"Andy, I just don't know how I can make this all happen!" Sharon exclaimed. She was frustrated; she had been frustrated, and Andy was getting the brunt of it, not that it bothered him, but he was getting an earful. No, he wasn't the one in trouble; he was just on the receiving end of Sharon's rant. It was Thanksgiving weekend now; Brady was five and a half months old, and Brady had just completed his first Thanksgiving, complete with a turkey bib and all. It was probably a good thing Brady wasn't eating a lot of food yet. He'd spent the earlier part of the day at Sharon's house with Emily and Ricky, and then, per their agreement, Sharon had driven Brady to Andy's house where Brady would spend the rest of Thanksgiving with Andy, Nicole and Nate. It should have just been the four of them, but somehow, hours later, Sharon was still at Andy's house, still very much part of the Flynn Thanksgiving too.

"Sharon," Andy tried to say her name to make a suggestion, but she was still very much working through her rant.

"I mean, I can't be in two places at once! I am not missing Emily's performance. She's a senior, and she has this one and the one in the spring; that's it. After that, she graduates, and hopefully she goes to New York where she wants to dance. I also need to get Ricky from school, and I realize that I could just tell him to get on a plane, but that's not fair either, nor what I want to do. I haven't even factored Brady into all this. You can't possibly keep him all this time while I run around Arizona and California!" she sighed, leaning back in her chair.

"Sharon," Andy tried again, as he gave Brady another spoonful of the peas he was eating. They'd started him on some baby food a week or so ago when he was going through one of his little growth spurts. He seemed to like peas just fine, but he wasn't a fan of the carrots. Andy was still watching Sharon, that is until they both heard Brady start to smack his hand on his tray, wanting more food. While Andy hadn't been able to snap Sharon out of her rant, Brady seemed to do so. Both turned when Brady added some of his baby babble to his demands.

Andy met her gaze as she turned, and he offered a small smile. "Sharon," he tried for the third time, but he knew he now had her attention, so he continued, "why don't you let me help?"

"Wait, what? Andy, you can't possibly help with this. I'm not sure how you can help with Brady in this mess," she sighed.

Andy fed Brady his bite and then turned his head back toward Sharon, "Why don't you sit for a second," he gestured to the chair across from him where Brady would then be in between them as he sat in his high chair. Andy was trying hard not to laugh at Sharon's flustered state. It wasn't that he wanted to laugh at her situation, but she was just a mess, and really, the situation wasn't that bad. She just hadn't let him get in a word to help. Sharon took a deep breath and moved to the chair. Andy offered Brady's spoon to her to see if she wanted to feed him. He knew she enjoyed that, and it calmed her. She took the spoon, which would allow Andy a moment to talk.

"Sorry," Sharon offered before she gave Brady another bite. "I realize I probably chewed your head off."

"It's okay," Andy put up a hand in defense as he chuckled. "I do have a very easy solution. You go see Emily. You've been wanting to go see her all semester. I'll keep Brady, and I'll even drive up to get both boys from school." Sharon opened her mouth to protest, but he nodded his head toward her to allow him to continue. "Look, Nate finishes exams two days before Ricky, but that's not a problem. I'll drive up the day he's finishing exams, with Brady," he pointed out, "where Brady and I can stay at the hotel a couple of nights. It will give me a full day with Brady and Nate. I'm sure we can do some exploring or whatever needs to be done. Sandra mentioned Nate needed a winter wardrobe too, so maybe I'll take him out for some clothes. It will be good for all of us. He and I can spend time together, and Brady there is always a good thing. I'll have both my boys, and hopefully, Nate will see I'm not a screw-up with Brady."

"Andy, you're not a screw-up at all," Sharon said softly shaking her head. She had tried hard not to interrupt, but she felt he needed to hear that. She grew silent again as he continued to lay out the plan.

"Look, it will be great. Nate can either stay in the hotel with Brady and me or he can still stay in his dorm until all exams are over. It will be just fine. Then, as soon as Ricky is done, we'll head for home. Didn't you say he has an 8:00 exam that last day? So, he'll be done by 10:00 or so, I'm guessing? That's perfect. It will give me time to get packed up at the hotel, collect the boys' things, and we'll drive home. I'll have two babysitters to keep Brady occupied on the way home. Now, before you say that I can't possibly do this or it's too much, it's not. I can now proudly say I've known Brady more than half his life, and we will be fine on the drive up there. I'll just stop more than normal. I also have plenty of vacation days at work, Captain," he nodded to her, throwing a smirk with her rank. "You go, enjoy Emily, take your time, and relax. I know you've mentioned how much you love to watch her dance, so go do that for a few days."

Sharon sighed as she fed Brady another bite, her gaze meeting Andy's, "You don't have to pick up my son."

Andy shrugged, "I know, but I do have to collect mine, or at least Sandra or I need to do that. Now, I'm not guessing she will want to collect my other son's half-brother, but that's just me," he shrugged again in jest, "but, I'm totally good with retrieving both boys and taking Munchkin here on a road trip."

Sharon bit her lip as she looked to Andy, and then she continued that as she looked at Brady. She looked back to Andy, "You really wouldn't mind all this? I hate to ask you to drive all the way up there with Brady. He's not sleeping like he used to; he's awake a lot, so it could be a rather long ride."

Andy shrugged, "It could be, but it could also be great. I think the real question revolves around you and if you're going to be okay being away from him for what, maybe four days?"

Sharon took a deep breath and fed Brady another bite as she smiled at him, "If he's with you, I'm okay with it," she offered a small smile and shrug. "I don't think I'd be okay if he was with anyone else, but Andy, you are his dad. Thank you for all this. I've never had anyone help me before like this."

Once they worked out all the small details, Andy and Sharon moved onto other topics revolving around Christmas. Andy's house was quiet, well, except for Brady's insistence on finishing his peas. The kids had been over for a late afternoon Thanksgiving dessert with Andy. They'd had their big meal with their mom earlier in the afternoon. When Sharon had heard Andy wasn't going to have a Thanksgiving meal, she'd invited him to join her with the kids at the condo, but he'd declined since he'd already agreed to go to a buffet with Provenza. Andy really would have preferred to spend the afternoon with Sharon and her kids, but he wasn't about to back out on his best friend. So, when she'd brought Brady over to Andy's that afternoon, where Brady would get to spend time with Andy, Nicole, and Nate, she brought leftovers too. Now, as they sat at the table figuring out details and feeding Brady, Andy stood to dig out some of Sharon's leftovers. He chuckled at the conversation they'd had a couple days ago.

"So, what does a vegetarian eat on Thanksgiving? Do you get one of those awful vegetarian fake turkey things?" she said into the phone.

Andy chuckled, "Well, I have to admit that I have a weakness for turkey. I forgo my vegetarian status on Thanksgiving. I like being a vegetarian for my health; it's not that I'm opposed to meat, but it doesn't sit with me. Turkey, well, that's a pretty good option, so for very special occasions, I indulge in turkey."

"Well, that's good to know. I was afraid that Brady was going to grow up telling me we could only serve salad on Thanksgiving."

The two had a good laugh over that conversation, and now, as they sat in Andy's kitchen, still feeding Brady, Andy pulled out the leftover turkey Sharon had brought him.

"This looks really good, Sharon," he lifted the plate and smelled the turkey. "Oh, I love the smell of turkey."

Sharon chuckled as she smiled at Brady, "If I would have realized how much you seem to love turkey, I would have made another turkey just for you. Sorry there aren't more leftovers. Ricky gave me a hard time for bringing anything here, not that he was upset with you, but he didn't want to let any leftovers out of his sight. If it's in the refrigerator, he'll eat it."

"Well, a special thanks then for making it out of your house alive. I appreciate the food. Are you sure you can stay here for awhile? I don't want to intrude on time with the kids."

Sharon shook her head, "I'm fine; I told you that they are in line for some electronic thing Ricky wanted for Black Friday shopping. The only time Ricky gets excited about shopping is on Black Friday where he can get these crazy deals. He dragged Emily with him, well, at least to that store. She's excited to do some regular Black Friday shopping, so the two made a deal with each other. Me, I'm fine to shop online or any other time besides tonight.

"Great. It's nice we can have a quiet evening with Brady. Want some of these leftovers? I'm going to heat up the mashed potatoes."

"Sure," Sharon smiled. "That sounds good. I am also intrigued by the apple pie you made. Is it good?"

Andy rolled his eyes at her, "Of course, it's good! I made it. I can cook and bake, you know."

"Sorry," Sharon slightly chuckled as she fed Brady his last bite of peas. "I shouldn't have assumed the worst, but I'd love a piece of the apple pie. I already had a piece of pumpkin at my house."

Andy nodded, "I didn't make pumpkin because Nicole doesn't like it, and Nate's favorite is apple. I like pumpkin, though."

"I should have brought that," Sharon shook her head. "Well, next time you bring Brady over, if there's any left, you can have some. Ricky's home, as you know, so there might not be pie for long. I made homemade whipped cream too."

"Homemade? Now, that's impressive," Andy smiled as he put the plates into the microwave to warm them up.

"It's not as hard as people think. It's actually a very easy thing to do, but most people think it's too much work. I've always made it with the kids. When this guy," she smiled at Brady as she wiped off his face, "gets bigger, I'll make it with him too." Andy put the two plates down for them to eat a late-night leftover snack. "Thank you," she nodded to him. "So, let's discuss Christmas plans."

"Okay," Andy nodded as he took a bite. Brady just sat in his high chair watching his parents. He was full from his dinner and content. He also appeared to be getting sleepy, but for now, he was happy. "I don't have set plans. I've always gotten the kids for a few hours on Christmas, much like Thanksgiving. We don't have huge traditions, but basically get together to open presents and eat."

Sharon nodded as she continued to eat, "Well, I love Christmas," she smiled up to Andy. "I love everything about Christmas, but I will share," she smiled. "On actual Christmas, we do much the same, open presents, but ours are usually in the morning. I like going to Mass on Christmas Eve and do that as long as I don't get called into work. My parents are going to fly out for Christmas. With both kids in college and now Brady, they know it's hard to get time for us to fly back East, so they've booked their tickets. They are coming in on the 22nd and leaving on the 27th. It's not a long visit, but they are getting older. I promised I would look at visiting them after the holidays."

"That will be nice," Andy told her. "I guess then that you can have Brady on Christmas Eve for Mass and keep him through the morning. I won't have the kids here until Christmas afternoon."

"Andy, why don't you come over on Christmas? It's Brady's first Christmas, and I know you want to see him. You can help him open his presents," Sharon offered.

"I don't want to intrude, Sharon. Plus, your parents will be there. I don't need to get in the middle of your family."

"You're Brady's family," she pointed out. "It will give you a chance to meet my parents."

Andy's eyebrows rose, "You want me to meet your parents?"

Sharon offered a small shrug, "Well, you probably should. You're Brady's dad, so it's probably a good idea," she smiled as both their eyes met, and they chuckled.

Andy winced, "I'm sure your dad will just love me, the guy who got his daughter pregnant. You said they know the whole story, right? So, yeah, he'll love me, the guy sleeping around on his kid's college tour."

Sharon hummed, as she looked down and then met his gaze through the hair in her face, "I wouldn't say it was exactly one-sided. I believe I was the one who initiated most of that." Sharon could feel her cheeks turning red, so she glanced at Brady to take a moment to collect her thoughts. "Andy, he's almost asleep," she said quietly. Andy nodded and stood to get Brady out of the chair. Sharon stood to help him. She kissed Brady good-night while Andy got him ready for bed. Sharon cleared the dishes while he was gone.

It took Andy almost 10 minutes to put Brady to bed, and when he came back into the kitchen, Sharon was cleaning up. "You didn't need to clean up my kitchen," he shook his head. "Thanks."

"Not a problem," she nodded. "We didn't finish before, but Andy, my parents do want to meet you. They don't think less of you, at least no less than they think of me."

Andy nodded, "If you want me to meet them, I'll meet them. How have you described all this," he gestured between them.

Sharon pursed her lips before answering, "I've told them we get along well, that you are Brady's dad, and we are working as a team to share him and raise him together."

Andy squeezed her shoulder, "Sharon, I'm happy to meet them. Maybe they can tell me stories about you as a kid," he winked. Sharon's mouth dropped open as she followed Andy. He had squeezed her shoulder and walked out of the kitchen toward his living room, where he picked up the remote to turn on the tv.

"Maybe that's not a good idea then," she nodded.

"So, now you're going back on your earlier statement?" he teased. "I can always just call them, introduce myself. I'm sure I could get their number when I pick up Ricky at school."

"You're a mean boy, Andy Flynn," Sharon pointed at him as she scowled. "I'll have to warn my parents they can't divulge any stories or I'll keep their youngest grandchild away."

Andy, not even looking at Sharon, waved her off, "You'd never do that. You are too into family to actually follow through with that."

"You're right," Sharon rolled her eyes as she sunk down in the chair, Andy's favorite chair. He was still standing with the remote looking at the television.

"You staying awhile?" he asked, eyebrows raised, and then he continued, "I don't mind at all, but if you're staying, I'll find something to watch that isn't just another game on tv."

"Oh, no," Sharon popped up, realizing that she'd gotten too comfortable. "I'll get going. Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude on your evening."

Andy looked around pretending like he was expecting to see a party or group of people, "Nope, no one showed for the party I planned," he smirked. "Sharon, I'd like you to stay if you want. I'm not doing anything exciting." He took two steps toward Sharon, who was still standing in front of his chair. "Go on," he gestured, "have a seat again. You didn't need to get up. Look, there's Christmas movies on all evening."

Sharon moved toward the couch, "Well, I'll just stay to finish watching the movie," she gestured at the screen. "I'm a sucker for Christmas movies. You can have your chair. I know it's your favorite," she said as she made herself comfortable on his couch.

"Nope," he shook his head, "you can have the chair. He sat on the couch too, both now staring at each other."

"Andy, I'm not taking your chair. You love feeding Brady in that chair," she explained.

"So do you," he fired back, "and, I'm not feeding him now, so I'm not taking the chair."

Sharon pursed her lips and tilted her head, "So, we're both sitting on the couch because neither of us want to claim the chair?"

"Yup," Andy nodded, as he focused on the movie. "I've offered you the chair, so it's yours for the taking. I'm going to enjoy the movie," he gestured again at the television. He could hear Sharon start to chuckle as she sat too.

They watched their movie in relative silence, the only noise being the occasional laugh. When it ended an hour later, because they'd started watching after the movie had started, Sharon stood.

"Oh, so you're taking the chair now," Andy grumbled. Sharon, without Andy seeing it, rolled her eyes. She was actually standing to get ready to leave. She turned and saw his smug look, so she moved where she was standing over him and leaned down very close to speak softly too him.

"Actually," she said, a smirk on her face, eyes sparkling as she was just a few inches from his face, "I'm going to leave. You and the chair can enjoy the rest of the evening together. I hope you and the chair are very happy and cozy together."

Sharon stayed rooted in her spot, waiting for Andy's reply. He could see the playfulness in her eyes. He made a quick decision, one he'd been wanting to pursue for a long time, well, a very long time, but more recently since their good-bye at the airport a month earlier. In a quick movement, he leaned up and pecked her on the lips, "Thanks for bringing Brady over, Sharon, and thank you again for the food. Happy Thanksgiving," he smiled and he pecked her lips again. She hadn't moved between the first kiss and the second, but after the second, she stood, surprised. She just nodded to him and collected her things. Andy stood too, following her to the door. Apparently, they weren't going to talk about this, just as they hadn't talked about her kiss at the airport. He decided to leave her with one last thought as she put on her coat. He moved quickly to help her, and as he opened the door for her, he said softly, "Sharon, part of the reason I like my chair so much is that I can smell your perfume on it. You love to feed Brady there when you stop by, and you almost always sit there when you come to pick him up. That's why I like my chair."

Sharon turned as she pulled her hair out of her coat. She hadn't said anything since she'd been teasing Andy and he'd kissed her. Yes, she realized she probably had been flirting, and while she didn't want to admit it to Andy, she rather enjoyed his kiss, okay, she really enjoyed it. For some reason, she was struggling with admitting that. Instead, she decided to convey she wasn't upset and wasn't now just trying to run out, "Happy Thanksgiving, Andy," she said as she smiled to him. "I'm glad I had some time to meet Nicole. She's lovely," Sharon continued to smile as she put her hand on Andy's wrist. "You are a good dad to all three of your kids. Enjoy tomorrow with Brady, and then I'll see you both on Saturday. Maybe I'll put up my Christmas tree then," she shrugged. "Night," she said as she leaned in again and kissed him on the cheek. Andy just smiled back at her as he held open the door. It was only after Sharon was in her car did her panic set in again. She'd kissed him again? When and how did that happen? He'd kissed her, and she'd liked it, yes. It was just a quick peck on the lips, no meaning behind it, really the result of silly teasing on both their parts. Wait, had he somewhere in there said he liked his chair because she liked to sit in it? She'd missed some of that focusing on the peck on the lips that was a silly gesture, right? Was it more than that? Did it mean more? Why was it 10:00 now? Why did she stay so late when she'd driven Brady over at 3:30? She had told the kids she expected to be home just after 5:00, and they'd waved her off saying they were heading out to get in line. Why had she accepted Andy's invite to stay and chat with his kids? She'd told herself that she'd never met Nicole, and gosh, once she started talking to Nicole, it was hard to stop. Nicole was lovely, and she loved Brady. Then, she was invited to take a walk with Andy's family and of course, with Brady in the stroller. They'd walked his neighborhood together, she and Andy taking turns with the stroller. To others, they probably looked like a family, the five of them, but it was all for Brady, right? Why was it 10:00? Wait, she'd already asked herself that. Even after all that time with Andy's kids, she'd stayed to vent to Andy. The kids had gone back to their mom's house, and she's still stayed. Andy's kids have even told them to enjoy their evening. 'Their' evening? When was it 'their' evening? She'd stayed to talk to Andy about juggling Brady throughout December, right? They had discussed that and come up with a plan, well, sort of. Now, she'd invited Andy to Christmas at the condo with her parents. She smacked her head-had she kissed Andy again as she left? Wait, she did, again! She kissed him on the cheek, even though that memory was a hazy fog. Had she talked to him about her weekend plans? Now, she couldn't remember. What was she doing? Oh, she was sitting in her car, in Andy's driveway, and she wasn't moving. She snapped out of it and glanced toward the house. Andy was on the porch, a now, concerned look on his face. She started the car and offered a quick wave to let him know she was fine and backed out. Was she fine? Clearly, she wasn't. She was freaking out about kissing her son's father, not once, not even a couple times now, but at the same time, she was almost smiling. She must be smiling because it was the holiday season now. That must be it. Yes, she'd told him about putting up her Christmas tree, and now she was in the holiday spirit. 'Tis the Season,' right?"