A/N: Hi everyone! Just giving a small disclaimer that a few parts of this chapter are a little M-rated. Other than that, enjoy!

A Proposition—Part II

"So, Mom," started Zach, "Dad said we could talk about me getting my license once you got here. Now that you're here, can we?"

Alicia's wary gaze floated from her husband to her son.

"What about you getting your license do we need to discuss, exactly?"

"Dad said a few weeks ago I can try for my license on the fifteenth. Right, Dad?" He looked to Peter, receiving a mumbled, "Mm-hmm", for confirmation. Zach turned back to his mother. "The fifteenth is next week. Can I?"

Alicia looked to Peter seated at the other end of the dining table. He was focused on refilling his glass with wine, or so he pretended to be. She knew he felt her eyes on him and was purposely avoiding looking her way.

He was pouting; more than likely still upset about their moment in the kitchen a couple minutes ago.

Okay, he was obviously still upset.

Was he really going to drag this out in front of the kids?

"Peter?" He finally met her gaze. "We didn't talk about this."

"Must've slipped my mind with all the things I need to check with you on."

It was the causal way he said it. With just enough edge to not alarm the kids but nonetheless get under her skin and reaffirm their conversation after dinner probably wouldn't be a pleasant one.

She bit the inside of her cheek, deciding to let it go for now as she swallowed the comeback on the tip of her tongue while their gaze held steadfast across the table: his smoldering, hers defiant.

Resembling two soldiers gearing up for a duel.

Licking her lips, she rolled her eyes and turned back to her son.

"Zach, you don't have enough driving hours."

"I have most of them! I only need eleven more. Grandma offered to let me drive her around after school so I can get the rest quicker."

"Jackie?" She reached for her glass of wine.

"No, Grandma Veronica."

Alicia blinked rapidly, setting the glass down. "She did? When?"

"When she stayed with us last week." Zach looked between his parents, confused. "She didn't tell you?"

"No," said Alicia.

"Apparently she was supposed to talk to us and get the okay," chimed in Peter.

"She did make the offer, Mom," Grace added. "I was there."

With a sigh, Alicia folded her hands together and rested her head on her fisted palms for a second. This wasn't going as planned. When she walked through the front door, she'd expected to shed her courtroom battle clothes and have an uneventuful dinner with her family. Not walk into yet another lion's den.

"You can try next week, Zach," said Peter. "While you're here this weekend, you can drive so by the fifteenth you'll have your hours."

Alicia jolted upright. Was he serious?

"We haven't talked about this, Peter," she said sharply, because clearly it needed repeating.

"What more is there to talk about?" He nonchalantly wiped the corners of his mouth with a dinner cloth. "The closer he is to getting a license is better for us."

"Are you going to fight?" Grace mumbled at the same time her brother shouted in victory.

"Sweet!" said Zach.

"No sweet. No!" said Alicia through clenched teeth, her vehement gaze fixated on her husband. "We're still talking about it."

A corner of Peter's lip curled in a slight sneer; shaking his head, he grabbed a slice of pizza and took a bite.

"But Mom—"

"I'll let you know an answer tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay," Zach murmured, slumping back against the chair.

Practically devouring the remainder of wine in her glass in a single swig, Alicia set the stemware back onto the table, brushed stray tendrils of hair from her face and took a breath, trying to cling to the true purpose of their dinner tonight despite the last five-minute curveballs.

"Zach, Grace—there's something else we wanted to talk to you two about," she said, calmer.

The kids turned their attention to her while Peter leaned back in his chair and propped a hand on his thigh, clutching his drink in the other.

Alicia continued, "With everything that's gone on in the past few months—me and dad's separation, Zach, your party incident. And Grace, your school—"

"Mom that was so long ago," Grace blurted.

Alicia eyed her. "I know. I'm stating it as a reminder," she said curtly. "As I was saying, given everything that's happened, Dad and I were wondering if you two would be open to a family therapy session? Like our couples therapy."

Grace gulped hard and locked eyes with her brother. A lingering look between them that didn't go unnoticed.

"What was that?" asked Alicia, waving a finger between them.

"What?" said Zach.

"The look between you two. What's going on?"

"Nothing," he said coolly.

A little too cool for her liking.

Alicia studied him a second longer then looked to her daughter, who was uncharacteristically quiet this evening.

"Grace?"

"Nothing's going on, Mom," she said, eyeing her brother. "Why do we need a therapy session? We haven't done anything lately."

"Yes, I know," Alicia slowly answered, still thinking on what she saw pass between them. "But Dad and I thought it could be…a sort of check-in for our family. To make sure we're all on the same page."

She held her breath, expecting another outburst from them but instead received silence. Seeing Peter eyeing her over his glass, not offering a word, she flashed him an exasperated look. One that said he was free to join in at any time to take the weight of her doing all the heavy lifting.

He took heed and set his glass down, clearing his throat. "How do you both feel about us all living together again?" he asked.

Zach was first to respond. "Here?"

"Well, no," said Alicia. "Probably my apartment."

"Why not a house?" asked Grace.

"We'll take it into consideration," said Peter dryly, sitting up straighter. "But, your mom's apartment would be home for awhile."

"Dad if you move back in," started Grace, "that means you and Mom aren't going to divorce?"

Peter looked to his wife; she resembled a deer in headlights. Without a doubt, his facial expression probably showed he was just as caught off guard as her by the question.

"W-we were never planning to divorce, Grace," he said. "What made you think that?"

She shrugged. "That's what usually happened after my friend's parents separated."

Peter leaned forward slightly in the chair, looking at her head on. "That's unfortunate what happened to your friend's parents, but we're not divorcing."

"So when we're all back at Mom's apartment, that means you're officially back together?"

"Yes," Alicia answered.

She stared at her daughter, recalling she asked this same line of questioning when they had their talk the other week. She wondered what possible doubt she had that was preventing her from believing they were going to make it work. And the blanket of confusion now plastered across her innocent face, only puzzled Alicia more.

"What is it, Grace?" she asked.

Grace set her fork down, shifting her eyes back and forth between them. "What if Dad moves back in and it all goes bad again?"

Peter sighed heavily, reaching for her hand. "It won't. We're going to try really hard not to let that happen. Being in therapy has strengthened our marriage. We're solid now."

"You don't sound very convincing, Dad."

Peter's half-smile dropped in a nanosecond while Alicia's eyes widened for the second time in disbelief.

"Okay," she said slowly. "This is why we proposed to do a family session. If there are any feelings you two are harboring about me and Dad or us as a family, we can discuss it in a neutral territory."

Zach digested that bit of information before responding. "We can talk about anything in this...session?"

Alicia's eyes shot in his direction. "Yes."

"And we won't get in trouble?"

Her gaze narrowed. "Not yet," she said in a singsong voice.

He shrugged. "Honestly, Mom? I…I think it would be nice if you and Dad stayed together. That's all. You both seem happier with each other than when you're not."

Peter glanced at Alicia, both deciphering what that meant before they looked to their daughter.

"Grace?" said Peter.

She peered over at him, her brown eyes softening every inch of his heart.

"If we go, will we be fixed for good?"

"You think we're broken?" asked Alicia.

Grace shrugged. "We could be better."

For the third time since she walked into this apartment, words were lost on Alicia.

Peter smoothed a hand over his mouth, and then rested his elbows on the table. "So, the consensus is that you kids are on board?"

They glanced his way and gave a nod—from Zach—and a shrug—from Grace.

"Alright," he said. "Dr. Lewis hasn't followed up with me yet but once we have a date, I'll let you all know."

"Last question," said Zach. "If we go and everything's normal again, does that mean we can get a new house with a pool? And a dog?"

Both parents rolled their eyes as they proceeded to try and finish dinner, though most at the table had lost their appetite.

#

Peter armed the security system and turned off the lower level lights. He stood at the bottom of the staircase, studying its winding length for a second. Two out of three of his family members were probably upstairs sleeping right now. The single one he was positive was still awake, caused him to utter a quick prayer and grudgingly begin to head upstairs towards his bedroom as he reflected on the past couple of hours.

Dinner was tense. At least it started that way. And he was partly to blame.

He didn't mean to let his temper get the best of him, but he couldn't help it. At times, it felt as if their marriage was always in a fluctuating hot and cold zone, and he never knew when they swung from one end of the spectrum to the next.

There seemed to be so many conditions and parameters, according to his wife, that needed to be met before they reached a zone of stability. Even though he promised he'd be patient until they reached that safe place, he wondered if she was going to challenge that patience every step of the way.

After discussing the proposal of the four of them doing a counseling session, the tone for the rest of the evening was subdued. Very subdued. The kids willingly retired to their bedrooms for the night while Alicia went into the family room to finish up a few things for work. He thought she was still in there once he finished cleaning the kitchen, but when he rounded the corner, he found her files lying dormant on the coffee table and she nowhere to be found.

Which, he somewhat expected.

They had yet to discuss her pulling away and his jackass move over dinner. And knowing his wife, she was probably upstairs stewing and doing everything she could to purposely avoid them having that conversation.

He couldn't entirely blame her avoidance. He didn't want to fight with her tonight either. In all honesty, he didn't have the energy.

Pushing open his bedroom door, his curiosity was further peaked when he didn't readily see her anywhere in the room. His eyes swept towards the closed door of the ensuite bathroom. Noticing her bag lying open on the chair by his closet, he put two and two together.

She was getting ready for bed, hence, also—he assumed—finalizing a tactic for more avoidance.

Massaging the muscle at the base of his neck, he turned to close the door, his lingering interest on her whereabouts curbed by the sound of the bathroom door opening followed by her voice.

"Christ, Peter," Alicia shrieked, clutching her chest. "You scared me!"

Locking the door, he buried his hands in his pockets and journeyed towards the bed.

"Sorry. Thought you heard me come in."

"No. I just finished a shower."

He nodded, honing in on the robe she wore.

His black robe.

The garment hung loosely on her petite frame despite the fact that it looked as if she had it synched around her waist as tightly as possible. He was reminded of how, for some reason, she tended to always wear his robe instead of her own.

It started when they got their first apartment. She used to run around in his robe, especially during winter. Though, their faulty heating unit was partially the cause for that; half the time it was five to ten degrees colder in their apartment than outside. She reasoned his oversized robe was like the perfect blanket for her because not only did it keep her warm, but she always felt close to him.

After that, most of the time, she was just always wearing his robe. And he never questioned it.

"You always did make my robe look good," he said with a lilt in his voice, hoping to ease the chill hanging in the air. Start things off easy.

Alicia shyly smiled, unwrapping a towel from around her damp hair to shake it loose.

"Thank you for dinner tonight."

He half-shrugged and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, moving to sit on the edge of the bed. Tilting forward, he rested his elbows on his knees as he looked at her still standing by the doorway.

"So. Are we going to talk about it?"

Her gaze squinted as she waited for him to elaborate.

"It?" she asked when he didn't take the initiative to clarify.

"You stepping back from me before we talked to the kids."

Her mouth formed a silent 'ah', realizing they were going to get right into it. No need for more buffers.

"Mm…but not about you crossing me in front of the kids?"

Peter pressed his hands together and drew them up to his mouth, tapping his fingertips together for a few potted seconds before looking her way.

"Yes. That, too."

He watched her draw in a long breath, then without a word, dip back into the bathroom.

Peter nearly jumped from the bed to go after her, annoyance starting to pump through his veins until he saw her filling the doorway again, sans towel, switching off the bathroom light and then making her way towards him.

The fight in her seemed idle. That's what he somewhat gathered by the way she sauntered to his position. He wanted to take that as a good sign, but there was that fluctuating spectrum to consider…

She stood before him and smoothed her hands down his shoulders, encouraging him to relax. The subtle gesture saying she didn't want him as her enemy tonight.

He gazed up at her with questioning eyes, his rigid posture beginning to relax beneath her touch. She planted herself between his gapped legs, floating her hands upward to rest back on his shoulders.

"It's not that I didn't want to kiss you earlier," she gently began. "I just don't want the kids to misperceive things."

His head cocked to the side. "Or maybe I'm the one misperceiving things?"

"Peter, don't. Don't go there." She shook her head. "You know why."

"It's growing exhausting this constant need to understand why."

Closing her eyes, Alicia sighed and removed herself from between his legs to plop down next to him on the bed.

For a minute, they said nothing.

She crossed her arms and looked over at him.

He was hunched over again, head resting on his folded hands. No doubt trying to figure out how to avoid giving into the accustomed frustration so easily as was she. They were circling their usual square, the one that typically had a petty argument at its center and non-existent communication plus low blows on the outer ring; ready to pounce off whatever their tempers offered.

The way she saw it, there were really two options right now.

One: They could have at it. Point fingers to their hearts content. Let their tempers flare and get absolutely nowhere but with a prize of another ugly fight to add to their roster. The kids would probably overhear and question the reassurance they gave earlier that they weren't going to divorce. Thus, requiring an explanation she wasn't sure they would believe. So yeah, this option wasn't the most feasible but right now, it was the most predictable.

Two: Or, they just could just compromise. That was the adult thing to do, right? Calmly discuss sides, put forth the growth they've achieved from therapy to use, agree to disagree if needed, and…end it all with makeup sex. Makeup sex. (Truly, Alicia had been thinking about tonight since she talked to Peter earlier in the afternoon. She missed him…missed being with him.)

Given the late hour—it was two minutes past eleven—and the fact that she'd literally been arguing cases in court all day, the very last thing she wanted to do was have a final round with him.

And seeing that Peter was still irked to an extent, it looked like it would be solely up to her to make the decision and end the night as she hoped.

So, option two it is.

"I suppose now we should be trying Dr. Lewis' I-statement technique?" she said in a teasing manner, breaking the strained silence.

He chuckled, glancing sidelong at her. "I'd rather plain honesty."

At that, her tongue grew heavy. She stared ahead for a minute, weighing out the best way to respond.

"Grace thinks we need to be fixed. Our kids probably see us as—well, I honestly don't know how they see us. But I don't want to give them more mixed signals. Us having dinner together from time to time are enough."

"So us being…affectionate, will give them mixed signals?"

"Yes." When she saw his nose scrunch in scrutiny, she quickly explained, "They seem to equate seeing us…kiss…for example, as we're happy. That everything is back to normal."

"What's wrong with that? I'd say things are for the most part."

"But they're not completely. And they know that. Grace thinks we're still—" She stopped herself, remembering her daughter's words: "We could be better." Those four words shook her core, more than she anticipated. She brushed off the memory and tucked her hair behind her ears. "I just want to be as transparent with them as possible, Peter. That's all."

"Well I think them seeing us kiss…or, whatever, from time to time is a harmless transparency. Besides weren't you the one that said long ago we shouldn't hide how much we love each other in front of our kids?" He saw her mouth fall open, ready to spiel what he guessed a fiery retort. "But," he placed a hand on her thigh to calm her down," I get it. I know that you were going to say it's not quite the same, and you're right. I heard them tonight. They sounded a little…in limbo about where we are."

She nodded. "I know you probably think that I'm being impossible—"

"No. If I didn't screw up, we wouldn't be going through any of this right now. The extra measures may be frustrating but I get it. I'm trying to anyway." He flashed her a warm smile. "So, until we gain more clarity after a family session…sneaking around?" he asked, nudging her shoulder.

She grinned. "Keeps it exciting."

"Though, is it really sneaking around if they know you're staying here tonight?"

Her smile faltered. "You think they know? I didn't tell them."

He gave her an incredulous look. "You brought a bag…"

Her mouth fell open for a second, forgetting the minor detail. "That…it…"

"Uh huh," he said reaching for her hand. "Besides your oversight, I think we've reached the age where our kids are smarter than us anyway."

Laughing, she let him pull her back to stand between his legs. "That may be true."

She littered her fingers through his hair, lightly massaging his scalp as she stared down into his eyes. They didn't say anything; instead let the nonverbal conversation passing between their gazes fill in all the blanks.

It was quiet moments like these that reminded her of why she loved him. Of why she hadn't completly walked away. Despite the fact they may butt heads every now and then, at the end of the day, it always comes back to this.

Just two people, coming through the other side, loving each other the best way they knew how.

"Hey…" Peter said after a minute. He began to slowly lift the hem of the robe, biting his lips when his hands came in contact with her smooth upper things; she probably had nothing on beneath. "I love you," he whispered.

That was him also saying he was sorry. She knew it; heard it. She cupped his cheeks and bent at her waist, whispering she loved him against his lips before sealing their apology with a kiss.

"And I'm sorry about dinner," Peter said once they broke apart. "I didn't mean to disagree with you in front of the kids. I shouldn't have done that."

She swallowed a breath, almost forgetting how irritated she was at him earlier when it happened, but couldn't completely lose her cool because she was, to an extent, the reason for why he bit back in the moment.

"We talk first about everything concerning the kids going forward. No matter what."

He eagerly nodded. "Okay."

"But Peter, if you let him drive this weekend to get the rest of his hours and he passes his test next week, he's going to want a car."

"Only natural."

"You think we should get him a car so soon?"

"Tell you what. Let's see if he passes his test first, then we'll go from there."

"Alright," she said softly.

Resuming her scalp massage, she watched his eyes flutter and felt his hands on her thighs slow to almost a stop. For the first time tonight, she realized how beat he looked.

She palmed one of his cheeks, tenderly stroking his jaw as she whispered, "You look tired."

"Mm. Long day. Eventful day." Gazing up at her with hooded eyes, he wondered if now was the time to tell her about the specific details of today. A specific he had almost forgot he was purposefully avoiding as well.

"You did everything and took care of us tonight. Maybe now it's time for me to take care of you. Hmm?" She brushed the tip of her nose against his.

"I'd like that." He licked his lips. "But um…actually something happened today that I want to talk to you about first."

She straightened upright. "Okay." A rip of concern flashed across her eyes before they lit up. "Oh! I almost forgot. There's something I need to tell you, too."

The slight creases on his forehead deepened. "Alright. Go ahead."

"No, Peter, you said fir—"

"It's alright." He winked. "Ladies first."

His hands recommenced their gentle caress along the backs of her thighs, kneading and sweeping in both a relaxing and titillating speed. She blinked a few times, attempting to stabilize her focus.

"Well, it's about Grace. We had a talk last week."

"Yeah?" His eyes were half closed now, thoroughly enjoying the feel of her fingers sweeping through his hair. He leaned forward and planted an appreciative kiss on the strip of skin between her breasts.

"Our daughter is wondering about sex."

His hands paused and hooded eyes fully opened to stare up at her blankly.

"Did you just say our daughter and sex in the same sentence?"

Alicia stifled a laugh. "I did."

"How—why? Why?"

"Peter, she's only curious. That's all."

"Curiosity tends to lead to…" He blew out a haggard breath. "She's not thinking of having…sex…is she?" he gasped in horror.

"Oh no. At least not anytime soon."

"Honey." He drawled out the two syllable word adeptly conveying how her news piqued his stress levels. "That's my little girl. She shouldn't be thinking about that yet. She's too young."

"I know, but—"

"Did you tell her it's terrible? Maybe that'll erase her curiosity."

Alicia laughed. "I did not." She gently held his chin, peering into his torn eyes. "She's almost fifteen and filled with hormones. What do you think girls her age are doing these days, Peter?"

Neither said a word as they digested her answer.

Sure, they knew sex was on the forefront of most teenagers' minds. But not their kids. Sans a few recent hiccups, they were good kids. Responsible. Levelheaded. Focused on goals.

After all, isn't that what all parents thought?

"I'll lock her in her room if I have to," he eventually responded.

She laughed softly. "Yeah and that's going to go over well."

"You seem oddly calm talking about this," he noted.

"During our talk, I was on the verge of a panic attack. I've had time for the shock to settle."

His hands carried on their caress on her legs.

"It hasn't settled for me yet," he mumbled.

His mindless, feather light touch was unknowingly stoking a fire deep in her abdomen. A fire that was getting closer and closer to full on ablaze and having her want more than a caress on her thighs.

"Then let me take care of you and distract your mind with something else," she huskily whispered, leaning down to kiss him again.

Now also seemed like the prime time to start making up...

His arms curled around her back, holding her steady, prepared to flip her onto the bed she could tell. Reaching back to grab his hands, she leaned up, breaking their kiss.

"Oh, and Scott will be coming over for dinner soon," she said with a smirk before removing his hands from her body and gently pushing him back onto the bed. Before he could react, she quickly straddled him, her hands starting to undo his belt.

Peter raised himself up on his elbows. "What?"

Alicia nodded, throwing the accessory onto the floor, then began to unbutton and unzip his pants.

"Yes, we'll finally meet Mr. Scott."

She untucked his shirt and quickly started to undo the buttons.

Peter glanced down at her busy hands before looking back up into her playful face.

"The Scott?"

"Yes. The Scott."

Widening his dress shirt, she helped him tug it off to join his belt on the floor.

"I want to be there," he mumbled, slipping off his undershirt, leaving him clad in only his pants. "I need to be there."

"You will."

Gripping the back of his neck, she drew his mouth up to hers, kissing him greedily as her free hand slipped back into his pants.

Peter grasped the curve of her waist tighter when she seized him, feeling every nerve in his body come alive at her touch.

"Babe…" he moaned, trying to concentrate on the task at hand. "She's not thinking of having sex with him, is she?" he weakly asked against her lips.

"Peter." She pulled back and stared down into his eyes, her hand ramping up its speed. "Focus."

He looked down at his groin then met her flushed face. He kissed her before dipping his head down to her neck, trailing his lips along her skin to push one side of the robe from her naked shoulder—releasing a low moan when his suspicion was confirmed that only this robe covered her—and down her arm, dragging his open mouth along the exposed skin.

"Grace is too young for…this."

Alicia groaned, abruptly removing her hand and pushing him away. She sat upright on his lap and folded her arms, staring down at him albeit saying she was waiting for him to get it all off his chest.

"Well," Peter puffed out a breath, "she is," he stressed. "She's too young. If that boy, Scott, tries anything with her—"

"You'll have him castrated I'm sure."

"I wasn't going to say castrated, but…what kind of man do you think I am?" he said, trying to fight a smirk.

"One that will do whatever it takes, no matter the extreme, to protect his family. Especially his daughter when it comes to boys."

"Damn right."

"So is that all or is there more you need to share on this topic right now?"

Drinking in the sight of her chest barely covered, plumped lips and cheeks flushed a rosy tint, he grinned as he leaned up and hugged her close, thinking she never looked more beautiful.

"That's all for right now." He nipped her lips. "Thank you for making the time counselor…"

She gave him another kiss. "Good. Now, let's agree to talk more about that and your thing after we have sex. Deal?"

He smiled, loving when she was overcome with desire. "Deal."

She leaned up from him slightly, signaling with her hand for him to maneuver his trousers and boxers off. In a matter of seconds, he was bared and ready.

"But you should have told me after," he squeezed out as he flopped back onto the bed, trying to focus all his attention to this placid groin. "That's my little girl."

He looked up at her with heavy eyes as she untied the knot of his robe, baring herself, leading him to momentarily forget about the piece of information he was still struggling to digest.

He could tell by the gleam in her eyes that this move was intentional. She knew he'd become completely distracted.

"I love it when you stay over," he whispered, biting his lower lip as he pulled her down to lay flush atop him. He snuck a hand beneath the robe still draped on her frame to smooth down the curve of her spine, memorizing every inch of creamy skin.

Alicia smiled, thankful that she finally had him right where she wanted.

"Honey, don't worry. She's smart," she said, trying to mask her own fears with a fragment of confidence fueled by lust. She braced her hands on either side of his head. "And we can both rest assured she won't be doing this anytime soon."

Reaching between them, she sank down onto his member in one breath. Peter let loose a deep-seated moan, missing not a beat to enlist his palms to aid her scintillating tempo.

"Okay?" she hotly whispered into his mouth.

"She better not," he griped.

Alicia grabbed his hands and pinned them to the bed, taking complete control and making him forget about anything other than her.