"Jay?"

Hailey rolled over in bed following the shadow of his hands on her body.

"Why do you always ask?" His voice was still hoarse from sleep as he breathed against her skin, "Of course it's me."

She giggled running a hand over his stomach and closed her eyes again.

"Also, who else could be in bed with you at dawn? With you almost naked?"

Hailey gave him a gentle pat on his side, laughing at his ability to think even at dawn.

"I don't know, maybe Alex?"

"Ah, Alex? Hailey. " His voice was amused even though he wanted to keep a threatening tone.

"Just kidding, jealous guy."

She hid the laugh against his neck as she melted against him, "What time is it? It's early, I know. But why did you wake me up?"

"Kohl. Walk."

Hailey moaned burying her face against his chest without moving, before waving a hand wearily to the end of the bed.

"But Kohl is sleeping."

"We don't have all the time in the world this morning. We have to work, you know?"

Hailey watched him smile in the dim light of his bedroom, arms folded under the his head and his eyes narrowed.

She stepped over his legs with one of hers and slowly crawled on top of him. She doubted she would ever get tired of his warm skin against her - it was just something so…Jay, her favorite place.

"I mean, we could stay here for a while and then you could take Kohl out later, before you go to work."

She said letting her lips slide against his jaw. His short beard tickling her lips as his hands ran up her back to her neck. Hailey giggled softly before bringing their lips together and felt Jay breathing heavily beneath her.

"I'm not buying it, I want you to know." He told her after a few minutes.

"Damn." Hailey snorted pushing against his chest, "Okay, let's do this."

She sat on the bed stroking Kohl, still half asleep at the end of the bed.

"Ah, anyway, how did this happen? Kohl on my bed." Jay asked her as he got into the bathroom.

Hailey shrugged continuing to stroke it slowly, "You were asleep and Kohl came to lick my hand. And I told him to come on the bed because Uncle Jay would be happy, right boy? You're so good."

The dog wagged its tail gleefully rolling onto its back and Hailey giggled in amusement.

"So you made it get on the bed!" Jay came out of the bathroom brandishing his toothbrush at her.

"Look at Kohl, I couldn't tell it no. Do your puppy eyes, Kohl!"

Jay's hoarse laugh was lost in the bathroom and Hailey closed her eyes savoring every moment. Kohl pushed its paws against her shoulders and suddenly Hailey was lying on the bed with the dog wagging its tail and nibbling at her hands.

And, not for the first time, she figured it wasn't really hard to get used to mornings like these.

...

Hailey squinted against the wind as the morning sun was already hot on her skin. It was one of the hottest summers in years and she didn't really know how she got to be sitting on a bench in a park not far from Jay's place at 7 in the morning.

Jay stretched his legs beside her as she yawned still asleep. His arm passed behind her and she gladly leaned on his touch. Her head was still heavy and his shoulder seemed the best place to rest.

"You can't be asleep yet!"

Jay made fun of her as he threw a tennis ball at the dog that hopped in front of them for the umpteenth time.

"It's too early."

"You love waking up early with me. And this time it was for a good cause, just think about that."

She sighed with her eyes closed.

It was too early to be able to fight him and she leaned against him by sinking slightly against his side.

Her gaze flew to the dog running around the park and she squinted again at the peace she felt all around her.

"I know I was with you when it happened, but tell me how we got here, please."

"So Will, everything good today? I saw it was a bit of a crazy day in the ER."

Hailey took a sip of beer watching Will turn his glass between his fingers.

"Oh, how do you know?"

Will looked at her with a confused and slightly distant expression.

Jay glanced at her wide-eyed and she shrugged in confusion.

"Well, uhm…I was in Med for a consultation. We met today. Do you remember?"

Will's eyes widened as he finally realized what they were talking about and nodded with conviction.

"Oh sure! Sorry, I just zoned out for a sec."

Jay looked at her before raising his eyebrows pointing to a very strange Will. She shrugged and followed his gaze recognizing the way Will scratched the surface of the table for a few seconds before scratching his left ear. She had enough experience to recognize the signs of embarrassment.

"He wants to ask you a favor." Hailey turned to Jay with a shrug and leaning her elbows on the table.

"Hey, it's not fair! You can't use your spider senses with your family."

Hailey laughed at Will's defeated expression and gave him an apologetic smile.

"What do you have to ask me?"

"Nothing."

Jay cocked his head to the side with a wry smile, "Should I ask her?"

"She doesn't read minds."

"I saw her question a witness." He shrugged, "You don't want to try her spider senses."

Will snorted, shaking his head, before taking a deep breath.

"Okay, I have a med conference in Detroit next week. And I was thinking…"

"You don't have to think. I told you this when you wanted to mend my arm when you were ten."

Will crossed his arms across his chest with an annoyed expression.

"C'mon, Will. A conference in Detroit, it seems to be cool." Hailey kicked Jay under the table as she nodded at his brother.

"Yeah, cool. But here, I was wondering…"

"Rip the baind-aid off, c'mon."

"Can you take Kohl?"

Hailey looked at Jay for a second and when he slowly nodded, she smiled at Will, "Kohl, really? That's all?"

Will shrugged in distress.

"Of course, it won't be a problem." Jay nodded again and Will sighed with a relaxed smile.

"I can't believe he trusted you with Kohl."

"He trusted us." He said disappointed, "He left Kohl to us because, he said, he trusts you more."

"Yeah well, I can see why."

Hailey shrugged arousing his irritated snort she knew she would arrive before bending slightly against him.

"My brother is a jerk."

"He's a very reasonable person. You are reckless, I am as reasonable as him."

"Oh no, you can't call Will reasonable. You cannot."

"Okay, okay." She sighed in defeat, "I'm the only reasonable one in here."

Jay nodded satisfied and quickly kissed her hair, "I don't argue with that."

"And anyway…" He added after a few seconds, "Don't grumble. You like Kohl."

"Oh, I love Kohl." She admitted effortlessly leaving him a quick kiss on the cheek before placing the dog's leash in his hands.

They walked slowly towards Jay's place, Kohl a few paces from them with the leash pulled.

Hailey looked around, she had one hand tucked into the back pocket of his jeans and the other hanging down her side.

And it was in that moment that she realized what she wanted. She stopped in her footsteps with her eyes on the other side of the street.

"Hey, you good?"

Jay stopped a step away from her with a puzzled expression.

"I would like a garden like that."

Hailey reached out and pointed to a house not far from them. A low hedge ran around the perimeter and a few flowering hydrangea bushes sprouted behind them. A large tree shaded the whole courtyard while the veranda just in front of the entrance door was made of white wood and so adorable.

"Really?"

"Yeah, you know. Where you can barbecue and I can have beautiful plants." She shrugged, her eyes still away from him.

"Should I barbecue? Okay, I like the idea."

He laughed lightly beside her before grabbing her hand and dragging her with him.

"I would like a small veranda at the entrance."

"Yeah, we can work with that. Something else?"

"I don't know." She laughed as she moved her gaze to the houses around them, "Two bathrooms probably."

"Why?"

"You love taking too long of showers."

"And you love taking too long of showers with me."

"Yeah, okay." She snorted, "But we don't always have time to do..."

"Too long of showers together." Jay anticipated her, laughing like a child.

Hailey hit him softly and they remained silent for a few minutes. Hailey had carefully avoided talking about the number of bedrooms because, honestly, she didn't know what to say. She wouldn't have brought that up, it was weird and embarrassing - or maybe she just didn't know what to think about it yet, what he thought about it.

Kohl ran in front of them pulling the leash in Jay's hands who occasionally ended up pulling her against him. It was comfortable and familiar - everything with Jay was comfortable and familiar, and she wasn't really surprised that she was walking his brother's dog too.

"I'd like a big living room. You know, maybe with a fireplace. My parents' place had this large living room with dark wood furniture and a fireplace. I've always loved it."

Hailey hummed her assent, "What quarter did you grow up in?"

"Canaryville."

"Makes sense, Irish boy." Hailey tapped his shoulder with hers with a smile, "A big living room, I like it."

...

"Come on, Kohl, come here!"

Hailey sat down on the carpet and slammed a hand on the floor beside her immediately hearing the scuffling of the dog's paws on the floor. The next moment, Kohl crashed into her trying to lick her face while she laughed and struggled.

"Good boy. You're a really good boy, aren't you?"

She scratched its head and behind its ears and Kohl stretched out on its legs showing its belly.

Hailey stroked it slowly as Jay joined her and sat down on the couch behind her. She squinted at the feel of his hands sliding under her hair to her neck for a light massage.

"Wait, didn't you want a cat?"

"I had a cat." She pointed out.

"And you wanted another one?"

"Yeah, why not. Cats are fluffy. But dogs? Dogs are funny."

"So do you want a dog or a cat?" Jay laughed out loud before warning her, "And you can't say both!"

Hailey hit his leg behind her before leaning back against him.

"When I was a kid, I never had too many friends. You know, inviting them home was…difficult, yeah. My brothers were older, so they had many friends. They were good brothers, but they had their own life." Hailey shrugged, "And so I've always wanted a dog, you know, to stay with me. But my father, uhm...he didn't like this idea."

Jay remained silent with his hands behind her neck. His fingers played with her hair as Hailey slowly stroked Kohl, lying at her feet.

"One day my brother Michael brought this kitty at home and yes, I really called it Kitten." They both chuckled lightly, "It was black and so soft. I loved it. My brother took a rant from my dad, but he always said it was worth it. Kitten had been my best friend for so many years."

They were silent for a few moments while the dog snored lightly on the carpet. Hailey looked at it before slowly crawling onto the couch next to Jay.

"Do you think we can steal it from Will?" She asked Hailey pointing to Kohl.

Jay laughed "No, I think he'd notice."

"Damn."

She sighed, her eyes closed and her head resting against his shoulder for a few seconds.

"Today I'll be in my office the whole time."

"I'll have to do a ton of paperwork." Jay moaned aloud, "But I'm hoping for something more exciting."

"Like?"

"I don't know, a shooting?"

Hailey wrinkled her nose and hit his chest with a gentle slap.

"You have terrible tastes, do you know?"

"Well, I'm going to live with you..."

Jay smiled leaning over her until she lay on the couch and Hailey wrapped her arms around his neck kissing his adorable arrogant smile.

"Touchè." She murmured between kisses.

But before Hailey could truly be able to forget everything around them, Jay broke away from her.

"Time to go to work."

Hailey stood there, motionless, as he disappeared down the hall. She rested her hands on her eyes, laughing softly at his antics before putting on her shoes and picking up her bag.

She slipped the single key into the back pocket of her jeans - still incredulous to the feel of his key- as Jay closed the door behind her.

Today promised to be a really hot day and she mentally thanked the air conditioning she had in her office because she didn't really think she could survive.

Hailey walked towards her car but Jay stopped her, "Will is stopping here for dinner tonight."

She moaned, "I finish late tonight. I have my last appointment at dinner time."

"Okay, when you're done come here, he'll be glad to see you."

Jay gave her a quick kiss before jumping in his truck and dropping off right after her.

...

Hailey turned the key over in her fingers for a few seconds as she considered what to do. She could have rang the bell, but she had a key so, honestly, did it make sense to ring the bell?

She slipped it into the patch, turning it slowly. Her head was killing her and she just wanted to get in the shower to melt the heat and stress of the day.

Physically, her work couldn't compete with Jay's, but mentally? After days like those she was simply wrecked.

She closed the door behind her silently. Kohl, the only one who had noticed her arrival, ran to meet her wagging its tail and she knelt down to sink her hands into its soft fur while it leaned on her legs trying to lick her.

She got up slowly and followed the sound of two amused voices to the kitchen to see Jay and Will sitting around the table.

"Hey." She greeted them by placing the phone and keys on the shelf in the corridor before going to pour herself a glass of water.

"Hailey, hey!" Will slammed his fist against hers with a smile as Jay stood up to give her a quick kiss.

"How did it go today?"

She shrugged without answering, and leaned against the counter with a tired smile on her lips, "And what about your day?"

"What can I say, I just saved lives." Will feigned modesty that made Jay snort and Hailey laughed lightly at their squabbles.

"I'm going to take a shower. Can I leave you two here alone?"

"I don't know." Will teased Jay, "He's a troublemaker."

Hailey laughed again placing a hand against Jay's chest.

"I'm sure he knows what to do until I get back."

Hailey silenced their laughter as she closed the bathroom door behind her and welcomed the cold water from the shower as some kind of salvation.

She didn't know exactly how long she'd been there, but she was particularly sure she'd still find Will in the living room and going out in her underwear didn't really seem like a good idea.

She brushed her hair leaving it wet and loose on her shoulders and put on a t-shirt and a pair of shorts. The cool night air created a slight current in the bedroom and she closed her eyes for a few seconds with her back against the bed.

And, like every time, it seemed to her to have known Jay forever, to live with him forever - as if it were the most normal thing in the world. As if they were always meant to be.

She was walking slowly down the hall to the kitchen tying her hair into a messy bun when she stopped in her footsteps as Will said her name.

She didn't really want to spy on them or listen to their conversation on the sly, but Will's astonished voice made her stop involuntarily.

"Are you serious? Do you really want to do it?"

"Yeah, I think she would like it."

"It's something…big. You have to be sure."

"Trust me, man, you haven't seen her. She'll surely like it."

They were silent for a few seconds and Hailey was about to get noticed when Will's voice made her stop again.

"You are really happy, aren't you?"

Jay said nothing, but Hailey heard him chuckle.

"Mom would have liked her, Jay."

"Yeah, I think so too."

"But these Greek origins…not Irish."

Will laughed and Hailey heard the sound of a slap and from the man's groan, she imagined Jay had hit him.

Hailey pointed out her presence by turning on the hall light and appearing in the kitchen doorway.

"Do you want some pizza?"

She gladly accepted it by sinking into the free chair with a snort, "Uh, I love pizza."

"Once I had a patient who had eaten pizza every day for a year." Will wrinkled his nose, "Since that time I've been trying to eat less of it."

They all laughed until they slipped into a pleasant silence with Will who, with his arms crossed, studied them carefully.

"What?"

"Just think about it, you are here thanks to me."

Jay frowned in confusion, "What?"

"Yeah, I mean. Your blind date was thanks to me."

Hailey nodded, "And to Liz, yes."

"I'm proud of myself." Will preened, "I mean, look at us."

"What should we look at?" Jay snorted impatiently as Will smiled at him.

"We look like a happy family."

"Yeah, no." Jay blushed to the tips of his ears and Hailey hid her smile behind the slice of pizza, "You're not included in this package."

"Jay!" Hailey hit him on his arm, "That wasn't nice."

"Yeah, whatever." Jay brushed her off and went back to look at his brother.

Will glared at him before smiling, "I won't be offended just because Hailey loves me."

She laughed out loud, shaking her head, "I won't get involved with this, no."

Feeling like a family with the two of them was way too easy. The laughter and squabbles were something natural that Hailey was getting used to without any problems.

She loved knowing they spent time together. Missing their parents was something Jay suffered so much, but it helped him to have Will - it was a bond he needed, not that he would admit it easily.

She glanced over at Jay. Suddenly the memory of her secretly overheard conversation came back to her mind and she had to hold back to prevent from exploding and asking what they were talking about - why they were talking about her and what he had in mind.

She was a naturally curious person, but she trusted Jay. So, whatever it was, she knew it was his idea and she would be fine.

...

"Hailey?"

She rolled into the sheet grumbling as his fingers slid down her back in a continuous caress.

"Hailey." He hummed in a breath against her neck, "Babe, are you asleep?"

"Yup." She snorted tucking her arms under the pillow.

"No, you are talking to me. So you're awake."

"Jay." She hissed, narrowing her eyes, "If you can't sleep, turn away and sleep."

He chuckled softly beside her as his hand ran the length of her spine as light as a feather.

"C'mon, you're awake now."

"No, I'm sleeping. What the hell time is it?"

"It's night." He admitted as if it wasn't obvious.

In the silence that reigned in the bedroom for a few seconds, she could almost feel his eyes piercing her head.

She breathed his name and slowly rolled onto her side before rising slightly, her elbow pressed against the mattress and the sheet tightly around her chest.

"Tell me what's wrong."

"Ah, you're awake."

His sly smile could almost shine in the darkness of the room and she rolled her eyes with an amused snort.

Jay sat up, his back against the headboard as he played with a lock of her hair.

"I was thinking about this morning's conversation."

She narrowed her eyes trying to activate her brain and remember what had happened that morning.

"The big garden, two bathrooms..." Jay helped her put all the pieces together and she nodded confidently.

"The point is, I really want to live with you."

"Okay?"

Jay searched for the most suitable words as he kept twisting her hair in his fingers.

"And I want to look for a new home with you. Not an apartment, a real house. You know, where to have new memories, create our habits."

His words slipped into her like a balm and she couldn't help but imagine what it would be like to live the rest of her life with him.

A life made of stolen kisses, talk in the middle of the night and muffled laughter between lips.

Jay was all of this for her and he had come when she least expected it - he had pushed his way into her life with gentle firmness. He was reckless but he was that silver shield she had been looking for all her life.

Jay tucked the lock of hair behind her ear bringing her mind back to him.

"And I want it to be the right home for us. So I want to look for it, with you. Make sure it's the one we both want. I want our home and I want it to be perfect. But I want to live with you, immediately."

"Me too, of course."

She couldn't follow his train of thought. She could always read him with ease, the same ease with which he read her. But in that moment he was just…indecipherable.

"But what we're looking for now, you know, the big garden, the spacious living room. We already have what we want at your place."

"My place?"

"I don't want to have to decide which place to sleep in every day. I want to fight over the place in the closet and the shoes near the entrance. Having your lousy chocolate bars scattered around the kitchen and a messy blanket on the couch."

Hailey laughed and slapped him softly on the chest.

"My place then. While we are looking for ours."

He nodded solemnly, his hand gently cradling her cheek. His sly look made her heart beat faster.

"There is only one bathroom, though."

Hailey laughed again.

"I can handle it. I think it's a good compromise if I can get in the shower with you whenever I want, not just when we have five minutes when we wake up."

Jay leaned over her and her last words were lost between his lips.

As his hands tightened on her back, Hailey was never happier that she had been forced to go to that blind date all those months ago.

Thanks to everyone who has come this far.

Thanks to Beth, just for being Beth.

And thanks to Tyla, for exchanging ideas and for the patience.