A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews and support! I have a bunch of chapters ready to go, I'm just in the final editing stages of them but life keeps punching me in the gut and sucking away all my time. Very frustrating! Be safe out there, everyone.

Elizabeth glanced upwards for a second as the floor creaked outside. She knew the old house well enough now. If you walked quietly but confidently and naturally, the floor was fine. If you didn't try to sneak around, you actually could.

But if you were all soft footed and tippy toed about it?

Creaks galore.

Sometimes it felt like the house was trying to catch people out and the thought made her smile briefly.

As she wondered who was creeping around and why, there was a knock on the door leading to her bedroom.

She sighed, her small smile disappearing as she put the hairbrush down on the tiled space beside the sink.

Well, that was one question answered. Whoever was there was looking for her and she wasn't quite sure she wanted to know who it was anymore.

She could deal with the mystery but she didn't know if she could deal with more human interaction.

She was kind of over the night. Besides, the only person she really wanted to see was Dwayne and there was no chance it was him creeping around in her house.

She tilted her head thoughtfully. It was a tentative knock, barely a rasp of knuckle on wood. If the bathroom door had been fully shut, she wouldn't have heard it and the sound - or almost lack thereof - made her frown...she guessed it was Sammy.

Lucy wouldn't have been so hesitant or reluctant and Grandpa was still out on his date.

It must have been him, there was nobody else.

Was he looking to apologize? Commiserate? To chat?

Whatever he was calling on her for, it was obvious that he didn't particularly want to do it. Maybe he was just afraid that she was sleeping, naked or ready to talk about her period again but Elizabeth doubted she'd scared him off that badly. She hadn't been detailed enough to put him off ever even knocking on her door again. She'd just given him a healthy dose fear, enough to compel him to not come barreling up uninvited.

She guessed that meant he wanted to talk to her but the obvious reluctance made her think that maybe he felt like he had to talk to her.

Was he worried she was angry?

She understood why he would want to touch base before bed but in that moment, she didn't want to humor him. Not because she was angry with him, it was just a lot of effort after a long and weird night. She'd brushed her teeth three times already and she could still taste garlic. The pasta sauce Lucy had all but slaved over had gotten everywhere, too.

Max had been so gracious about everything, he'd left the house in a perfectly pleasant way and the night had kind of ended without fuss.

She wanted to keep it that way.

Honestly she just wanted to curl up on her bed and wait to see if Dwayne would call in to see her and if not, drift off into a deep sleep and then pass the time until she could go to him...but still.

Sammy was her brother.

She sighed again.

In that moment, she really missed Michael.

It was so easy to fall completely and without question into her life with the pack. She wanted to be with them, she wanted to be with Dwayne and when they were together, that was all she thought about. She was content, happy. She didn't need to think about anything else.

When she was with them, she felt like they were her family...and they were. They were her family, they were going to be her pack and it was so effortless...so effortless and almost natural to just not think about the Emerson clan.

When she was with the guys, how often did she think about Sammy or Lucy or Grandpa? The answer was pretty much never. How long had it been since she actually thought about Michael?

Too long.

Way, way too long.

If he'd been there that night, dinner would have gone down a little differently. He had always been thoughtful and protective of her. Until he'd met Star, of course. Then she'd been left to fend for herself but she knew that if the Frog Brothers had harassed her like that in front of him? He wasn't a fighter but he would have put an end to it, she was sure.

She wondered if Lucy was thinking the same thing. Perhaps the evening had made her miss her eldest son even more?

Elizabeth hoped that wasn't the case. It didn't bear thinking about. A ruined date and then thinking once more about her eldest and his leaving home so suddenly.

Had she forgotten about him too? She was so enamored with Max, maybe her thoughts had been centered on him...maybe she was feeling guilty, on top of everything else. Yeah, Elizabeth had been doused with freezing water, chowed down on raw garlic and had sauce between her toes - no mean feat considering she had been wearing socks - but it was Lucy who'd had the worst night.

Feeling a little uneasy and guilty for how easy it was to forget her family, then feeling a wave of sadness for her mother, Elizabeth opened the bathroom door, knowing she was going to lose herself in her thoughts if she didn't.

She was tired. Dealing with Sammy was probably easier than dealing with her rambling, scattered thoughts.

Besides maybe she was being dramatic and getting carried away. Perhaps Lucy was fine, she had been pleasant enough in the kitchen with Max.

When she looked, she wasn't surprised to find it was Sammy who was there, standing awkwardly infront of her door, "...hey? I'm in here.."

"Oh. Pooping?"

He cracked an uncomfortable little smile and she gave one back.

He wasn't one to joke about bodily functions, she knew he must have been feeling really awkward, "no, doofus" she pointed to her hair, half of which was in a French plait. She thought if she slept on her hair while it was braided, she would wake up to nice tousled locks...plus she was over everything and couldn't be bothered drying it after her shower, "I was just doing my hair"

"Oh...did you want help?"

She gave him a look and he gave one back, obviously a bit stumped by his sudden offer. There was making awkward conversation and then there was talking nonsense. He was excellent with clothes, could direct a makeup look fairly well too if he was feeling nosy but there was no way he'd be able to do a plait without messing it up.

"Sorry.." he shrugged and rubbed his neck, his bathrobe open and showing his matching pajamas, "you know, Mom's in the conservatory...she went there after Max left.."

Shit.

Elizabeth thought maybe she had been right to let her thoughts wander. It looked like Sammy was worried about their mother and if Sammy was concerned about someone else, there was always good reason for it.

He was usually happy in his own little world.

"Should we-" she began, ready to abandon her hair and go down to Lucy.

Sammy shook his head, "-she said she's fine but that she wanted to be alone. She cleaned up downstairs and you went to back and she kinda got quiet? I dunno, it was literally like a cloud came over her. She was OK, you know? Well, not OK but she wasn't crying or anything but then the house got quiet and then she was kind of tense and...yeah. She had a glass of wine with her..."

"And a book?" Elizabeth asked hopefully but Sammy shook his head again.

She sighed and turned to the mirror, working on the other side of her hair.

"That sucks...I thought...I dunno, she seemed OK.."

The idea of Lucy sat alone in the conservatory - cosy and nice though it was - with a glass of wine and no book or radio was a sad one. When Max had left it had been on good terms and Lucy had seemed subdued but not terribly upset. A little glum, yes, but peppy, too. She must have been hiding her hurt and when her kids had begun to head for bed, when the cleaning was done and silence was creeping over the house it must have been harder to not think on the night.

She was sitting there by herself, probably stewing and thinking but if she said she wanted to be left alone, she probably did.

Lucy didn't play games.

"I know" he groaned, coming to lean against the open door, "I feel terrible...she said she was OK, I mean, she said she knew it wasn't me but..."

Elizabeth nodded.

She understood.

Hell, she'd feel terrible if she'd done something to hurt her mother and the Frog Brothers were his guests, his responsibility. By extension it kind of was on him.

Though she personally didn't blame him, she understood his thought process, "I know. Mom sounded sad and you can't help but feel guilty 'cause they're your friends. I get it"

"Defeated"

"What?"

"Not sad, Liz. Mom sounded totally defeated. I tried to make her smile and yeah...she said that I was fine...said I shouldn't worry and that she wasn't mad at me but..." he trailed off again.

"But nothing" she looked at Sammy through the mirror. She didn't want him to feel bad, "look Mom knows you wouldn't do something like that...she's just disappointed, that's all. The night didn't go how it was supposed to. Tonight was important to her and she's probably worried Max things we're rabid kids or something...maybe when he left she got worried...it's not you so much as...you know? She's not upset with you she's just upset. It's more the implication of what happened..."

"Huh? Go back a sec, why would Max care if we're rabid?"

Elizabeth rolled her eyes, losing a strand of hair and fumbling a little to get it back, "Sammy? Mom has us. You, me..we're kind of a package deal when it comes to her. If Max doesn't like us or if he doesn't want to be around us, then their relationship isn't.." she caught his confused look, "ugh, you know what I'm saying?"

Sammy shook his head.

"If Max doesn't like us, they don't date and Mom really likes him"

"She does?"

Elizabeth paused, "dude..."

"I didn't realize she liked him liked him" he sounded kind of surprised, "she never said"

He really did live in his own world.

"...well...do you mind?"

Sammy shrugged, "no. I mean, not if he makes her happy...it's kinda fast but...if she's happy"

"What about-" she blinked for a second, swallowing her words. She'd almost said 'your dad', "-uh, dad. What about dad?"

"...he hasn't called even once. Not even a letter.." Sammy mumbled before shrugging his shoulders and shaking his head, as if he was getting rid of the thoughts running through his head, "Mom deserves a good guy"

"Max is a good guy."

"You think?"

Elizabeth nodded, continuing with her hair, "he seems really cool and Mom is so happy with him. Haven't you noticed? I mean, not being rude or anything but I thought even you would have noticed.."

"So I messed it up?"

Sammy sounded miserable.

Elizabeth understood the feeling because, after all, it was his friends who had ruined the night.

She knew the Frog Brothers had been the ones to act out but still, she couldn't help but ask, "...Sammy? Did you know they were-"

"-Liz"

"Sorry, sorry.." she smiled at him, trying to reassure him, "sorry. I know you didn't.."

"Then why ask?"

"Because you feel guilty about it-"

"-because I invited them. I wouldn't do something so stupid, come on...I didn't do it but it's my fault it happened. If I didn't ask them to come..." he sighed, "that's why I feel bad, ok?"

Elizabeth nodded before asking, checking one final time, "you really had no idea?"

She knew the answer, she didn't really know why she'd asked him one last time.

"Cross my heart" he affirmed firmly.

Elizabeth shrugged, "well, then I suppose you can't feel guilty Sammy. You're not psychic, it's not like you can predict what they're gonna do...plus, Mom said not to feel bad"

He groaned a little, shaking his head, "yeah, yeah I guess...it was so weird wasn't it?"

She nodded, "..weird and oddly...specific?" she shrugged and rolled her eyes, "ugh, I don't know. Stupid. They're stupid. It all felt so ridiculously planned.."

"It did" he agreed with a frown, "they told me the garlic was a joke..."

She looked at him sharply in the mirror and he raised his hands in defense, "I didn't know, remember?"

"...what did they say?"

Sammy sighed, "that the garlic was just a prank but they didn't think you'd react so strongly-"

"-the fuck?!-"

"-and that..." Sammy blinked, "...it's so weird hearing you swear like that..."

She shifted, "well.." she swallowed, mentally telling herself to reign it in and stop talking like Paul would, "...what can I say to that? How would I react? It was a mouthful or raw garlic. It hurt my throat..."

Sammy looked down, "I'm sorry.." he sighed, "I shouldn't have invited them.."

"What else did they say?"

"Uh the garlic was a joke...but we already established that" he said hastily, "and then they said it all kinda went to hell and they didn't think it would. They said they didn't think Nanook would get involved or that they'd spill water..."

She shook her head.

Whatever.

There was no understanding crazy.

There was one small silver lining though, "so you're done? You're not seeing them again?"

Sammy looked down, "dunno"

"Sammy?!"

"I don't have friends here, Liz" he defended, looking at her with a mix of shame and sincerity, "I'm not like you..."

"What does that mean?"

"You're always alone"

"Wha-? Sammy, Jesus I mean..yeah because I don't have friends here but back home I had friends and a life?"

She wasn't a loner. Did she really project that image?

Sure the pack was her secret but did she really come off as someone who was always by herself?

Did people feel sorry for her?

"Well yeah but like, you'd do stuff only if you wanted to"

She frowned at him. Didn't everyone do stuff only if they wanted to?

He must have sensed her confusion, "I mean...remember when everyone went to the pep rally? But you weren't in the mood so you stayed home on the sofa?"

She did, but she didn't get why it was such a big deal, "...I watched TV, yeah but it was gonna rain and I didn't want to stand on bleachers for hours while-"

"-exactly! All your friends, practically all the school went but you didn't want to, so you didn't"

"...so?"

"Sooo I'm not like that" he told her with a small shrug, "I need my friends...I don't like being alone. I didn't wanna get rained on either. I was wearing a cashmere blend sweater, the cheerleaders sucked, there was a sale on at the mall and three tacos for the price of one at the food court but all my friends were going and I didn't want to be by myself so I sucked it up and I went..."

She smiled at the memory of the sweater.

It had been expensive and she thought it was pretty ugly but he'd loved it.

"But Sammy, you would have been with me if you had stayed home. We could have gone to the mall together"

"Not really" Sammy protested, "you're fine to just watch TV or read a book and yeah, now you say you would have gone to the mall but really? You were in that 'wanna sit down and chill' head space you get in. It would have been like pulling teeth getting you to hang out with me AND that's another thing!-"

"-another thing?-" she interrupted in bemusement, finding it funny how the conversation had turned into a critique of her personality.

"-I like to talk and hang out. You can just drift and watch and listen. I'm social, Liz. I need interaction!"

"Yeah, so do border collies" she replied dryly before adding, "anyway we hang out here?"

"Yeah but only because I don't have friends yet. Anyway, you know you don't really hang"

She pursed her lips and, tying the end or her completed but somewhat messy braid, she turned to meet his eyes.

He grimaced, catching himself, "I mean, I like hanging out with you-"

"-but you'd rather hang out with friends and I'll do until school starts or if The Toad Bros aren't free?"

Her words were harsh but her tone wasn't.

Truthfully, she understood it.

Michael had his friends and he came and went as he pleased. He was well liked, popular and sociable but laid back about it. If he had plans, he had plans but if he didn't? No biggie.

Elizabeth often made plans to be alone, going out of her way to make sure she had time to just chill by herself.

But Sammy? Sammy was never without his friends - they went to games, to the mall, to the movies, had MTV marathons. God, even when he had a solo project it turned into a group study session. The boy had never studied alone, never eaten alone, never gone shopping alone. He wasn't wildly popular in school, he wasn't jock level or anything, but he had a solid social circle and that's how he thrived.

She was the polar opposite of him. She had her friends, a small but comfortable circle and she enjoyed spending time with them but she kind of liked having her own time, too. She wasn't a loner but did she enjoy being alone? Sometimes, yeah. She wondered if it came from her childhood, before she was adopted, but she found that she didn't care as to why.

She was just comfortable doing her own thing.

She could flit in and out of her circle quite happily, going to games or the mall when she fancied but chilling by herself when she wanted, too. Her friends were easygoing and seemed to have the same sort of vibe she did.

She did need companionship. Elizabeth knew that she'd be lonely in Santa Carla if she didn't have her pack. Too much had changed for her now but she was confident that if she didn't have them she would have been alright. She knew that when school started and she did have friends, it wouldn't have been a big deal to her to spend some nights alone wandering the boardwalk.

At the beginning she had felt self conscious, when Michael had left her alone she'd felt like a fool but she knew it wouldn't have lasted.

It was all pointless thought at that point because now she did have the pack and she knew her life would never be the same again. She would never be the same again. She had her boys and nothing could ever compel her to not want to be around them...but Sammy didn't have that.

Sammy was alone.

School hadn't started, he didn't have a social circle. All he had were the Frog Brothers and they had messed up quite epically. If he didn't spend time with them, then he would be by himself.

Sammy didn't do well by himself. The only time he was happily alone was when he was reading his comics.

"I don't mean it like that and yeah we hang but you're not into it into it, you're always reading or-"

"-Sammy" she sighed, "I'm never gonna tell you who to be friends with. You're a people person, I get it...and I get why you still wanna hang out with them"

"What?"

"I get it, it's fine"

"Really?"

"Yeah" she blinked at him, realization washing over her, "wait...did you feel guilty because they screwed over Mom and you still want to hang out with them?"

"Yeah"

She rolled her eyes.

Of course he didn't feel bad for his mother's ruined date or Max's bad impression or her almost choking on what tasted like twenty cloves of garlic.

He felt bad because he didn't want to lose his friends. She couldn't help but grin.

This whole conversation, their whole discussion had only taken place because he wanted validation.

She laughed.

"Typical Sammy..."

"Meaning?"

"You really do live in your own world..."

He shook his head but sounded unsure, "you really think it's OK if I keep hanging with them?"

She nodded, "...sure. Mom only wants you to be happy...just, you know? Maybe don't bring them here again.."

"Yeah right" he scoffed, "that'd go down like a lead balloon"

"Definitely"

Sammy looked down at his slippered feet, "I'm kinda mad at them, though.."

She smiled to herself, "rightly so"

"They apologized"

"...rightly so"

"...but it'd suck here without friends..."

"Sammy?" He looked up at her, "I can't tell you what to do. If you want to hang out with them, hang out with them"

"What should I do?"

"I just told you that I can't tell you what to do"

"Well what would you do?"

"Sleep on it" she shrugged.

Would she prefer it if Sammy found better friends? Absolutely. But that wouldn't happen until school and while she hated the Frog Brothers, if Sammy didn't have them, she'd be called upon to hang out with him and she had the pack.

The Frog Brothers were idiots and she couldn't stand them...but they served a purpose.

Besides, she really did think Sammy was just going through the motions a little.

She didn't think he was really all that torn on it.

He needed friends, he just needed his feelings about it all validated and now that he'd made it clear, she was finding herself getting bored of it all.

"...sleep on it and...I dunno" she sighed, "don't give them the chance to do that again and just...forgive"

"Really?"

She nodded, "yes"

"...Liz that's really gracious of you"

She stepped out of the bathroom and he took a step back, letting her pass, "I didn't say I was gonna forgive them"

"Right" he smiled.

"Do you feel less guilty?"

"No" Sammy said, "not until I see Mom smile"

"Wait til the morning" Elizabeth advised with a rueful smile of her own.

He looked a lot happier. She didn't think he'd struggle to sleep.

She honestly thought he was feeling guilty only because he knew he should be.

"Yeah...I guess. Well good night"

"Night"

She walked up towards her door and turned when Sammy called out her name.

"...was my sweater ok?"

"Seriously?" she rolled her eyes and started up her stairs, "it was water. The pasta sauce was on my legs. Of course it's fine"

Grimacing as she tasted garlic despite how much she'd brushed her teeth, she told him, "I'm fine, too. Thanks for asking..."

As she paused, waiting for his response, she couldn't help but roll her eyes again as she heard his bedroom door shut.

Typical Sammy.

She smiled for a second before wetting her lips a little as she continued upwards towards her room.

She guessed she'd be tasting garlic for days. Actively trying hard to think of anything but the Frog Brothers, Elizabeth was grateful that garlic didn't bother vampires.

As she shut her bedroom door, she gave a little sigh.

As she looked at her bed, she couldn't help but feel bad for her mom. She was happily waiting on Dwayne but her mother was pining for Max.

"Stupid idiots" she muttered to herself, stretching over and plucking Dracula up from its spot on the dresser.

As she sat down, she wondered if Dwayne would ever believe the night she'd had.

"Lucy?"

"Max?"

Lucy blinked in surprise, smiling hopefully as the warm, male voice spoke her name. She glanced over at the old wooden clock that was ticking quietly away on a crowded and leafy shelf, almost obscured by the plants that were growing.

It was coming up to 3am.

"It's 3am!" she exclaimed breathily into the phone, sitting upright in the chair, the spiral cord of the beige telephone twisting over her wrist as it stretched. She was surprised by the time, not realizing how long she had been sat alone, and shocked to hear his voice on the end of the smooth line.

"Mmm" he agreed, nodding to himself, "I don't often make a habit of calling people this late, well, I suppose I should say this early, but I had a feeling you were still awake?"

"Oh..oh yes, no I am" Lucy replied softly, squeezing the phone a little tighter and shifting in the chair, "I wasn't sure if I could sleep and I guess I lost track of the time...I keep thinking about our date.."

"You have a very kind nature. I like many things about you" he told her, "but in this moment, I do wish you were a little less selfless. I really had hoped to find the phone unanswered..."

She laughed softly, awkwardly, "oh, no..no.." she pleasantly denied his compliments, "I'm not..I just lost track of the time.." she finished.

"Oh?"

She sighed, knowing she couldn't really hide her feelings from him but then finding that she didn't want to.

She wanted to tell him her thoughts, she wanted to be comforted by him.

"Max I'm just so sorry about what happened...I really hope...I hope this didn't, um.."

"Scare me off?"

She bit her lip.

Of course he knew. He knew so much about her, he seemed to just get her.

"Yes"

Her voice was soft, gentle and it was laced with genuine sadness and regret.

Poor Lucy, alone with such dismal thoughts.

He smiled, slipping one hand into the pocket of his blazer as he peered out of the glass window, watching the quiet, empty street before him.

She was a special woman.

The lights of the boardwalk had flickered off, the shops and restaurants had closed and the ones that were still open were few and far between, pushed more towards the beach where a few rowdy parties were still being held. The near silence and cover of night was welcome and in the phone booth he was also shrouded in darkness, the lone lamp having long been smashed by some degenerate. Sometimes the rough nature of Santa Carla was welcome, though he hoped that, over time, he could help mold it into a more respectable town.

"I thought that was the case" he replied, shaking his head, "I'd guessed that your thoughts would keep you up"

She was a good woman, an honest woman.

Warm hearted, gentle.

A loving mother. There was no doubt she would make a loving wife, too.

He knew that she was worried, despite his assurances that he still wanted to see her.

"Oh? You did?" she sounded hopeful.

"I meant what I said, Lucy. What happened tonight doesn't change how I feel about you"

"I just feel so bad"

"They're wild children" Max said, observing the dark and shuttered comic book shop in the distance, "unlike your own. You shouldn't feel bad because of their actions"

Lucy laughed gently, shaking her head but unable to stop the smile from stretching over her face.

Just hearing his voice made her happy.

"Oh, Max thank you..really, I-you're good to me. You should be in bed but you..I feel like you know me so well"

How long had it been since she had felt like this? She couldn't think, she couldn't remember.

"I feel the same, Lucy" he assured her, his eyes twinkling for a moment.

Yes, she was perfect.

"..we uh, we didn't set a time for our next date" she said softly and hopefully into the phone.

"No, we didn't" he agreed, peering a little harder at the apartment above the comic book shop.

Their conversation had been interrupted earlier in the night by the two boys and Sammy. Her son had been silently mortified but the two guests had been quite bold in their interruption, telling Lucy they couldn't find any rags but that there were some pretty cool knick knacks to be found. Of course, she had engaged them politely and kindly, humoring their inane conversation while her son stood awkwardly by the door, trying to tempt his friends to leave.

Really, her son should have told them firmly that it was time to go rather than hint quietly but Samuel was young.

He would learn.

The windows of the apartment were closed, curtains drawn and silence seemed to seep from the building.

He knew the two boys were sleeping in their beds, neglected and ignored by their drug addict parents. Perpetually stoned, unable and unwilling to care for their children or run their store but perfectly able to tend to the large, healthy cannabis farm hidden on the discreet, almost secret third floor. Indeed, from outside the building it looked like there was just one more level above the shop, but if one looked closely the brick pattern revealed yet another floor.

He was sure the two were known to the police, they were just too ineffectual and too overworked to care. Santa Carla kept them busy enough and there were more violent crimes to contend with...but it was useful information.

If anything were to happen to the boys...it would be easy to make it look like an accident.

After all, who would expect the two zombie like addicts to run a smooth operation? It was well known they used harder drugs than what they grew. A fire, for example, could be plausibly and easily explained. It would spread fast, from plant to plant. Perhaps an electrical wire fire? Maybe a lamp overheated? Goodness, perhaps they tried their hands at making what they injected? How exciting, the potential for an explosion!

Really, the choices were quite endless.

It was safer, easier that way. He didn't need attention or questions to be raised but bad children needed to be punished.

There was no doubt about that.

"Still, it was nice of you to offer the boys a ride home" she murmured.

He glanced away from the building and looked at the metallic dial-pad in front of him, "yes, well I have to be honest, Lucy...I offered, but I'm glad they arrived on bikes"

She laughed softly, admitting, "I was glad for you, I was worried they'd accept!"

"Will you go to bed soon?" he queried, "I really was hoping that I was wrong, that I would find the phone unanswered"

"Oh, I'm sorry to make you worry" she dithered, leaning back into the chair a little more.

"Don't be silly, Lucy. How could I not worry about you?"

She stifled a yawn.

Now that she had spoken to Max, she felt more content.

She felt like she could sleep.

"...it's...Max, I really do..." she fumbled. How could she tell him how safe she felt with him, how cared for and how...loved?

That was a big word.

A big feeling...but it was honest.

She knew she loved him.

But still.

It was too soon, she was sure. She didn't want him to think of her as a desperate woman, though the thought was a fleeting one. She trusted her feelings and she trusted him.

She smiled again, "...thank you for calling me, just hearing your voice, I guess I needed the reassurance..."

"After work"

"Hmm?"

"Dinner at my place, Lucy. How do you think?"

"Tomorrow?" she wasn't scheduled to work but she thought that perhaps he was.

Max made an affirmative noise into the phone and she smiled brightly.

"Oh, I'd love to"

"Great. This time, I'll cook"

"And no kids" she chuckled dryly.

Max smiled, "well yours are certainly welcome, Lucy but I have to admit, somewhat selfishly, that I'd like you to myself tomorrow"

Lucy blushed, her cheeks heating.

Max had been a true and honest gentleman. This was the first time he had made such a bold statement and she felt a flutter of butterflies in her stomach.

"...I'd like that, too" she admitted, sitting back fully in the chair, kicking her legs up and curling into herself.

"Shall I pick you up?"

Lucy looked down at her hand, her fingers pausing in their movements. She had been running her fingers along the fabric of her skirt.

She'd not been on a date without her car before. Dad had always drilled into her how important it was to be able to leave of her own accord whenever she wanted.

Oh, hell, she thought.

A divorcee, past thirty and worried about going on a date without her own car?

She'd had a long day and an evening alone with Max sounded so wonderful..

She couldn't fight the smile, "OK, no that sounds perfect. What time works for you?"

"Seven?"

"Great" she said brightly yet softly, her fingers now twisting around the spiral telephone cord.

"Will your kids be alright?"

She laughed, "yes, they'll be fine" she assured him, "they're good kids"

He agreed, nodding and once again making an amicable 'mmm' sound down the line.

Yes, Elizabeth and Samuel were good children.

He could tell.

They loved their mother, they worried about her feelings, they got on well with each other...they were almost a perfect family.

They just needed a father figure, a solid, strong figure of authority to balance out Lucy's kind and giving nature.

He fit the bill just fine.

Lucy coming to Santa Carla was fortuitous in ways he could never have imagined. He had always wanted a family.

She could give him that.

Of course, he would have her no matter what but the children...it was all so perfect.

They would be a family.

The absence of her eldest was questionable and not something he had been able to garner much information about, she was quietly upset about it and he'd not wanted to further encourage her pain but now...a picture was beginning to form.

Elizabeth had indeed had a strange scent about her, one that was frustratingly familiar and while she had given nothing away those two Frog children...

Garlic? Holy Water?

How incredibly specific.

Max frowned over at the empty shop again, eyes narrowing at the apartment above it.

Those two boys knew something the Emerson matriarch didn't and he very much wanted to be in on their secret.

"Until tomorrow, then?"

Lucy smiled, "until tomorrow"

"Goodnight, Lucy"

"Goodnight, Max...and thank you, again...I'm lucky to have you"

"No, no" he said, his smile gentle but his eyes still gazing darkly at the comic book store in the distance, "I'm the lucky one"

And he meant it.

He had waited a long time for this.

Nothing would take Lucy away from him and nothing would interfere with his family.

He was a fair man.

Stern, but fair.

He would protect what was his and there was no mistaking the fact that the Emersons belonged to him.

Smiling once again as he returned the phone to the cradle, he moved his hand back to his pocket.

Perhaps it was time to move back to Santa Carla.

Now that he had found his wife, his family, he thought it about time that he claim his territory, too.

He had taken a step back, moved away, stayed under the radar but now it was time.

His bride, his family, his town.

It was all coming together quite nicely.