Notes:

Disclaimer: See first chapter

--Chapter 3: A pretty good start--

December 18, almost 11 p.m.

Trevor left about fifteen minutes ago, after almost two hours of racking our brains for ideas. Okay, so maybe he mostly laughed and listened, but he did throw in a couple of good suggestions. I guess he wasn't as romantically challenged as he let on!

Unfortunately, neither the romance books nor the chickflicks helped us come up with any ideas, but they definitely put us in a romantic mood! So I guess they weren't a total waste of time.

Well, here are some of the things we came up with.

1. I will talk to Mom and maybe Uncle Gil. You know, make them think about each other, etc. I have the conversation all planned out for Mom, but I'm not so sure about Grissom. Or maybe there is a way I can use the same conversation for the both of them. That would be cool.

2. Trevor's parents have two extra tickets to the Trans-Siberian Orchestra on December 22, and he is sure he can get them for Mom and Uncle Gil. (Talk about getting lucky!) Of course, we won't set it up as a date. Just a normal "friendly" outing that best friends go on.

3. We can make reservations at Emma's on Christmas Eve. (Cassandra's mom's restaurant. It's small, but romantic; perfect for them. There's also enough room for a few couples to dance, if desired. That's also a definite plus if Mom can convince Uncle Gil to dance with her.)

4. We decided Nick, Warrick, Sara, and Greg will only be told if they are absolutely needed. Mom has a way of making people talk, and she will use it if she suspects that any of them know anything.

5. ...

Okay, so maybe it's not a whole lot of things, but I think we did a pretty darn good job. It took three bags of popcorn and several cans of pop to soothe our fried brains. After all, this business of setting people up takes a lot of hard work. I have a whole new respect for those gossiping old ladies in small towns that do this all the time; it's pretty stressful work. Of course, that definitely doesn't mean I would want any of them interfering in mine.

Anyway, back to the subject, I think we got enough done to qualify as a pretty decent start.

December 19, 3 p.m.

Cassandra left about two hours ago, while Mom was still sleeping.

I found Mom in her room, just starting to make the bed. This looked like the perfect time to have "the" discussion.

Unfortunately, the second I entered the room, she spoke, not allowing me to bring it up.

"So, did you have fun with Cassandra last night?"

I walked over to the opposite side of the bed and grabbed the blanket.

"Yeah. Trevor came over for a couple hours too." I said casually, keeping my eyes on the task at hand. I knew she probably wasn't going to be thrilled; I had only asked for one friend. Not to mention Trevor was male, and there hadn't been an adult in the house while he was here.

I was right; her eyes immediately sharpened.

"Trevor? I didn't know you invited him."

"I didn't. Cassandra did; I didn't know until he was coming until he showed up on the doorstep."

"What did you all do?"

"We watched movies and talked. All the stuff we usually do."

"You two weren't ever alone, were you?"

"Who, me and Trevor?"

She nodded, while we took the blanket off, then put it back on.

I rolled my eyes at her. This was exactly what I figured she would do.

"Mother!" I said, stressing the second sylable for emphasis. "You know Trevor and I aren't like that."

She shrugged while we pulled the blanket over the now smooth sheets.

"Well, I was pretty sure, but I'm your mother. I'm supposed to ask these questions."

Aaah, I just got an idea for turning this conversation into the one I was going to talk to her about.

"Well, what about you and Uncle Gil? You two spend a lot of time together, and you aren't interested in each other romantically."

That statement achieved it's purpose as I watched the tell-tale flush work its way up her neck and face.

"Or are you? I asked with a grin.

"Gil and I are just friends."

She was purposely avoiding my eyes while she folded the blanket down the way she liked it.

"Mom, trust me. Being 'just friends' does not stop you from wanting to be more."

She raised a playful eyebrow at me while smoothing out her side of the sheets.

"And since when did you become such an expert on relationships, young lady?"

"I dunno."

"I don't think so. So what is really between you and Trevor?"

I grinned.

"Nothing, as long as there's nothing between you and Uncle Gil."

I watched her jaw drop open, gave my side of the sheets one final straightening tug, then turned and walked away, trying to keep the bounce out of my step.

This start was now moving up from decent to great; better than I had expected.

All I could hope for now was that my talk with Uncle Gil would produce the same results.

TBC...