A/N: See the intro for the standard stuff. Please R&R.
TrueBlue: Welcome! I'm so glad you like Tess. I like Tess too. She's ornery sometimes, but mostly fun. LittleCorinthian: I think we all have someone like Adam in our lives. I have two cousins who tried to keep me in line when I was younger. They've finally let up. SoccerB: Good to see you still hanging in! RS: No wondering when Bette will burst in on them half-clothed is not odd. Tess and Don need to be a little more careful.
Tess leaned her head back against the cool exterior and closed her eyes. She was not looking forward to going back to her brother sitting in her apartment. Tess trudged down the hall and back into her apartment. She stopped dead at the sight of Bette. Bette looked at Tess and raised her eyebrows.
"Imagine my surprise when I came back up here lookin' for you and found Adam sittin' here."
Tess balled her fists on her hips. "I'll bet not half as surprised as I was to find him on my doorstep in the first place." The trio stared at each other. Tess finally closed her eyes. "I'm not up for an in-depth discussion of my life with you two tonight." She took off her glasses and rubbed her eyes. "It's been a horrendous day. I'm tired and I'm going to sleep. If you two want to stay up and discuss me, fine. Just do it quietly." Tess went into her bedroom and closed the door leaving the other two staring after her.
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Tess got up, hit the alarm and stretched. She opened her door and peered out. Adam was sitting at the kitchen table eating toast. He held up a coffee mug.
"It's already made. Do you have time for a cup?" Tess nodded and walked over to the table. She pulled out a chair and sat down. Adam poured her a mug of coffee, added sugar and milk and set it in front of her. "Are you in a better mood this morning?" Tess blew on the mug and took a tentative sip.
"Possibly. Why?"
"Are going to bite my head off if I bring up your boyfriend?" Adam made Tess toast with cinnamon and sugar. He set the plate on the table.
Tess took another sip of coffee. "Depends on what you plan on saying."
"Just be careful."
"I am."
"He seems nice."
"You hardly talked to him."
"You rushed him out the door too fast for me to talk to him," pointed out Adam. He sat back down. "Although, Bette filled me in some."
Tess shook her head. "That's just great. I hope you don't plan on tracking Don down before you leave town. I'd hate to have to call Christine and tell her she had to spring her husband out of jail. Assaulting a police officer is a crime you know."
Adam chuckled. "I'll keep that in mind should I get the urge to beat up your boyfriend." He took a sip of coffee. "Actually, Bette had nothing but nice things to say."
Tess raised her eyebrows. "Really? I didn't think Bette really liked Don."
Adam smiled. "I think his not leaving you alone last night won her over." Adam laughed at Tess' blush. "That's not what I meant. Maybe I should risk that jail time."
Tess shook her head. "No, please don't. And this is not a conversation I'm having with you."
Adam nodded and changed the subject. "Before Bette came in, I talked to Mom and Stephanie. Mom still isn't happy, but I think she understands a little better."
"And Stephanie?"
"She wants to meet your boyfriend." Adam munched on his toast, letting that bit of information sink in.
"What did you tell her?"
"That Mom overreacted and that when I got here you were being well taken care of by your boyfriend." Adam took a sip of coffee. "I left out the time lapse between my knocking and you answering the door."
"Thank you for small favors. What did you say that got Steph wanting to meet him?"
"There wasn't much to say. Probably why she wants to meet him. Are you planning on bringing him home for Christmas?"
Tess shook her head. "I don't know. Besides, when's the last time Stephanie made it home for Christmas?"
"Then maybe we could all get together in Boston for First Night."
"Don't you have a concert?"
"Three that evening actually. But you should get Don up there anyway. And maybe Stephanie would come. You three could hang and we could all have dinner on New Year's."
Tess frowned. "I thought Stephanie seriously into some guy. Wasn't his name John Kelly or something like that? Isn't he invited to this little get together?"
Adam shook his head. "And you growled at me for bringing up Alex. Steph and John broke up before you and Alex did."
Tess nodded slowly. "Oh, yeah. I guess it's a good thing that we have a dear, older brother to keep things straight for us." Adam rolled his eyes at her. Tess looked at her plate. "We'll have to see." She glanced at the clock on the microwave and finished off her coffee. "I've got to get ready for school."
Adam nodded. "Don't worry about me. I'll get out of here okay."
Tess nodded and headed to her room to get dressed. She turned back. "Adam thanks for coming to check on me."
Adam smiled. "That's what big brothers are for."
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Tess came up the stairs from the subway. Her mind was focused on other things as she walked slowly into the light. A touch on her arm made her jump. She ducked her head and smiled when she spotted Don.
"Shouldn't you be at work?"
"Not yet. I wanted ta make sure yer okay."
"You could have called."
"I wanted ta see ya. Walk ya ta school."
"But you were too scared of Adam to pick me up from my apartment?"
"I didn't want ta get ya into any more trouble." Tess nodded and started walking. Don linked his fingers with hers.
"Adam invited us up to Boston for First Night," commented Tess.
"Really? What'd ya say?"
"That we'd have to see. Do you want to go? It's not a bad time."
Don shrugged. "We'll have ta see." They walked along in companionable silence. When they reached Hunter, Don slowed Tess down. He stopped at the base of the stairs. "Ya gonna be okay?" Tess took a deep breath and nodded slowly. Don pulled her into a hug and a quick kiss. "Call me if ya need ta. Anytime."
Tess fought the pricking in her throat and nodded. "I'll talk to you. Thank you."
"Not a problem, Sweetheart. Later." He gave her one more quick kiss and released her. Tess headed up into school. Don waited until she was inside before shoving his hands in his pockets and heading for his precinct.
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