into my parents' home. I nodded, setting her down. She had gotten a new movie today, and she hadn't had a chance to watch it yet. She'd been wanting to watch it since I got it for her.

"I'm sure my mom will let you. You'll just have to ask her."

My mother entered the room just then, looking quizzically at the little girl with me. "Hi, Susie. I didn't expect to see you here, with Catarina."

"I'm watching Catarina for Jesse today," I explained. "He got called in to an emergency at the hospital just as his shift was ending, and I was the only one available to pick her up from her friend's house. I told him I would watch her for him, so he could do what he needed at work. I thought we'd come and say hi."

Catarina waved enthusiastically at my mom. "Hi, Helen! Is it okay if I watch my movie on your TV?" She held up the DVD case. "See? I brought my own movie. I just got it today! Can I watch it, please?"

My mother smiled. "Of course you can, sweetie. I'll start it for you if you go sit on the couch."

Once the movie was started, my mom motioned for me to go into the kitchen with her. "Things seem to be getting pretty serious between you and Jesse," she observed.

I shrugged. "Yeah. I love him a lot. But I also love Catarina. I never thought that I would fall in love with a man and his young daughter, but that's exactly what happened." I couldn't even believe how much I loved the two of them. I hadn't even known that it was possible to love two people that much.

She smiled. "You're quite happy with them, though. And Catarina seems to love you."

A smile pulled at my lips as I peeked into the den, where Catarina was watching her movie. "I think she does. She hasn't said it, but she acts like it."

"So how has everything been? Are your classes going well? Your students are treating you all right?"

I laughed. "They are, especially since I haven't actually seen them for a few days. Their Christmas break started this week. But even when they are in class, they've been pretty good. They've learned that I'm not going to put up with any crap from them. Life's been great, even though Jesse's been acting a little strange lately."

"How so?"

"I don't know, exactly. He's just been…on edge lately, I guess. I don't know what's going on with him. I even tried getting the answer out of Josie, because I thought she might know and she's not the best at keeping secrets. I thought I could pump her for information. I got nowhere, though. She either doesn't know, or she's extremely determined at keeping this secret." I was betting that she didn't know. It didn't seem to matter how determined Josie was, she would almost always tell if you asked the right questions. Well, except for the secret about Jesse and one of his sisters being mediators. That was the only secret, as far as I could tell, that she had ever been able to keep.

"Huh. That's interesting."

I narrowed my eyes at her. She wouldn't look at me, and she was trying to find something to do with her hands. A sure sign that she knew something that I didn't. Why would my mother know what was going on with my boyfriend? It didn't make any sense at all. "Mom," I said slowly.

"Yes, Susie?"

"You're using that tone."

"What tone?" she asked, without any inflection. She knew exactly what I was talking about. I knew she did.

"Your I-know-something-but-I-can't-tell-you-and-so-my-lips-are-sealed tone. And you have the matching expression on your face. You know something."

She shook her head. "I don't know anything."

I didn't believe her, not for a second. My mom was a wonderful journalist, and anybody else probably would have been fooled by her tone and expression, but I'd known her all of my life. I had learned to recognize them for what they were - masks to what was really going on. But before I could say anything – or maybe try to get some information out of her despite the fact that I knew I would never be able to – Jake and Heidi arrived, with Chloe running ahead of them.

"Hey, Mom. Hey, Suze," my brother – yes, I thought of him as my brother – greeted. Heidi gave me a quick hug, smiling.

And Chloe held out her arms for me. "Aunt Sue," she said. That was all of my name that she could manage to say.

I took her into my arms, kissing her cheek. "Hi, Chloe."

"Soose!" Catarina exclaimed, rushing to me. She must have heard all the commotion and decided that she didn't want to miss out on the fun. "Does baby Chloe want to watch my movie with me?"

I looked at my niece. "Do you want to?"

She nodded, sticking her thumb in her mouth. I set her on the ground. She and Catarina hurried into the den, holding hands. Only a moment later, Catarina was back, hugging my legs. She motioned for me to come close, so I bent toward her.

"I love you, Soose," she said quietly, standing on her tiptoes to kiss my cheek.

Then she ran off to finish her movie.

I did not cry. I really didn't. I just got dust in my eyes, I swear.