First family

April 20th

It had been a little over 6 months since they'd first seen each other and they'd been together for almost half a year now. They were going strong, but the last few months their connection had – if possible even – intensified. There was something between Henry and Elizabeth that was undeniable. Even though neither one of them had pronounced it out loud, a love radiated from them that was obvious to everyone who got to spend time with the happy couple. They didn't need anyone else to be happy; so it seemed. They never got bored when they spent time at Henry's. When they were out with friends, they clung to each other in some way, either by holding hands, putting their hands over each other's shoulders or stealing kisses occasionally. When they were in crowded place, they never wandered far without knowing where the other was and they always, always, found their way back to one another, no matter how crowded or loud it got.

Henry had thought about spending Easter break with his family in Pittsburgh and he really wanted to ask Elizabeth to join him. Yet, he was afraid if she was up for it. When they were in bed, tangled up in each other's arms that night, he was the first one to speak.

"Babe," he whispered while stroking her upper arm with his index finger.

"Hmm," she shifted as she held onto his torso, snuggling even closer towards him.

"You know I said I was going to spend Easter at home," Henry looked up at the ceiling, waiting on her response.

"Uhu," she was drawing slow circles around Henry's nipple and pressed a kiss to his chest.

Henry's hand drew lower down her back, stroking it gently with his fingers. "I wanted to ask you if you might want to join me?"

Elizabeth stopped making her circular movements and lifted her head. "You want me to meet your family?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well," he contemplated, "yeah. I want them to get to know you because we've been together for almost six months now and my mom is really desperate to meet you."

Elizabeth just stared at him.

"Well?" he asked.

"Of course, I want to meet your family. I want to meet the makers of my boyfriend and the siblings that shaped him into you."

"Oh," Henry was pleasantly surprised. "I didn't know you were so eager to meet them."

"Well, yeah, I just didn't know you were up for it. I figured you'd ask me when you're ready and now you obviously are." She kissed his lips.

"I must warn you though, my dad and my sister can be a real pain in the ass," Henry warned her.

"Think I can't handle them?"

"Oh, I think you can handle just about anything, babe," he said with pride and seduction in his voice. "You'll have my dad in your pocket with your knowledge of ball games. Maureen, on the other hand, she's tough but maybe the pregnancy hormones will make things easier for you."

"What about your mom?"

"She's going to love you! I already told her you love to eat, so she's probably going to stuff you with food which is sort of my mom's favourite thing to do. Lots and lots of food."

"Great! So, when are we leaving?

"Well, Easter is on the 26th, 6 days from today."

"Are we going back and forth in one day?" Elizabeth sat up.

"Do you want to stay longer?" Henry didn't know what he was hearing.

"It just seems silly to drive all the way up there, meet and eat, and then come straight back."

"I'll ask my mom if we can come late on Friday then, that way we can spend the weekend in Pittsburgh and drive back on Monday. What do you say?"

"Sounds really good! That way I can enjoy your mother's cooking skills for three days straight," she quipped while she poked Henry's chest.

"It's always about the food, isn't it?" Henry asked as he sat up and slung his arm around his girlfriend's shoulder.

"Always," she deadpanned.

April 24th

"So, your dad's name is Patrick, your mom's name is Barbara, and then there's Maureen, Shane and …," Elizabeth wondered while looking at Henry who was driving.

"Erin," Henry helped.

"Erin, right!" Elizabeth smacked her forehead. She turned and looked out of the window, seeing the scenery flow by.

"Nervous, babe?" Henry asked her lightly.

"Actually, I am," Elizabeth looked down at her hands now. "I mean, I haven't had to deal with parents in quite some time. And now, I'm going to spend three nights at your parents' place."

Henry couldn't help but laugh. "Baby, I'm there with you. It will be fine! I promise." He put his hand on top of hers and squeezed it.

"Will they allow us we share a room, you think?" Elizabeth wondered out loud.

"I'm sure they'll let you sleep with me, in my room. Don't worry. We'll have plenty of privacy." He cast her a seductive smile.

"Henry, I'm not going to have sex with you at your parents'."

"No sex for three days?" he raised his eyebrows.

"Well, I don't want them to overhear us or god forbid walk in on us," Elizabeth's cheeks turned rosy.

"We'll see," Henry smirked.

"What?" Elizabeth asked clueless.

"I just don't think either one of us can go without sex when we're in my very narrow, yet very squeaky single bed."

"Maybe I should ask your mom if I could sleep on the couch. Or in one of your sisters' room," she suggested.

"You wouldn't."

Elizabeth shrugged.

"I can be quiet, you know," Henry emphasized the personal pronoun at the beginning of his sentence.

"Me too, you know, seems like your bed will be the problem," Elizabeth joked back.

"Well, there's always the floor, but I still doubt you'll be able to be quiet," he answered.

"We'll just have to test that, won't we?" she turned her attention back to the fields outside.

"So, we're having sex then? I knew it! I knew you couldn't go without sex for three days."

Elizabeth turned around immediately with her mouth wide opened, shock apparent on her face. "Really, Henry, you think I can't go three days without having sex with you?"

"Exactly!"

"You're on! No sex for three days."

"Uhu!" he smiled. Both of them staring straight in front of them, eyes fixed on the road and the long weekend that lay ahead of them.

An hour and a half later, Henry stopped the car in front of a nice brownstone home in the suburbs of Pittsburgh.

"Baby," he put his hand on her thigh and kissed her awake. Elizabeth slowly opened her eyes. "We're here." He lingered close to her until she turned to him fully, so he could place another kiss to her lips. "You ready?"

Elizabeth took a deep breath and braced herself for what was to come. "Ready as I'll ever be, I guess. Let's go." She kissed Henry on the lips and slid her tongue against his lips for the shortest moment. Before Henry could reciprocate, Elizabeth had already opened her door and got out of the car. As she walked in front of the car, she gestured towards Henry what was taking him so long. The only thing he could think of was how he was going to withstand his girlfriend for three days. Because, if anything, he was not going to be the one who was going to cave first.

Waiting hand in hand on the front door steps, Barbara opened the door with the widest smile on her face. Instead of letting them step inside, she stepped out and put her arms around Elizabeth and hugged her tightly. Henry couldn't help but smile his teeth out as he saw the look of surprise on Elizabeth's face. "Finally, you must be Elizabeth! Henry cannot stop talking about you. It's nice to see a face to the name. Come on in, dear. Welcome with the McCords. I want to know everything there is to know. But first, food."

Henry mouthed 'TOLD YA' and Elizabeth, even though she hadn't had the chance to talk yet, was without a doubt excited.

"Son," was heard from inside the living room. Pat was in his chair reading the newspaper, looking up just to acknowledge the pair.

"Dad," he spoke with a hitch in his voice, "I would like you to meet Elizabeth. Elizabeth, this is my dad Patrick."

Elizabeth stepped into the living room area and held out her hand for Patrick to shake it.

The grey man eyed her and let the paper slip out of his right hand to shake her hand. "Call me Pat, no one calls me Patrick anyway," casting Henry a demeaning glance.

"Okay, nice to meet you Pat. The Steelers are doing great so far this season, don't you think?" Elizabeth spoke as she noticed Pat was reading an article about them in the sports section.

Patrick looked up towards the young blonde in awe.

"I don't think they'd be able to hold onto Merriweather much longer," she stated.

Patrick's mouth fell open. "I swear, I did not prep her, dad. Elizabeth's a football fan. Who's Merriweather by the way?"

Pat and Elizabeth rolled their eyes at Henry's comment and the ice was broken.

"Shane, Erin, get down here! Your brother and Elizabeth are here!" Barbara shouted as she brought the food out of the kitchen and placed it on the dining table.

"Wow, that smells great. Anything I can do to help?"

"Sure, come on, you AND Henry can help me set the rest of the table. We gotta teach these men the chores, right."

While they followed Barbara into the kitchen, Henry whispered in Elizabeth's ear: "They like you more than me, I swear."

"Henry actually does a lot of chores back in Virginia, I'm the one lacking in that department actually."

"Oh, does he? Well, looks like I've raised him well then," she handed Henry the plates. She took out enough cutleries and handed them to Elizabeth. "Us women should not have to do everything, right."

"Right," Elizabeth answered and smiled before following Barbara into the dining room.

Henry just smiled, glad his mother and his girl were getting along.

Dinner was going smoothly. Barbara and Pat were on both sides at the head of the table; Shane and Erin were seated next to each other opposite Henry and Elizabeth.

"Will Maureen be joining us?" Henry asked.

"She's playing house with Tom," Shane joked. "Now that she's pregnant, she tries to be the perfect housewife."

Erin interjected: "I'm sure Tom would rather be eating here though. I swear, Maureen's cooking is the worst."

"Wow! This is delicious," Elizabeth spoke after her first bite.

"Remind me to give you the recipe before you guys head back to Virginia, okay?"

Elizabeth and Henry looked at each other, Elizabeth's face turned a bit red. But Henry squeezed her knee.

"Turns out, Elizabeth and Maureen have something in common. She is not that great with a cooker or a stove, not even with a recipe involved," Elizabeth's face turned even more red as Henry admitted her lack of cooking skills. "But, she is a pro in deciding when the pasta is ready and her sandwiches are to die for."

She smiled at Henry. "Well, I just never had to prepare dinner or help around the household when growing up but Henry is a great help and I do try to learn."

"That's all that matters, dear," Barbara said and squeezed Elizabeth's arm. "Don't worry about any of it."

Elizabeth appreciated the gesture but still felt somewhat bad about the fact that she was not the typical housewife and she couldn't help but wonder if that at one point in their relationship would bother Henry.

After dinner, Elizabeth decided to help doing the dishes with Barbara and Erin while the men brought in some wood for the still rather chilly evenings, even if it was almost May.

"Thank you for letting me stay here with you and your family, Barbara."

"Don't thank me, sweetie. If Henry keeps you in high regard as he obviously does, and which – for the record – I hope he keeps on doing, then you'll always have a place here with our family."

Elizabeth nodded thankfully.

"You're the first girl he brings home. For a moment there, we thought he might be gay. My friends said that would be a total shame."

"What Erin is trying to say, Elizabeth, is that we're all glad he's finally found someone. Someone who he feels comfortable with, comfortable enough to bring home."

"He hasn't had many girlfriends?" Elizabeth wondered.

"Well, he never seemed interested in girls. All girls would be interested in him though. But I've never seen him like this before. The way he looks at you says it all."

Elizabeth blushed.

Just then, Henry and his brother walked back in. He stood behind Elizabeth and wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his head on her shoulder. "What are you girls talking about?" he asked.

"You!" Erin said. "And the fact that you're so popular with the ladies."

It was Henry's turn now to blush.

"Okay, all done," Barbara cheered as she folded the towel and hung it on the edge of the chair. "Thank you, ladies, for helping me out."

"Who wants to play Scrabble?" Erin asked.

Shane, Henry and Elizabeth joined the game while Barbara continued some of her knitting work and Pat watched television. When it was near 11 pm, Barbara yawned.

"Elizabeth, I assume you will be sleeping in Henry's room? Let me just grab some extra pillows and an extra blanket for you, so you'll be comfortable in his room. I'll put it in your room, Henry. Make sure she's comfortable!"

"I will, mom," Henry said at the same time as his girlfriend spoke. "Oh, whatever works for you guys, really. If you'd rather I sleep on the couch or anywhere, I don't mind," Elizabeth affirmed.

"Don't be silly. You're both adults. I'm sure you guys know what you're doing. And although you're still quite young, I wouldn't mind another grandchild coming."

Henry and Elizabeth both stared at Barbara with shocked expressions.

"I'm kidding, kids."

Nevertheless, the blush did not disappear quickly. It even got Elizabeth off her game for a minute. It didn't go unnoticed by Henry but she won again anyway, for the third time that night.

Shane gave up after that and decided to head out to get a couple of beers in town with friends. Elizabeth suggested that if Henry wanted to join him he shouldn't feel obliged to stay with her. Henry, of course, wanted to stay with Elizabeth. A bit later Erin went to her room to read, leaving Henry and Elizabeth alone in the living room with Patrick.

Henry squeezed Elizabeth's hand underneath the table and looked at her, asking her silently if she wanted to go to bed too. She nodded. "Just one more game, just you and me, buster."

"You're on!" Henry challenged her.

It was near midnight when Henry's dad turned off the TV and bid the young couple goodnight. "G'night, Pat," Elizabeth said.

"Your dad isn't that bad," Elizabeth tried to get an answer from Henry once Pat had retreated upstairs.

"This is not how he usually is. He's acted okay this evening; just wait until his accomplice arrives on Sunday. Maureen and my dad, they are like two peas in a pod."

"Well, I thought he was nice; he doesn't say much but he's not a bad guy."

"It's not that he's a bad guy. It's just that… He's not like a father to me. I mean, if we had kids, I would be a totally different father than he is. I would be interested in our kids' lives and the things they do, no matter what they do." Henry meant what he said but he also knew that the topic of kids would make Elizabeth a bit uncomfortable. If he wanted to win, now was the time.

"Kids," Elizabeth repeated.

"Uhu," Henry just acted like it was the most normal thing to discuss.

"How many kids do you want?"

"At least two, five tops."

"Five?"

"Yeah, a large raucous family."

"Wow," Elizabeth huffed.

"You?" Henry asked.

"Well, one for starters. We'll see how I feel after I've pushed that first one out."

Henry laughed. "I'm sure you'll do great, babe."

"Okay, enough with the baby talk," Elizabeth laughed. "I'm not ready for that yet, and it's a bit scary to talk about it. So scary I might not even want to have," she mouthed SEX "in the next year."

"That, we can't have," Henry confirmed.

Elizabeth of course won their Scrabble duel after her comment about "no sex for a year" and decided Henry could take his revenge tomorrow or so and that it was time for bed.

Henry took her hand and led her upstairs into the dimly lit hallway. "This is my mom and dad's room. This is Erin's but she's probably already asleep. Shane's out, he sleeps in this room. And the end of the hall, that's mine. And the bathroom is the second door to your right. Maureen's room is next to mine."

After they'd brushed their teeth in the bathroom, Elizabeth looked around and held Henry's hand with both her hands as he opened his bedroom door and turned on the lights.

"TADA," Henry gestured. "This is it."

Elizabeth let her eyes scan the room. "It's nice. Orderly. Just like your place. And more books."

"I just don't have enough room in my apartment to stack all of them."

"So," Elizabeth started. "How are we going to do this?"

Henry took off his sweater and pants. Clad in his boxers and T-shirt, he crawled into his single bed. Already it made a cracking sound. "Come here, babe," he gestured for her to come lie next to him. "It'll be cosy."

"Can I borrow a PJ of yours?" she asked as she took off her pants first.

"I'll keep you warm."

"Henry, I'm serious about this."

"So am I."

"Fine," she took off her sweater too. She left on her tank top but undid her bra and pulled it out from underneath.

Henry swallowed as she stood there. She crawled in next to him. They both lay on their sides facing each other. Henry engulfed her into his warm embrace.

"Goodnight, babe," he whispered as he put a soft kiss to her forehead.

"Night," she sighed and snuggled closer to his warm body.

The next morning, Elizabeth was woken by Henry's soft kisses on her cheek that were travelling closer to her lips.

"Hmmm," she murmured.

"Good morning babe!" Henry whispered as he continued placing soft kisses to her face as he hovered over her.

"Mornin'," she responded with a sleepy voice. "What time is it?" Elizabeth asked turning her head towards Henry's bedside table to have a look at the alarm clock.

"What the heck?! Henry, it's 6.30." She put her hands on his shoulders.

"I know!" He went lower and put soft kisses on her chest as his hands travelled farther south.

"Henry," she sighed. "Don't!" She turned on her other side a bit more and snuck lower underneath the covers.

He peeked up. "Don't, because you're afraid we'd make ourselves heard or don't, because you don't want to."

"Because I don't want to…." She paused. Her voice was still thick with sleep. Henry's face fell. "Be heard," she finished her sentence and smirked.

"We can be quiet. Very quiet."

"I know," she turned around again and pecked his sleeps. "Let's just sleep for a bit longer. I'm not nearly ready to get up yet."

Henry sighed. "Who said anything about getting up?"

Elizabeth crept closer to him and nestled underneath his chin and against his chest. "Ssst," she wrapped her arms around his warm body.

Henry smiled and took his girlfriend in his arms and closed his eyes again, trying to get passed his need for Elizabeth.

It was after 9.30 am when Elizabeth heard muffled noises coming from downstairs. She was still in Henry's arms and opened one eye to look at the alarm clock she had looked at earlier that morning.

"Henry," she poked him, "Henry, baby, wake up!"

"What?" he growled and turned his face away from her.

"It's almost 10."

"So?"

"What will your parents say?"

"They're probably just out of bed themselves, seriously babe, go back to sleep." Henry put his arm around Elizabeth and pulled her closer again.

Elizabeth, on the other hand, was ready to start the day and head downstairs. She kissed Henry's cheek before she put on her pants and sweater and headed for the bathroom and then down the stairs.

"Hi," she peeked her head into the kitchen.

"Morning, dear, you're up early," Henry's mom said as she poured herself a hot cup of coffee.

Elizabeth thought she was being sarcastic. "I'm sorry, I rarely sleep in."

"I wasn't joking, love. The other ones won't be up before noon." Barbara lifted the coffee pot to ask if Elizabeth also wanted a cup.

"Oh," Elizabeth uttered and smiled, gladly accepting the full cup of coffee.

"So, what are the plans for today?" Elizabeth asked.

"Well, we're going to have breakfast first," she handed Elizabeth a bowl and took one for herself as well. "Pat went to fix a fence at Maureen's. I told him to do it today so I can start with the preparations for Easter dinner tomorrow. If he's here, he just keeps on touching and stealing food."

"Can I help with something? I mean, nothing too important though."

"Are you sure; maybe Henry has something planned for the both of you."

"He didn't mention it, besides he's not up yet. So I'd be glad to help you until he's up."

"Okay," Barbara gave her a genuine smile. "Do you want to cut the vegetables? First, the onions, then all the rest. I'll start the cooking then."

"Sure," Elizabeth gladly accepted. Slicing vegetables was something she could definitely handle.

"Did you sleep well?" Barbara asked.

"Yeah, like a baby."

"Bed not too small for the both of you?" There was a funny ring to Barbara's voice as she cleared the breakfast bowls off the table.

Elizabeth blushed.

"So, Maureen, when am I going to meet her?" Elizabeth asked desperate to change the awkward subject.

"She and Tom will come over tomorrow morning. We'll do brunch together and then the kids will probably go outside while Pat takes a nap and I prepare the rest of dinner."

"I really admire your taking-care-of-your-family-skills."

"Don't worry, once you start your own little family, you'll find it's no trouble at all."

Elizabeth frowned.

"Do you want kids, Elizabeth?"

"Uhm, yeah, I think I do. Not now, of course, but maybe someday. Henry wants five, he says."

"Henry's a family guy. He says the others drive him crazy sometimes – that's why he wanted to go away to college – but he couldn't live without them."

"Erin and Shane are really nice," Elizabeth stated.

"They are. And they are not the cats to dog Henry. Just wait till Maureen gets here."

"Actually, Henry warned me about her," the onions were chopped and Elizabeth handed the plate to Barbara.

"Well, Maureen can be a bit feisty sometimes, but she's a soft bun on the inside. But if she misbehaves, I'll tell her to keep her thoughts to herself. Don't you worry about her!"

Elizabeth started on the mushrooms next. "Thanks!"

"How many do you want?"

"Excuse me," Elizabeth stopped chopping.

"Kids?" Barbara asked while stirring.

"Oh, euhm, well, I haven't given it much thought yet. Henry and I are still quite new. But I know I don't want five."

"I doubt Henry will want five too," Barbara laughed.

Elizabeth joined her and both women kept on talking and cooking until around noon.

"Glad you finally decided to get up," Barbara said as Henry came into the kitchen. His hair still a mess.

"Where's Elizabeth?" Henry asked.

"She offered to go to the bakery and place the order for the croissants and bagels for tomorrow morning," Barbara said.

"When did she leave?" Henry looked at the clock above the door.

"Half an hour ago. She'll be right back."

"Good," Henry said, the relief apparent in his voice.

"Had a rough night?" Barbara asked as she went through Henry's hair.

"Mom," Henry whined as he pulled away from his mother's hand.

"You and Elizabeth seem to be a tight unit," Barbara stated.

"We are."

"Do you love her?"

"Mom?!"

"What?" she lifted her shoulders and raised her hands. "Do you?"

"I think so."

"What do you mean, you think so?"

"We haven't said that out loud yet, so I don't know if she loves me." Henry sounded insecure all of a sudden.

"Are you telling me you don't know whether or not you love the first girl you ever brought home for an entire weekend just because she hasn't said it first?"

"Well," Henry started.

"That's not how I raised you."

"I know, it's just…"

"What?" Barbara put her hands across her chest.

"Do you think she loves me?" Henry sounded like a love-struck schoolboy.

"What I think doesn't matter, Henry."

"I know, mom. I'm just scared that if I tell her, she'll freak out and leave me."

"Yeah, sure, I'm sure she would have bolted after the five kids comment you made."

"She told you?" Henry was in awe.

"Yeah, lots of things can happen while you're sleeping."

Henry bowed his head and leaned against the kitchen cabinets.

Barbara stepped closer and ruffled his hair again before looking into her son's eyes and telling him: "You find out how you feel about her because I already love her and your father has never spoken more highly of anyone in the past ten years." She made her way out of the kitchen but popped her head back in: "Oh, and I'm 100 per cent sure she loves you back."

Saturday went by in a blink. After again a lavish dinner prepared by Barbara and a Pictionary night, Henry and Elizabeth were getting ready for bed again.

"I've missed you today," Henry said as he eyed her undressing.

"What do you mean? We spent all day together, silly," she said smacking him.

"I know, but I don't like sharing you with anyone."

Elizabeth smiled widely. "You want me all to yourself?"

Henry nodded eagerly.

"Good thing, it's just the two of us in your tiny bed then."

"You don't want my family here, do you?"

"Dork!" Elizabeth smacked him even harder this time.

Henry quickly grabbed hold of her wrist and pulled her towards him.

He looked deep into her eyes and placed a lingering kiss to her forehead.

Elizabeth looked up at him and pulled him closer so he could wrap her into his arms.

As they were standing there, in the midst of his childhood bedroom, Henry whispered: "Babe?"

She spoke softly, "Yeah?"

Again, he looked deep into her eyes. The words were on his lips but he couldn't say them out loud. Not yet. Not now. Not here. "Ready for bed?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes affirming she was indeed ready.

Henry took her hands and led her to his bed. He crawled in first and opened his arms for Elizabeth to join him.

"Sleep, babe," he ordered her as he draped his arm across her shoulder.

Elizabeth searched for his eyes in the dark. Her blue eyes seemed to light up. "Nothing funky tonight?"

It earned her a chuckle from Henry. "Not tonight."

"Goodnight, babe." He kissed her softly on the lips.

"Henry?" she whispered.

"Yeah, babe?" Was she going to say it?

He looked at her expectantly. His eyes drowning in her blue ones.

She hesitated for a moment before she finally opened her mouth. "Thanks for bringing me here, to your family,"

He hugged her closer and let sleep come.

"Maureen!" Barbara's voice was harsh as she ordered her daughter to behave.

"What? I'm just curious as to how Elizabeth here is able to afford our rather expensive Easter brunch and why she decided to buy each and every one of us gifts."

Henry and Elizabeth had got up early in the morning to get the order she had placed on Saturday morning with the bakery. Elizabeth had not stuck to Barbara's list. She'd also bought two bottles of champagne to thank Henry's parents for their hospitality. She'd also bought a small bouquet to put on the table. And she'd gotten Henry's three siblings something small. She'd bought a sixpack of beer for Shane, a book for Erin and some mother/baby toiletries from Bed Bath and Beyond for Maureen and her unborn baby. Now, she wished she hadn't. As soon as Maureen was

"I just wanted to thank you all for welcoming me into your family. It's just something small, I didn't mean to set the wrong impression."

Barbara placed her hand on Elizabeth's wrist while the rest of the family kept their heads down and ate. Henry's hand was on Elizabeth's knee and he squeezed it. "Don't worry, love, we all really appreciate it! Don't we, Maureen?" she eyed her oldest daughter questioningly.

"Seems like you need to buy Henry's love?" Maureen quipped.

"Well, if it makes you feel better, I didn't get Henry anything. It's really just meant as a thank you. Nothing more, nothing less," Elizabeth responded.

Maureen gave her mom a nod. "How are you able to pay for all this? Do you have a job back in Virginia?"

"No, I …," Elizabeth had no time to finish her sentence.

"Jeez, you're not paying her, are you?" She directed her question towards her brother.

Henry got up, his chair tumbled backwards and Elizabeth jumped up in surprise.

"That's enough!" Henry shouted while he pointed towards his sister.

"Maureen, apologize, right, now!" Barbara's voice was harsh.

"I was kidding!" Maureen spoke as she looked up at Henry.

"No one's laughing," Pat opened his mouth for the first time.

Maureen's face fell at her father's words.

"Well, seems like you've wrapped up everyone around your pretty little finger. Bravo!" Her eyes pierced Elizabeth's.

"I just want to say, Maureen, that I have no intention of wrapping anyone around my finger." She swallowed before she continued: "I genuinely wanted to thank all of you here for having me and welcoming me. Now, as for how I've paid for all of this, not that it's any of your business, but I have a trust fund set aside for me and every month I get a certain amount of money to pay for the things I need." Her voice broke, "I need a family, and I think I've found one right here with you guys. I'd happily spend part of my allowance on you. Besides, it seems only fair to give something in return after all the things your family has given me. Excuse me."

Elizabeth left the table and made her way to the front door. Henry made a move to follow her, but Pat beat him to the punch leaving his son more shocked than he already was after what had just happened.

Pat sat down next to Elizabeth on the front steps of his house.

"You're a tough one, kid, anyone else would have left the premises by now."

She side-eyed Henry's father. "I just needed some air," she swallowed the tears she was holding back.

"Maureen and I often see eye to eye but she's completely wrong this time, you know."

"I knew it would be difficult, Henry had warned me about her. I guess I just never expected this…" she pointed towards the inside of the house as if the conversation was something that would be present permanently from now on.

"If I know my wife, and I think I do, she's giving our daughter hell in there right now." Pat made the same gesture with his hand.

It earned him a small smile from Elizabeth.

"Thanks, Pat."

Patrick responded by bumping his shoulder against Elizabeth's. "You're welcome. And I really do hope we'll see you back here for Thanksgiving."

"You bet." Elizabeth nodded.

"Now, I don't know about you but I hate it when my wife's roast beef goes to waste. From what I've seen so far, you're not someone to lose your appetite easily." He held out his hand and Elizabeth let Patrick McCord pull her up. Together they made their way back inside. Everyone was quietly eating. Maureen's face looked paler than before. Henry looked questioningly at Elizabeth. She sat back down next to him and put her hand on his thigh.

Henry placed a kiss to her ear and then put his hand on top of hers that was still resting on his leg.

Not much was said during the rest of dinner. The atmosphere was tense to say the least. As Barbara and her daughters did the dishes, Tom and Shane were playing a game of chess. Henry was outside with Elizabeth. Patrick was watching them from the window that overlooked their garden.

"Are you alright, babe?"

Elizabeth just nodded.

"I'm so sorry about Maureen." Henry took his girlfriend's arms.

"It's fine. Nothing you can do about it."

"I'm sure my mom spelled it out for her that she can't be treating you like this."

Elizabeth offered him a small smile. "That's what your dad said."

"What else did he say?" Henry asked her.

"That he didn't agree with anything Maureen said during dinner."

Henry hugged her. They stood in the garden enveloped in each other's arms. The evening glow casting a golden shine over the couple.

Pat saw Elizabeth say something and she made her way back inside of the hands. She held on to Henry's hands for as long as she could. She smiled as she saw Patrick standing in front of the window.

As Elizabeth entered, Pat made his way out towards his son.

In the meantime, Maureen and Tom had silently headed back to their place while Barbara was putting everything away, and Elizabeth and Erin started a card game. Henry was outside in the garden with his dad.

"Son," Pat put his hand on Henry's shoulder. "That girl you brought here definitely is something." They sat together in silence for a bit.

"What did you say to her?" Henry wanted to know after 15 minutes or so.

"Not much. Something about roast beef." Patrick looked at Henry and smiled. Henry chuckled. To Henry, it felt like a father/son-moment he'd never experienced before.

"She's also coming back for Thanksgiving, she said."

Henry's eyes grew wide. "Really? She said that?"

Patrick nodded. "I told your mom on Friday, she's a real keeper."

"Thanks, dad."

Patrick squeezed his son's shoulder and made his way inside again. "Come on, it's getting chilly." Henry followed him.

"Oh, mom, really," Henry whined as he noticed what was going on inside.

Elizabeth had tears in her eyes from laughing at the anecdotes Barbara was telling her.

"What? Elizabeth should know you liked to dress up like a girl until you were about 12." Barbara leaned in closer to Elizabeth and the two women laughed so hard.

"Okay, okay, that's it," Henry took his childhood picture book from his mother's lap. "Mother, not funnyyy."

"Oh, come on, Henry. It think it's adorable," Elizabeth admitted.

She grabbed the book from his arms again and opened it back to the page they had last seen. "Come sit with me, babe."

Elizabeth cast him loving looks as she browsed through his childhood memories. Henry, on the other hand, seemed somewhat embarrassed.

When they were done, Elizabeth closed the book and kissed Henry's cheek.

"What time are you leaving tomorrow," Barbara wondered.

Henry and Elizabeth looked at each other.

"First thing in the morning," Henry answered.

"Do you need to go back to school tomorrow?" Patrick asked.

"No, but we still have some paperwork to finish," Henry admitted.

Elizabeth turned around and looked at Henry questioningly.

"Well, I'll make sure breakfast is ready for you tomorrow morning," Barbara said.

"There's no need for you to get up," Elizabeth interfered. "We'll manage with some cornflakes and we can always stop underway for a snack."

"And have you leave without saying goodbye. Na-a. Ain't gonna happen."

Elizabeth and Henry smiled.

At 11.30, Elizabeth and Henry were halfway on their route back to UVA.

"I really love your family," Elizabeth had said.

Henry smiled at her. He was glad she'd had such a great time but he couldn't help but wonder if she loved him as well. His talk to his mother had really got him thinking. He was one hundred percent sure he was in love with the woman sitting next to him. This weekend had made that all the more clear. He was just waiting for the right time to tell her and hoped she would reciprocate his love.

"I'm gonna make a quick stop right here to fill up the tank," Henry said as he left the highway.

As Henry turned off the engine, Elizabeth got out of the car. "I gotta pee," she said. Henry nodded.

When she came back, Henry was paying for his gas. She lend against the door of the driver.

"What?" he asked with a huge smile.

"You're really sexy, you know that."

"Oh yeah?" He took out his handkerchief and cleaned his hands.

"Yeah." Elizabeth raised her eyebrows.

"Anything you want to do about that?" Henry was already getting turned on.

"Maybe…" was Elizabeth's reply.

"Maybe?"

"Well, I kinda liked us not having sex for three days. It only adds to the tension and desire, you know."

"Oh, does it?"

"It does."

"Okay, get in the car," Henry ordered.

Elizabeth quickly walked around the car and jumped in as Henry started the engine again and sped away.