Emily was sipping her wine and thinking about the past. Her camera was sitting on the table in front of her, taunting her. It dared her to think about how it had come to be in her possession. It dared her to remember the times where she'd felt as though nothing else in the world could make her happier. It dared her to remember him.

David.

She swallowed hard, the tears slipping out without her permission. She clenched the glass in her hand a bit tighter. Thinking about David made her feel like she was going to lose her mind. His laughing face had come up constantly ever since she'd picked up the camera that morning. He was the reason she'd lost her belief in love.

Her phone pinged, and she saw it was Jane.

Heard about the baby trying to meet the parents on their wedding day! Wow! That's something I have yet to experience at a wedding! There was a laughing emoticon at the end. Emily gave a small smile and typed back a response:

Yes, it was crazy! Glad it didn't happen in the church, though.

I agree. I would have probably fainted haha. Well, have a good night. See you tomorrow!

Emily put her phone down without replying. She just wanted to wallow in her misery without talking to anyone. It worked better that way. She finished her wine and decided to head for some sleep. She did her best to get comfortable, but it felt like she was sleeping on a bag of rocks. After squirming around and pounding on her pillow multiple times, she gave up.

She threw on her clothes and went out.

...

Lee was watching his breath fade away in the air as he sat on the bench in the park. He couldn't sleep. Lacy had come home late, and she'd been rather frisky with him, which he indulged in. With her work schedule, alone time with her was far and few between. He would take what he could get.

He wasn't sure why he couldn't sleep. He guessed there was just too many thoughts in his mind.

"Lee?"

He jerked around, wondering who could possibly know him at this time of night in this city. He was surprised to see Emily standing there, looking just as shocked to see him.

"Hey," he said. "Can't sleep?"

"No," she answered.

"Me either," he offered. "Care to join me?" He gave the spot next to him on the bench a hearty pat, and she hesitated briefly before caving and sitting beside him.

"I know why I can't sleep," she said after a moment. "Why can't you?"

"The rat race in my head won't quit," he answered.

"Mine either."

They sat in silence. Lee wasn't sure what to say to her. He was taken off guard just by her presence. She shifted her legs, crossing the right over the left and jiggling her foot.

"Cold?" he asked.

"A little."

"Might be better walking then."

"I think so."

He stood and offered his hand to her. She took it, and he pulled her to her feet. She'd been smart to wear gloves. He hadn't. The warmth from her hand through the glove was quite nice. She didn't let go right away, and neither did he until she cleared her throat and took it to swipe her hair out of her face. Then she started walking. He fell into step next to her.

"How do you know so much about childbirth?" Emily asked a bit later. Lee chuckled. He wondered when that was going to come up.

"A friend of mine," he answered. "He reads everything and anything, and he took great glory in reading all the details about giving birth to us one day when we couldn't escape from him. I think he'd be shocked that any of it stuck since I was the one who gave him the hardest time about it."

"You were very calm."

"I am in a crisis," Lee said with a shrug. She nodded slowly, and they kept walking.

"So, you have a brother," Emily commented after a while. She'd been thinking about that too off and on since he'd mentioned he would be the best man.

"I do."

"Older or younger?"

"Younger." Thinking about Tyler sometimes made Lee feel irritation. His brother was a drifter. He was careless and flitted in and out of Lee's life like a feather in the wind. He was also a notorious playboy, and it worried Lee greatly to have him anywhere near Lacy. He didn't exactly trust his brother, but he was all he had for family, and he'd promised his mother on her deathbed that he'd keep Tyler in his life.

"I don't know which is worse," Emily said, "being the youngest or the oldest. Both kind of have its perks and disadvantages."

"I know what you mean," Lee agreed. "Are you the youngest?"

"Yes."

"Brother or sister?"

"Sister," Emily sighed. "She's the biggest know-it-all on the planet and loves to rub it in my face that she's done so much better than me."

"How so?"

"Fancy job, lots of money, more friends, bigger..." Emily trailed off, blushing a little.

"How big are we talking?" Lee asked, moving his hands up to his chest and moving them in and out jokingly. "This big? Or this big?"

"Shut up," she retorted, swatting at his hands and making him laugh.

"Bigger isn't always better," he told her. "In fact, more than a handful..."

"I implore you to not finish that sentence," she cut him off, shooting him a look. "You just might end up needing dental surgery afterwards."

"I'm just trying to make you feel better." He could picture her punching him in the face, and it almost made him smile. He just knew she'd have a mean right cross.

"It's making me regret telling you anything at all."

"Does she live around here?" Lee asked, not wanting her to stop talking. He liked listening to her.

"California. She likes to just pop in to see me on one of her flights across the country every so often."

"Just long enough to disrupt your life and make you feel like shit about yourself?"

"You sound like you know how it feels," she noted.

"Not quite, but I can understand irritation towards a sibling."

"Is your brother in England?"

"Yea. Bouncing around from one job to another. A different lady every other night. Enough alcohol in his system to drown himself with."

"Charming," Emily commented.

"Want me to introduce him to your sister?" Lee asked, joking.

"She'd chew him up and spit him out," Emily answered with a laugh. "The only thing going for me with her is that she's currently single as well, so I don't have to listen to how much better she is at dating."

"Out of the two of you, I'd pick you," Lee declared, making her look at him with a surprised look.

"Excuse me?"

"If I was single," he said. "I'd want to date you, not her."

"You haven't even met her!"

"Maybe not, but she already sounds like a dud," Lee replied.

"I see. Well, I might want to try out your brother. He sounds like more fun than you." She gave a slight squeal in her throat when he moved to shove her, almost knocking her off her feet. She dodged his second shove, which led to him chasing her laughing around the trees a little bit before he stopped and let her catch her breath.

"I know you don't mean that," Lee said when she wasn't out of breath anymore.

"You'll never know," she teased, her eyes twinkling. Emily Charlton was teasing him. This was new. He discovered he rather enjoyed this side of her. She was way more relaxed than he'd ever seen her before. He had no idea why.

They talked a bit more about some favorite childhood memories, and before they knew it, they'd gone the whole lap around the park. It was now closer to two in the morning, and Lee knew this night had to end. He hated the thought.

"Let me drive you home," he said.

"Oh, I'll be fine. I'll just call another cab..."

"It's non-negotiable," he interrupted.

"All right."

They were quiet on the drive to her apartment building. Once he parked and shut the engine off, he looked over at her.

"Thanks for the company," he said.

"It was nice," she agreed. "I think the mental rat race slowed a bit finally."

"Yea. Mine too."

"See you tomorrow," she said, opening the door. "Good night."

"Night."

She gave him a smile and shut the door firmly behind her. He watched her walk inside before starting his truck and driving home.

...

Lacy couldn't sleep. She'd felt so much guilt for having sex with Hutch that she'd come home and had sex with Lee in order to prove that she did indeed love Lee and was invested in the relationship.

She spent hours after comparing the two. She hated that she thought more about Hutch. She'd pretended to be sleeping when Lee slipped out. Where had he gone? Was he going to meet someone? Highly unlikely. He wasn't the type to be disloyal. She, on the other hand...

The door opened, and she heard Lee moving around. She glanced at the clock. It was two thirty. He'd been gone almost two hours. She watched him in the dark as he came to bed and crawled in beside her.

"Where did you go?" she asked, startling him.

"Oh, sorry. Did I wake you?"

"Sort of. Where were you?" she asked again.

"I couldn't sleep, so I went for a walk. Tried to clear my thoughts."

"Everything okay?"

"Yea. I'm just thinking about Barney and the guys and us."

"Us?"

"Just the wedding and...I dunno...kids."

"Kids?" This surprised her. She hadn't known he wanted kids. Did she want kids? She had no idea.

"Yea. Have you never thought of that?"

"Sort of, but not recently."

"It's not a deal breaker. It was just something I was thinking about."

"Okay."

"Sorry I woke you," he said, moving to kiss the side of her head. "Go back to sleep." She didn't say anything as he shifted into a more comfortable position. She heard his breathing slow and grow even, telling her he'd fallen asleep. She did her best to, but the guilt ate at her and kept her awake all night.

...

Lee said goodbye to Lacy the next morning and busied himself with making coffee and something to eat. He noticed Lacy hadn't taken any food with her, and that gnawing feeling in his gut that she was heading down a very scary path started up again. He was doing his best to ignore it as he sat by the window overlooking the city when banging on his door started. He felt on edge because he didn't know anybody here aside from Emily and her team, and he highly doubted she was the one banging on his door like a crazy person.

He grabbed a kitchen knife, just to be safe, and held it behind his back as he yanked the door open aggressively.

"You gonna stab me, Christmas?" Barney asked, smirking. Lee exhaled roughly as he lightly tossed the knife onto the counter with a clatter.

"If you'd knocked a little nicer, I wouldn't have suspected a crazy git on the other side of the door," Lee chastised as Barney came inside. He closed the door behind him.

"Well, we all know I'm a touch crazy," Barney joked. "So you were half right."

"What do you want?"

"Geez, Christmas, can't a friend come see how his buddy is doing?"

"I know you have an ulterior motive," Lee pointed out. "Just get to it." Barney didn't answer. Instead, he started wandering around the apartment, checking things out. Lee watched him, his arms crossed. He could sense Barney had something on his mind. Why else would he fly all the way out here?

"Nice place," Barney said after a bit.

"Cut the bullshit," Lee growled. "Just spit it out."

"You really can't stand a build up to anything, can you?"

"No."

"Then how do you enjoy sex?"

At this point, Lee knew Barney was just trying to get a rise out of him, to piss him off. He decided to ignore that remark and stare at Barney until his friend sighed loudly and caved and told him exactly what was on his mind.

"I just need to see for myself that she loves you," Barney said. "I have a hard time believing it. The rest of the boys do too. You're our brother, Christmas, and we just want what's best for you."

"You don't get to decide what's best for me. Only I do that," Lee insisted. "I don't need the holy stamp of approval from the Expendables on who I'm gonna marry. If that's the case, then you better give me approval for what I eat and drink, where I spend my time, who I'm allowed to be friends with, when I'm allowed to take a shit, and what clothes I should wear every day."

"Now you're just being dramatic," Barney snorted.

"And what do you call this? Flying out here overnight to come check on me?" Lee challenged.

"Me being a concerned friend."

"Well, I can assure you that there is nothing to be concerned about," Lee said strongly.

"Then let's go get some damn grub. I'm starving," Barney said, heading back for the door. Lee didn't bother wasting his time saying he'd already eaten something. Some battles were just best left alone.

...

Emily woke up reaching for David, which was something she hadn't done in quite some time. She was emotional all morning, and by the time Lee's appointment came around that afternoon, she was almost downright cranky. Bella Holmes had driven her nuts for most of the morning, and then she'd lost an earring, which was why she was currently crawling around on her hands and knees in her office with her rear end high in the sky. If that damn cat had sneaked in and stolen it...

"Em?"

"Geez!" she shrieked, jerking upward and banging her head off the corner of the desk and falling over onto her side in pain, grasping her head with her right hand. "Shit!"

"You okay?" Lee asked, kneeling down next to her. She noticed a second man hovering in the doorway, who was trying not to laugh. She felt irritated. Why hadn't Alison let her know he was there?!

"Not really," she answered, sitting up and adjusting her shirt and skirt. She rested her left hand on the ground and yelped, lifting it quickly to reveal her missing earring and an indent in her hand from pressing down on it, some blood rising to the surface from the pin prick of the hook. Son of a bitch.

"How many fingers?" Lee asked, holding up two. She swatted his hand away and struggled to her feet. She felt embarrassed. She felt angry. She really hated her hormones sometimes. She sat back behind her desk and surveyed the two men standing before her, the one still closer to the door.

"Shall we get on then?" she inquired. "I've got us an appointment to look things over and to go over the menu."

"Sure."

"And he is?" she asked, looking at the other man. He was older, gruffer looking, and looked like he was ready to kill someone.

"Oh, sorry. That's Barney. One of the groomsmen."

"Pfft, yea sure," Barney muttered.

"You're bloody well doing it," Lee growled at him. Emily felt intrigued. Could there finally be someone who gets under Lee's skin the way he gets under hers? This could be an interesting afternoon.

"Do you really need me for this?" Barney asked.

"Hey, you were the one who wanted to make sure I'm doing the right thing, so what better way than to watch me plan my own wedding?" Lee asked. Emily resisted smirking. So Barney wasn't on board with Lee marrying Lacy. Fascinating.

"I'd rather get my head blown off," Barney retorted.

"That could be arranged," Lee snapped.

"I'll be out by the door whenever you ladies are ready," Emily said, getting up and grabbing her coat.

"Oh, I like her," Barney said as she walked by them. Lee didn't comment, and she didn't have to turn around to feel him walking behind her. His black cloud was very ominous. She noticed Alison was not at her desk, which explained why there was no head's up to the company. She felt irritated again.

"I'll drive," Lee said, and she didn't argue. Barney sat in the back despite her insisting she was okay to ride there. She could feel the tension between the two men during the entire ride. Once they got to their destination, she dared to look over at Lee. His face looked pinched and angry.

"Alright, so what do we do here?" Barney asked, breaking the silence.

"Going over the menu," Emily replied. "And putting down the deposit to book the place." It reminded her that she had to give Lee his money back for their services since Nigel had kindly traded it for his working with them. She wasn't even sure if he was supposed to do that, but she didn't question him.

"Expensive?" Barney asked.

"Money is not an issue," Lee retorted, his tone a warning.

"I know that."

"Then shut up," Lee snapped. He got out, and Emily raised a brow at Barney questioningly.

"It's his time of the month," Barney answered logically. She couldn't help it. A snort escaped before she clamped her lips shut tightly and got out of the truck. She noticed Barney was grinning ear to ear as he walked alongside her. Emily approached the receptionist, and they were led to the person organizing the meeting. Her name was Sharon.

"Are you the lucky bride?" Sharon asked Emily, who became very taken aback and couldn't seem to string words together to say no.

"What the hell does that make me? The wedding planner? Do I look like a wedding planner to you?" Barney asked, saving Emily from stuttering her words.

"Um, no..." Sharon said, looking slightly frightened as she glanced up at him.

"If I look like a wedding planner, then we have big problems," Barney went on. Lee was smirking now.

"It's me!" Emily said loudly, getting Sharon's attention. "We spoke on the phone."

"Of course. This way," Sharon said, her face red now. Barney and Lee were still snickering back and forth as they walked behind Emily, who was following Sharon. Unfortunately, she'd tuned out what Sharon was babbling on about. Her brain was stuck on the fact that she'd been mistaken for Lee's fiancee.

"What's wrong with steaks and burgers?" Barney asked, looking at Lee, who was staring at the table of dinner items before him. Emily clutched her chest above her heart, making a sound in her throat.

"What?" Barney asked. "What did I say?"

"You implied we're backyard hillbillies," Lee replied. "That gives her a stroke."

"It does not," Emily argued, knowing it was true.

"If you mention using Times New Roman font, she'll scratch your eyes right out," Lee added.

"Shut it!"

"Wow," Barney said, looking back and forth between them. Emily stood up straight, shooting Lee a look.

"This is what Lacy wanted," Lee said, handing Emily a piece of paper and changing the subject. Emily looked at it and then back at the table. She moved towards it and slid a few plates away, leaving three behind.

"That's it," she said. Sharon nodded.

"Wonderful. Let's move on to dessert, yes?" She walked to the next table. Barney was audibly dragging his feet, his boots making a cringeworthy sound.

"I'm not cleared for dessert," Lee said, looking at Emily. "She didn't tell me what to do for that."

"Is it in the book?"

"The book?" Barney repeated.

"No," Lee replied, ignoring him. "Which is shocking to me because she's got everything else down including what pair of knickers I'm supposed to wear under my tux."

Sharon gave an involuntary snort at this and covered it up with a cough. Barney, however, full out guffawed. Emily felt her lips twitching, but she managed to keep in her laughter.

"Just have a look and do your best," she said encouragingly. Lee swiveled his head to the table and stared at it for about five minutes.

"Oh, for the love of God," Barney said, annoyed. "Just pick the damn cake. You like cake. I know you do. I've seen you eat an entire one all by yourself and threatened to stab anyone who tried to take a piece from you."

"She's more into cheese cake," Lee insisted.

"It's your wedding too, isn't it? Or are you just being led down the aisle by that ring through your nose?" Barney asked.

"It's sounding like Barney is jealous," Emily piped up now. "The way you two bicker...I'd assume he already was your wife."

"I really like her," Barney said to Lee, jabbing his finger in Emily's direction. "Marry her."

"Excuse me?" Emily asked, alarmed. Sharon looked beyond lost, her head moving back and forth between them all.

"Cheese cake will do," Lee said to Sharon, his eyes never leaving Barney. "Are we done now?"

"Um, the wine?"

"Red."

"You're sure about that?" Barney asked sarcastically.

"How much?" Lee questioned, looking at Sharon.

"What?" Sharon asked.

"How much is the deposit?"

When she said it out loud, Barney just about blew a gasket. Without a sound, Lee pulled out a cheque and filled it out. He ripped it off in one vicious stroke and handed it to Sharon, who took it timidly.

"Thank you," she said.

Lee barely gave a grunt in response as he stormed to the door. Emily ran after him.

"I'll call you later!" she shouted to Sharon. Barney stood still, watching. When they reached Lee's truck, Emily climbed into the passenger side.

"Are you leaving him here?" she asked, shocked.

"He deserves it," Lee retorted, starting his truck and jerking it forward with such a force that Emily reached to hold her seatbelt with her left hand. She said nothing as he drove, but she could feel his anger coming off in waves. She didn't even ask when he drove to a random parking lot and parked in a spot that had no cars around. He stopped the engine and simply held the wheel in his hands, breathing hard.

"Are you okay?" she dared to ask about five minutes later.

"He keeps questioning me," Lee said, ignoring her question. "He thinks I'm making a mistake. He thinks I'm running."

"From what?"

"We had this kid," Lee blurted out. "He was on our team. He got killed. It devastated us, and now Barney thinks I'm running from that pain into a loveless marriage."

"Are you?" she asked, deciding to be blunt. Sometimes, she thought that should be her last name because she did it an awful lot to people.

"No," Lee answered strongly, finally looking at her. "I'm not." Emily studied him, though, and she could see that he wasn't being entirely truthful. She didn't push the issue.

"Were you military?" she asked, recalling how he'd said "team."

"In a way," he answered vaguely.

"I'm sorry about the...your friend," she finished, changing the end of the sentence. She was assuming this "kid" was his friend.

"Me too."

Lee was quiet again, and Emily waited. Eventually, he turned the engine back on and drove back to Blue Hill. They found Barney standing outside the building, arms crossed. For a moment, it seemed like he wasn't going to get in, but then he did. Neither man said anything to each other, and Lee drove Emily back to her office.

"Thanks," he said to her once he parked on the street in front of it. "I'll call you later."

"Sure," Emily agreed. She opened her door. "Nice to meet you, Barney."

"Likewise," Barney replied. She got out and moved to shut the door, catching Lee's eyes as she did so. For a second, there was a look of what could pass for longing, but Emily wasn't really sure what he'd be longing for. She closed the door firmly and walked inside her office. She passed Jane and Andy without a word. She just wanted to be alone.

Then she almost tripped over Soapy, who was in her office again, and she cursed, and the thoughts of Lee were long gone as she hustled the cat out the door with her foot and slammed it shut.

She leaned against the door, breathing hard. That's when she realized she hadn't thought about David at all that afternoon since Lee'd been around.

...

"What do you suppose happened?" Jane asked Andy, her voice low. They watched Emily come in after her appointment with Lee, and they noticed she looked a bit off as well as heard her tirade towards Soapy, who was now winding around Jane's legs all innocent-like. Andy watched Lee through the doors and noticed another man with him getting into the passenger seat.

"He's not alone," she told Jane, who leaned to catch a glimpse of this guy before they were gone.

"Groomsman?" Jane asked.

"Kind of rough looking, but maybe," Andy replied. Nigel came down the hall with a file in his hands. He was flipping through papers as he walked. He stopped upon reaching the two of them.

"What are we gossiping about?" he asked.

"Dinner plans," Andy fibbed. Nigel looked at his watch.

"Already?" he asked.

"It's my fault. I was telling her that Kevin was making dinner tonight and that his food is UH-mazing," Jane said, slightly exaggeratingly. They both heard Nigel's stomach growl then. He looked down at it, surprised.

"Huh," he said. "I think I'll take a late lunch."

"We'll hold the fort down," Andy promised. Nigel turned and went back to his office, snapping the file shut about halfway there. Once he was out of sight, Jane and Andy gave a collected sigh. They didn't want Nigel knowing they thought Lee and Emily belonged together. He'd be more likely to say something to her about it, and that would just cause a ruckus.

"Is Kevin's food amazing?" Andy asked, curious.

"Actually, yea," Jane answered, nodding.

"Crap," Andy said, making Jane laugh.

"You wanna come over?" she offered.

"Really?"

"Yea, sure. Kevin won't mind."

"That'd be great. I'm so tired of being alone every single night," Andy said, pushing her hair back from her face. Jane gave her a sympathetic smile. She'd been there.

"Come by around six," she told her. She wrote her address down for Andy, who took it with a big grin.

For the moment, Emily and Lee were forgotten.

...

Lacy looked up to see Hutch standing in front of her desk. He had that smile on his face. She felt herself flush. She'd thought about him multiple times that day despite her efforts to not to. Earlier, Lee had told her that Barney was visiting, which made her not want to go home. She wasn't a fan of Barney. He had a bullshit meter that went off the charts when she was around, and they both knew it. She knew he was constantly going at Lee to call off the wedding, and that bothered her too. She'd only agreed to let him be a groomsman because Lee didn't have many friends. She hadn't even known Lee had a brother. She was looking forward to meeting him whenever he arrived, which she hoped was soon.

"You busy tonight?" Hutch asked, leaning onto his hands on her desk in front of her. Lacy knew her answer should be yes, she was. She knew she shouldn't be doing this, but the thought of spending the evening with Barney was unappealing. She could control herself. She'd just have dinner. They could discuss an upcoming shoot, so it would be work related. She'd go home late enough to avoid spending much time with Barney but early enough that Barney wouldn't accuse her of cheating.

She had the best of intentions.

"No, what's up?" she asked.

"Dinner? I'll cook."

Dinner at Hutch's place. That could be bad. No, they could control themselves. It would be fine. She could do this.

"Sure."

She always had the best of intentions...they just never came to fruition.