A few days later, New York City
"Elizabeth? This is Don Leonard."
"Hi, Don. How is your trip?"
"It's been wonderful."
"That's good." Elizabeth waited a moment but Don was quiet. "Don?"
"Yes, I have a question for you."
"Ok."
"Um, I am standing here in front of a counter full of engagement rings and I have narrowed it down to three."
"Engagement rings, huh?" Elizabeth smiled.
"Yes. If I send you pictures of them, can you give me your opinion?"
"I can try, but I honestly think you know which one is the one she would want."
"I'm second guessing myself here. I could use another opinion."
"Ok, send them over." Elizabeth gasped at all three pictures. They were gorgeous but there was only one she could see her mom wearing. "Don, those are amazing but I think number three. It looks like her."
"That's what I was thinking too."
He hesitated again. "Don?"
"Um, yes. There's something else."
"What's that?"
"I don't want you to think that I'm trying to take your father's place and from what Gracie told me, he was an amazing man. But, I love her and I'll take care of her, I promise you."
"I know you will and I know you aren't trying to take my father's place."
"That's good. I guess what I want to say is…I would love to have your blessing, Elizabeth. I know it's not necessary but it would mean a lot if I knew this was ok with you."
"It is, Don. I know that she will be happy so I'm happy."
"That's great. Thank you so much!"
"Thank you, Don. You've really helped her."
"She's helped me too."
….
That night...
Elizabeth lay on her side, watching Jack doze, flat on his back, arms relaxed by his side. She loved the way his lips opened slightly as he rested, tempting her. She reached out to touch them with her index finger, but he must have known what she was going to do because his eyes opened and he smiled.
"What are you doing?" he asked quietly.
"Nothing."
"You weren't watching me?"
"Ok, maybe I was. You're just so….I mean, I just wanted…"
"What?" He rolled onto his side so he was facing her. "What did you want?"
"Your lips, hon. They're so…I just wanted to touch them." He lifted her hand, bringing her fingertips to his lips.
"Like this?" He kissed them and searched her eyes, trailing his kisses from her fingers to her palm, down to her wrist.
"Mmhm," she nodded, feeling loved with every gentle caress of his lips. He moved slowly up her arm to her shoulder, moving the thin strap of her nightgown and trailing his lips where it had been.
"And this?" He was now at her collarbone and goosebumps broke out causing her to shiver. He lifted his head and smiled, causing a completely involuntary giggle to pop out of her mouth. He slowly kissed her ear and then her jaw, finally meeting her mouth with his.
"Mama?" Brennan called through the door.
"I'm sorry, Jack. Hold that thought," Elizabeth forced herself away from Jack and went to unlock the door. "Yes, baby?"
"I don't feel good." She felt his head.
"You do feel hot."
"My head hurts."
"What's wrong?" Jack asked.
"I think Bren is coming down with something." She picked him up and took him to the living room and put him on the couch, covering him with a blanket. Then she headed to their bathroom and ran cold water over a wash cloth and grabbed a thermometer.
"Here, baby." She laid the cool cloth over his head. "Open up," she said, slipping the thermometer under his tongue. It wasn't too high, only 100 degrees, but enough to make him feel yucky.
She got up to get him a glass of water and then laid down next to him.
…
The next morning…
She woke up to him coughing. "Bren?" She sat up and gave him a sip of water. His head still felt hot and his cheeks were flushed.
"Mama?" he mumbled, whining a bit.
"Shh, baby. Sleep. It will help you feel better."
Elizabeth got up and decided to get dressed, grateful she wasn't needed at the store until noon. When she walked in the bedroom, the bed was empty. That was normal. Jack usually got up before she did.
She walked in to a steamy bathroom and Jack shaving at the sink. "Hey, babe."
"Hey, how's Bren?"
"He has a fever and his head hurts. Will you be able to watch him this afternoon?"
"Of course."
"Thank you."
He patted his face with a towel and then added aftershave. "Now, I have a question," he said, watching her get through her own morning routine.
"What's that?"
"How long?"
"How long what?" She tied her hair back in a ponytail so she could brush her teeth without getting toothpaste in her hair.
"How long am I supposed to hold that thought?" He stepped up behind her, his hands on her hips. He raised his eyebrows at her in the mirror.
"Um, well, I'm not sure. I need to take care of Bren this morning and you need to make breakfast, right?"
"Aren't the boys still asleep?" he wondered, spinning her around.
"As far as I know, but probably not for long."
"So we need to make the best use of our time? I agree." He scooped her up and carried her out of the bathroom, placing her on the bed.
"Mama!" Brennan called, bursting in the door. "Mama, look. I have spots." He pointed at his chest and belly, a scared look on his face.
Elizabeth sat up and pulled him closer to her. "Uh oh."
"What is it?" Jack wondered, peering over her shoulder.
"I'm not sure, but I think its chicken pox."
A few hours later, Elizabeth took him to the pediatrician and was ushered in so he wouldn't get any children in the waiting room sick.
Dr. Shepherd listened to his chest and asked lots of questions and then checked out his spots. "Yeah, buddy. You have chicken pox."
"But I didn't have chicken," he whined.
Dr. Shepherd and Elizabeth smiled. "That's just what they're called, baby. You don't get them from chicken," Elizabeth assured him.
"Ok, so this is very contagious. Have you had them, Mrs. Thornton?"
"Yes, but I'm not sure about his step-brother or step-father."
"Check with them, but also if he's played with any other kids in the last week or so, let their parents know. Try to keep him from scratching when they start to itch. Scratching can cause scarring and they can get infected too. Oatmeal baths can ease it a bit and calamine lotion has been known to help. Give him children's Tylenol as needed."
"How long before he gets well?"
"It can take a few weeks. He will probably just feel miserable for awhile. Let me know if his fever gets higher than 102, ok?"
"Yes, I will. Thank you."
"You're welcome. Take care, Brennan." He handed him a lollipop and smiled.
…
Elizabeth looked in the rearview mirror. Brennan was sucking on his lollipop with his eyes closed. The poor kid. She remembered very little about her own case of chicken pox. She did remember her and both her sisters had them at the same time and her chin itched. That was it.
"Mama?"
"Yeah, baby?"
"I wanna go home."
"That's where we are going. We will be there in about ten minutes."
She pushed the bluetooth button on her dash and called Joe's mother.
"Hello?"
"Fran? This is Elizabeth Thornton."
"Hi, Elizabeth."
"Hey, is Joe feeling ok?"
"No. He's got the chicken pox. I was going to call you in a few minutes."
"Bren has them too and I'm guessing Sawyer will soon as well."
"Ok, well, I guess it's good they get them now. They can be much worse as an adult."
That made Elizabeth worry about Jack. She had no idea if he had ever had them.
She pulled into the garage a few moments later. Brennan had fallen asleep in the last few minutes so she picked up the lollipop from the floor where it had fallen and unbuckled him.
"Hey, what did the doctor say?" Jack asked.
"Chicken pox. Have you had them, Jack? If not, you can't be near him. It's worse with adults."
"Hon, don't worry. I had them when I was Brennan's age."
"Oh good." She felt a huge amount of relief.
"Sawyer, on the other hand…"
"Yeah. I guess there's no way to keep him from getting them. They sleep in the same room, use the same bathroom. They both played with Joe and he has them."
She stepped aside and let Jack get Brennan from the car.
"Daddy?" he mumbled into Jack's shoulder.
"Shhh, buddy. Go back to sleep, I got you."
Jack smiled and kissed Elizabeth. "I love you, have a good day at work."
"I wish I didn't need to leave him. I always take care of him when he's sick."
"Teamwork, hon."
"Yeah. Um, the doc said to call him if his temp goes above 102 and give him Children's tylenol if he needs it."
"Don't worry. I'll call you if he needs you."
She nodded and got back in her SUV. She waved as she drove away, knowing she'd be distracted the rest of the day.
Jack carried Bren to his room and grabbed his pillow and then took him back out to the living room to lay on the couch.
"Daddy!"
"Bud, I'm right here."
"I'm so hot," he whimpered. Jack touched his forehead and whistled.
"Yeah, bud. I'm gonna get you some tylenol. I'll be right back."
He grabbed the medicine and some cool water and checked the dosage and the time. Noon. "Open up, Bren. This will help you feel better." He held the spoon to his lips and made sure the whole amount went into his mouth.
"Yuck." Bren coughed and scrunched his face.
"Here, take a few sips of water."
Sawyer came in the house with Dash. "Dad? Is Bren ok?"
"He has chicken pox, bud."
"What's that?"
"A sickness that a lot of little kids get. You get a fever and little spots that itch and sometimes hurt. Basically you feel crummy for awhile."
"Aw man. He will be ok, right?"
"Yeah. We just need to let him rest."
"Will he be better in time to go to Grandpa Ned's house?"
"Its just you and me going there, Sawyer."
"But why? He's my brother."
"Yes, but Grandpa Ned isn't his Grandpa. He is just yours."
"But Brennan wants to meet him. We want to go fishing with him and play baseball and go to the beach."
Jack had dropped the ball in keeping Ned in the loop about the circumstances. In their weekly talks, he knew Sawyer had told him all about Bren and Elizabeth but Jack himself hadn't spoken to him about it. He wasn't sure how he would feel about spending time with Brennan.
"I'll talk to Grandpa about it, ok? I can't promise anything."
…
Elizabeth stopped at the grocery store on her way home and grabbed oatmeal and calamine and popsicles and ice cream. If the kids had to be sick, she would do as much as she could to help them feel better.
When she finally walked in the door, the house was quiet. She honestly didn't think it was possible to be that quiet with two six year olds and a puppy but it was like a library in there.
She found Jack in the kitchen. "Hey," she whispered.
"Hey. Why are you whispering?"
"Its so quiet. I felt like I needed to. Where are the boys?"
"On the couch."
"Both of them?"
"Yeah. Go look." She walked into the living room and found Brennan asleep, a cool rag on his forehead. Sawyer was laying next to him watching a movie on the ipad, earbuds in his ears.
"Hi, sweetie," she said, waving.
"Hi, Mom." He pulled his earbuds out.
"How are you feeling, Sawyer?"
"I'm ok. Brennan's sick."
"I know. Let me know if you start feeling yucky, ok?"
He nodded and put his earbuds back in.
Jack finished the chicken noodle soup and grilled cheese sandwiches he made for dinner and put some in a bowl for Brennan and brought the rest to the table.
Elizabeth noticed Jack was a little quieter than usual during dinner but decided to talk with him later.
Brennan took a few spoons full of soup and a bite of his sandwich and then closed his eyes again. "I'm done, Mom."
"Ok, sweetie. We can warm it up later if you get hungry."
Elizabeth did the dishes while Jack headed to his office down the hall. After dishes she checked on the boys who were both watching a movie now, huddled together on the couch.
She kissed their foreheads, Sawyer's still cool and Brennan's hot. She wondered when he had had medicine last so she went to find Jack.
"Honey?"
Jack was sitting in the dark in his office, staring at Katie's watercolor. "Three years last week," he muttered as she stood next to his chair. "I forgot. I didn't call him, Elizabeth. I messed up."
"Call him now."
"I don't know what to say. And Sawyer wants Bren to come with us next month to Atlanta and I don't know how to ask him if that's ok. What if he isn't ok with it? I mean, he's my son now, I adopted him, so I could just take him on our visit and see what happens but I don't think that would be fair."
She put her hand on his shoulder. "I need to tell you something." He turned his head and looked up at her as she sat on his desk. "Monday when Sawyer called him, I talked to him too. It wasn't my intent to do that but Sawyer handed me the phone so I thought I would say hello."
"You talked to Ned?"
"Not for very long. I just introduced myself. He is a very pleasant man and I assume Katie was just as kind. Anyway, I don't think he would mind if Brennan went but I don't want him to get in the way of your family thing. He's not Brennan's Grandpa so he doesn't need to go." Jack was silent for a few moments. "Are you angry?"
"No. Of course not. Ned needs to meet you, be comfortable talking to you. I guess I need to call him. Do you mind staying?"
She offered her hand to hold as he pushed a few buttons on his phone.
"Hi, Ned. Its Jack."