ABC Owns them


Chapter 29

"Hey, this isn't the way to your apartment" John stated, as he didn't recognize where they were going.

"I never said I'd be taking us to my apartment"

"I just assumed that was what you meant by taking us home"

"Well, it wasn't, actually I've moved, moved again, you'll see, just be quiet and rest that handsome head of yours"

"Anybody ever tell you you're bossy?"

"Yup, heard it a few times" she said and she laughed, he rested his head for a few minutes and they arrived, she got out of the car and tried to go over and help him out when he had already gotten out of the car by the time she had gotten over there.

"Where are we? What is this place?" He asked as she went to the front door and opened it.

"It's my home, it's my cottage, it's the only place I've ever really loved"

"Yeah? I can see why, it's warm"

"Yeah, that it is, I use to... well.. I lived here with Chris, this was actually where I caught him.. well. you know about that. I left that night and felt it was to difficult to be here again, but I missed the place, the apartment just never felt good to me, so I... felt it was time to come home, I wanted you to come home with me, that is if, you like it, if you want to be home with me, home in this house" Natalie said as she saw him smile, he walked closer to her and kissed her.

"Yeah, I think it feels like home to me too" He said and he kissed her again only deeper this time.

"John" she said as he was getting carried away

"I know, the Dr says no excitement, hey does that mean I can bail on meeting your family tonight?" he asked laughing

"No!"

" It was worth a shot wasn't it?"

"Are you alright to walk the stairs, I wanna show you the bedrooms"

"Okay, now you're talking"

"Get your mind out of the gutter Mcbain, you're still recovering" she said and led him up stairs towards the bedroom

"Is this one our room?" he asked and she nodded yes

"I'm not sure how to say this... but... is that the same bed you shared with your ex husband? Don't get me wrong, I don't mind making our own memories in this place but, I don't want to ever get the image of you and that guy in my head, I don't want to think about it ever, it gives my the willy gillies and -----"

" John, it's a new bed, look, it still has the tags on"

"Good, you do know it's illegal to remove those things don't you" he said and he laughed. John walked back into the hall and into the bedroom next to their room.

"This will be the baby's room?" he asked and she smiled, it was nice she thought he seemed to be so excited about the baby. She certainly didn't expect him to be like this, she didn't really think he would be unhappy about it, but he seem to truly be happy with it, and it showed, she just didn't think he would show it to people, to strangers as much, leaving the hospital today, he had made her laugh cause he was so excited he had told two nurses, a deliveryman and the clerk at the front entrance. Natalie continued to smile, lost in her own thoughts.

"Would you like to let me in on the joke?" he asked smiling at her face, she was thinking to herself and it was amusing, she was so amusing to watch, she smiled and let out a small laugh.

"No, joke, just thinking how cute you are"

"Of course you are, everyone thinks that," he said cockily and she went over and slapped him lightly.

" Now, back to our kids room, Blue, I think we should paint it blue, not a light blue color but a medium tone"

"Wait a minute buddy, my daughter ain't having a blue room"

" You're mistaken again babe, the blue room is for you son, when he's born"

"Are you trying to tell me you want our baby to be a boy?" she said and she looked at him with a curious face not knowing if he was kidding or not.

"Honey, what ever it is, boy or girl, it's fine with me, I was only kidding" he said and he kissed her

'As long as it's healthy'

"Yes, as long as it's healthy" he said and he slowly moved her back towards the wall as he started taking her mouth. She pushed him off.

"No! Doctors orders, and we don't have time anyways, you need to rest my family will be here in a few hours for dinner"

"Ugh... you had to remind me"

John rested for a few hours before he woke to a house full of people, he sat up in bed and prepared himself, tried to anyways, tried to prepare himself for a whole lot of looks and questions, questions about personal stuff to boot, stuff he didn't like to talk about, stuff he just started to talk to her about, he hated talking about that kind of stuff, but he knew her family would want answers, would want to see for themselves what she was getting into, not that it mattered what they thought, Natalie wasn't the type to have her family dictate her life, he just wanted things to go smooth for them, for her, she deserved this, tonight to go easy, uneventful. John heard a knocking on the door.

"John" he heard her niece Alissa say, well it would be his niece someday soon, soon he hoped.

"Aunt Natalie asked me to make sure you were awake, she left your clothes on the nightstand" Alissa said and John answered the door.

"Hey, honey how are you?" John leaned down to Alissa and asked

"I'm fine, oh, you're already dressed, Aunt Natalie I'll be happy, great Grandpa's been steam up the place annoying her wanting to know when you were coming down"

"He's giving her a hard time Huh?"

"Yup, but Aunt Natalie gave it right back, she don't take his ish like everyone else, he yells, she yells right back, my mommy says that's cause they the same."

"They are, are they?"

"Yep, mommy says they both have a lot of hot air at times and they're real pork headed" Alissa said and John laughed

"I think its Pigheaded"

"Can you do me a favor and tell your aunt I'll be down in ten minutes" he told Alissa

"Hey, you were telling the truth, you might end up being my uncle after all Huh?" Alissa said before she headed down the stairs

"Yup, you might even be getting that cousin you wanted after all" John said and he smiled at her

"I know, Mommy already told me but it's a secret so don't tell Aunt Natalie I already know"

John laughed and got himself dressed, he walked down the stairs, he stuck his hand in his pocket and felt it, the ring, his mom's ring, he thought about if he could do this tonight, if it would make things better for her tonight, if she would mind being asked with her family around, he just didn't know, it was one of the things he didn't know about her yet, did she like big scenes, or did she like things more private, he pushed the ring back all the way down in his pocket and decided tonight wouldn't be the right time, she didn't come across as someone who liked a public display and either was he, he shook his head hoping he wasn't wrong as he came to the bottom of the stairs, he saw her from across the room, she was most definitely glowing, he started to make his way towards her when a older gentleman make his way by him.

"John, I would imagine" Clint said as he approached John by the stairs

"Yes, sir"

"I'm Natalie father, we need to have a few words in private" Clint told John; John nodded and went outside the front door with him for a few minutes.

The two men were silent for a few minutes till they got outside.

"We need to discuss my daughter, I want to know about your intentions"

"Well...I... we..."

"Just spit it out son, don't pussy foot around the words, just speak"

"We plan on getting to know each other better and then I want to marry her, I'd marry her now but your daughter is a bit stubborn and wants us to know each other better, and since there is no talking to her when she is obviously like that, I'm going along with it, I love her very much and plan on raising our child together in a loving family." John told him quickly and nervously, Clint let out a small laugh

"Is that it?" Clint asked trying not to smile but be stern, he knew this was a bit intimidating for the guy, all these people, all this family but he still needed him to understand something.

"No that's not it, your name, your first name or should I call you Mr. Buchanan?" john said starting to get his courage back up again, he was amazing he thought, he could handle himself so well under all sorts of pressure with the job but with something like this, something important to her, he felt like mush.

"Clint, you can call me Clint, and it's very nice to meet you john" Clint said as he put out his hand for John to shake, john shook his hand and told him it was nice to meet him too.

"One thing I've gotta tell ya John before we go back inside, if you hurt her, do anything to her, she won't be able to stop me, or her brothers, or her granddad from taking care of business, she didn't let us help handle things with that jerk of an Ex but if you hurt my girl, you better run, and fast"

"Sir, I won't ever do anything to hurt your daughter I love her too much, she means too much to me"

"Can't say I haven't heard that before, but I think I believe you son, not like ... well I never really liked him, he was an artist type, not really manly if you know what I mean"

John and Clint went back inside for the party, Natalie saw them walk back and in and she walked over to john as Clint walked away. She leaned into his ear, and whispered.

"Did he give you the father speech?"

"What father speech?" John asked grinning

"You know the father speech that he'll kill you if you do anything to me, you know the one I'm sure you'll use when our daughter has a man in her life." Natalie said and he smiled at her.

"It's gonna be a boy babe, I can tell" he said as he laughed at her face.

'We'll see' she said and they started to mingle.