The hockey was on when I got downstairs. It was hardly surprising because the female members of the clan had all disappeared for the night, leaving the Venturi males with free reign. Consequently, Edwin was sprawled on the couch and Dad was propped up in the recliner. Unless I flexed some muscle, there was no where for me.

Not an option. I glanced at the two of them and I knew which one I would be successful in moving.

Grabbing a beer from the fridge, I walked over to the couch and kicked Ed.

"Shift." It had been years since I had really picked on Ed, so he knew it was mainly out of nostalgia. He rolled his eyes at me but moved and I sat down, making out that I too was watching the TV screen.

That there was going to be a heavy discussion tonight was obvious. The air was thick with tension. That it was going to be a discussion about my relationship with Casey was also obvious. I wondered how Dad was going to start. Would he lead up to it gently?

So…Derek. How's life in Kingston? Found somewhere new to live? I'm sure Casey must be getting sick of you being under her roof by now.

Actually, Dad, we share a bed these days. Haven't done the deed yet, but I'm hopeful.

Yeah…right.

Or maybe, he would be forthright.

So…Derek. Are you banging your step-sister?

I coughed aloud at that thought. In a rather sick way, it was amusing.

The reality was he said nothing.

The three of us sat there for half an hour watching a game replay as if it was live action. I cottoned on to that straight away. Since the other two occupants of the room were less hockey-fixated I doubt they had a clue. Eventually, the inaction and silence of my two companions got to me but still, Dad said nothing.

It was me that spoke. "What's all this I hear about you and Lassiter, Ed?" I asked, breaking the uncomfortable silence and trying to deflect the attention from me.

Of course, it didn't because I picked a subject that would always wrap around to me.

"You heard about that, huh?" He grinned as he sipped his soda.
I scoffed. "Edwin. You seriously think I don't get to hear about it when my half-pint bro beats the crap out of a quarter back?" It was fact that not only did I receive Lizzie's call that day in London but for the next week I received text messages, emails and phone calls from those of my former school friends who had younger siblings still at the school. First they rang to talk about Edwin. Then, without, exception they found some way to turn the subject matter to Casey – and those rumours.

It had hurt, because I had been forced to leave her, and every communication for my former friends was another nail in the coffin of despair.

But things had changed, Casey was no longer in London, she was upstairs waiting for me, her boyfriend, to tell her what exactly the family thought of our relationship.

Ed grinned. "Impressive eh?" He asked returning my attention to our discussion of his football antics.

"That wasn't the word I was thinking of. 'Foolhardy' was more appropriate." Edwin had grown over the years. He was still a weedy ass.

He looked taken aback. "I followed the Derek Venturi method."

My turn to be taken aback. The only time I had "fought" with the bigger members of the football team I had turned chicken and it was Casey who had backed the guy into the lockers.

"Oh?" I managed trying to ignore the conflicted emotions that particular memory evoked. My girlfriend had saved me from a beating. Although then she had been nothing more than a filial inconvenience. That she saved me was not good but she had looked fucking hot while she did it…

Say no more.

"Yeah." Edwin explained. "I distracted him and ran away. He tripped and fell down the stairs."

I stared at Edwin in admiration. He was more of a Venturi than I had given him credit for. Sometimes brain beats brawn.

"So how come you got in trouble with Lassiter?" Much as I hated to deflate the ego, it was necessary.
Edwin shrugged. "That was because it turns out the douchebag concerned filed a complaint with Lassiter…his uncle."

Dad finally intervened at this point. "That man has no balls."

I almost choked on my beer. He looked around and grinned. "Are you disputing the fact?"

I coughed. "No. But, is it really appropriate that you say that?"

Dad shrugged. "Hell! We're all men here."

Ed and I exchanged a glance. Dad had turned into a pod-person.

"And this was all over rumours?" I said, turning back to my brother…prompting. Edwin looked uneasy.

"Erm…yeah."

"About me and Casey?" I asked then sipped my beer.

"Yes."

"I'm sorry Ed." I genuinely was. My brother should not have to deal with the fall-out of my relationship. Of course when this had all taken place the rumours had no substance. There had been no relationship.

Internally, I corrected myself. Even if the rumours had surfaced when we were fifteen there would have been substance. The reason they hadn't was that the morons concerned were too scared to risk pissing me off by circulating them while I was still at school. I might have backed down from a fight with a man-fridge, but I wasn't above dishing it out to smaller specimens.

"Does Casey know about the rumours?" Edwin asked.

I nodded.

"How did…Do they bother her?" It was my brother who asked, but my father turned for the answer.

"They bother both of us, Ed. The pregnancy one especially." That one had hurt.

Edwin sighed. "You know what high school is like. A girl leaves the country for a while and tongues start wagging."
"Ya know, I could cope with the crap from high school but Fiona was the frosting on the cake."

"Fiona?"
"Jeez Ed. Where have you been?" If he was anything like me at his age, in his room listening to music and pretending that family tension was someone else's business.
Edwin looked at Dad. "Seriously? Fiona's been making trouble?"

"Yeah." Dad confirmed. "Harry and I had words over that."

That was news. In some small way it gave me hope.

Hell! The fact that I was still breathing in the face of my father gave me hope.

Edwin fidgeted.

"How is it…living with Casey?" He asked eventually.

I was thoughtful, tipping my beer for another glug.

"You know Casey." I said enigmatically.

"Not as well as you do." I couldn't argue with that. I grinned.

"Apparently, I'm a moronic slob, who deliberately misses the toilet pan and leaves dirty underwear out for her to trip over. And she's a keener with definite OCD tendencies who cries ridiculously easily."
"True love then?" Ed snickered.

I shot a look at my brother and his oh-so-aware eyes. Then I turned and looked at my dad who had muted the TV and was watching both of us.

So now we were going to cut to the chase. I scratched my nose contemplating them both. "Best buds? Good cop, bad cop? Or just a tag team worthy of WWF?" I asked referring to the way I had walked into this with my eyes open. Dad shrugged.

I blew out a long breath, remembering that Edwin's question had actually been more of a statement. True love, then. "I'm not answering that."

Dad ran his fingers through his hair the way he did when he was nervous.

The way I did when I was nervous I realised, as I brought my own hands down from my head.

"Why not?" He asked finally.

"Dad. Let's not go there, okay? If I don't say, you don't have to pretend. Edwin can still hold his head up at school and you don't get called into Lassiter's office for the Texas showdown. The family doesn't need to know about Kingston." I said. simply. Neither confirmation or denial. No other explanation.

"What sort of love is it, son?" He asked quietly. "Protective? Companionable? Sexual?"

What could I answer but the truth?

"All of those." I said firmly.

Dad exhaled. I saw a weight come off his shoulders. Seriously? What did he expect me to say? I'm just in it to get in her pants?

I continued. "But mostly the 'forever' kind." I was admitting it to myself as much as anything.

"Forever's a long time." Dad said softly.

I sat forward. "I know. But, look at it this way, Dad. I've fought long and hard for this. The attraction has been there for six years. I've been actively pursuing her for almost three. I've had numerous offers since then from women, some of whom were the stuff that wet dreams are made of. I've acted on none of them."

"Because of Casey?"

"Yes."

Dad spoke quietly, but matter-of-factly. "I was shocked when I heard the rumours. I didn't act with maturity. But most of that was compounded by the way the supposed man of responsibility – the Principal – acted. He allowed rumours to circulate that he should have dismissed. True or not, either then or now, he acted unprofessionally. That was where the anger came from. Not the belief that the rumours were true."

"What do I do Dad?" I scratched my head. "This is weird."

"Weird in what way?"

"I'm trying to be two different people. On the one hand Derek Venturi, member of this wonderful, blended family. On the other hand, a blackguard with dishonourable intentions." Jeez, Casey and her English expressions were wearing off on me. The only time I had ever heard the expression "blackguard" was in that lame musical with the chick from "Breakfast at Tiffany's". I frowned. "My Fair lady", that was it.

"Dishonourable intentions?" Dad raised his eyebrows.

"It's not exactly honourable or normal to want to be with your step-sister."

"Derek for something to be "normal" it just has to be true in most cases. That means more than 50 percent of the time. 51 per cent could be "normal" but that would still mean 49 per cent of people didn't do it.

Look at all the times where normal is bad. Ethnic cleansing where someone wants everyone to look the same, and think the same. Or in genetics in the "cut off during the war" syndrome where the gene pool becomes limited."

I frowned at him because it was an incredibly bizarre explanation, but I sort of got his point. In society and genetics, new ideas and new blood were good – even if it wasn't obvious at the start. Did that really apply to falling in love with your step-sister though?

"Derek. I could tell you not to do it; to go to Vancouver and leave Casey to stay in Kingston. I could cite the family. I could tell you that you are too young, and it will all end in tears. But you aren't a hormonal teenager. You are in your twenties – your third decade. You haven't been a recluse. You've dated other girls."

Edwin snorted. "Don't we know it!"

Dad threw him an amused look. "This isn't first time love and you've known Casey for six years. If it's lasted this long it won't just go away however much you try. Will it work? You need to find out for yourself. You both do. If it ends, as it may well do, then the family will just have to cope with it. Just like we would cope with the fall out of any other decision of yours" He paused. "Just promise me you'll be responsible; that it will only be you two involved in the split and not my grandchild."

I nodded.

Dad stood up.

"You don't need my permission to date a consenting adult Derek. But you have it…and Nora's. We've talked about it and I know how she feels. Just promise me, even if you fall out of love, you'll respect Casey."

"I don't know how to behave any other way, Dad."

"Good. Oh and Derek…go easy on the PDA in front of the kids."

I rolled my eyes and he smirked.

"Ed." Dad said as he turned to leave. "Anything you want to tell me about Lizzie?"

Edwin snorted coca-cola across the couch and I chuckled, throwing myself into the recliner.

Dad waved a dismissive hand in the air. "Night!" He called over his shoulder as he walked away.

My brother recovered sooner than I did. "Seriously? That's all he's going to say?"

I threw a cushion at him as I got comfortable. "I think he's embarrassed."

"He's not the only one."

"Sorry Edwin."

It wasn't me that spoke. Casey was coming down the stairs. I glanced up at her.

She had on these cute little blue pyjamas that I had bought for her a couple of weeks ago.

"How much did you hear?" I asked.

She threw me a "give me a break" look.

"All of it. You think I was just going to sit in my room and wait for you to come back up?" Nope. Because I wouldn't have done either.

I shrugged. She reached the bottom step and then moved to the couch to sit next to Edwin.

"I'm sorry, Ed." She said quietly. "We've made things awkward for you and Liz at school. It was unintentional."
My brother looked up at his step-sister. "Casey. I love you to pieces, but the only person who made this awkward for me, was me. I was the one who let it get out of hand. I should have dealt with it sooner. And Liz? She understands. She always has. I think she knew before you did. Just promise me something…?"
Casey smiled sweetly at him. "Anything."

"No making out in front of me…especially when I've just eaten."

She looked stunned.

I however, sat up in the recliner and held a hand out to my girlfriend who stood up.

"In that case, Ed. Clear off, before you see something that might disagree with you."

"Ew!" He pulled a panicked face as he stood up. "Give me a head start."

I smirked and yanked Casey onto my lap. My eyes didn't leave hers as I started counting. "Five…four…"

"Jesus Derek!" Edwin said as he ran for the stairs.

Casey collapsed into my arms, giggling. I pressed a kiss to her temple and let my fingers comb her long hair.

"Well that went better than I thought." I admitted.

"Hmmm." She sighed against my neck. "It did, didn't it?" Her lips brushed my skin and I shifted so that I could see her face. She was smiling and I felt a hand slide around my waist as our lips met in a deep kiss. It grew and a pounding began to grow in my chest as the lack of air started to take effect.

"Derek?" Casey said, allowing me to breathe for a second.

"Hmm?" I was waiting for my heart rhythm to settle.

"Are we seriously going to make out in our parents living room?"

"You have a better idea?"

"Let's take this upstairs."

I jerked my head back suddenly to look at her.

"Oh for heavens sakes! Like I would suggest doing that here!" She protested.

I grinned.

Once Casey…always Casey.


AN: One more chapter and the epilogue.