xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Betty came into their bedroom to find Daniel on the bed, moping.
"There's my Dark Knight in shining armor," she said as she sat behind her boyfriend, put her arms around him, and nuzzled his neck. "Amanda and Marc are headed to the airport."
"Mmmhmm," Daniel responded, lost in thought as she massaged his shoulders.
"Don't tell me you miss them already? They only stayed with us a week and Amanda managed to walk stark naked into our bathroom to use the shower three times while we were getting ready – once, I was already in there and thought it was you," she shuddered in disgust.
"After I realized all the shrieking wasn't because of pain, I found it pretty enjoyable," Daniel started laughing.
"Hey! That was not funny!" Betty defended, lightly slapping the back of his head. "I know you're used to women you've slept with showering together and all, but I am not one of those women!"
"I know. I'm sorry," he apologized.
"I felt like I was back sharing an apartment with her again," she complained. "I still can't take a shower without constantly looking behind my back."
Daniel snorted.
"Amanda is not Norman Bates," he argued.
"No, but how would you like a naked Becks to walk in on you in the shower?" she countered. "Just as bad, isn't?"
"Scary as hell," Daniel agreed. "Got it."
"And not only did Marc 'accidentally-on-purpose' break my glasses – I managed to tape them for now - but then he took one look at our fridge and pantry and threw out all our food and forced me to buy only low-fat, fat free, or vegan products," Betty continued.
"That explains why I had to use soy milk in my cereal the other day. And what the hell was that crap he used for appetizers last night? I thought I was getting chicken nachos and it tasted like feet!" Daniel cringed.
"Tofu. I don't think he seasoned it well enough," she answered.
"I'm not sure it could ever be seasoned good enough to be edible," Daniel maintained.
"Well, if you do miss them, I guess that wouldn't be a bad thing, since Christina already offered Amanda a job working on her fashion line," she told him. "If she manages to tone down her ideas, she's thinking of letting Amanda branch off on her own to a sister line, eventually."
"That's great. I'm happy for her," he halfheartedly responded.
"I know – I'm so excited! But I don't know if she'll take it – it depends on how Tyler feels about moving here. Oh my god – Tyler! Daniel, is that a problem? I mean it's such a big city I didn't think you'd mind, but maybe you do?"
"No, it's fine. It's something else, don't worry about it," he said.
"Tell me. We're a team, remember?" Betty reminded him.
Daniel hesitated for a minute before opening up.
"You know Amanda's ring? It was my grandmother's," he revealed.
"Oh. And you're upset because . . . you wanted something pretty to wear?" she lightheartedly jested.
"Betty," Daniel warned.
"Sorry. So what is the problem?" she asked, sincerely.
"I can't tell you," he said.
"D, I can't help you if you won't tell me what the problem is," she replied.
Daniel sighed and gave up.
"My Grandpa Jack gave it to my Nana and they were married for over fifty years. They stayed together all that time – through everything – his drinking, her illness, financial issues, you name it . . . they stuck through it all. I think that really means something, you know?" he explained.
Betty nodded and put her hand on his. She knew Daniel had had a rough childhood - and adulthood for that matter, with his mother's drinking, his father's affairs, and his parents' divorcing. He had probably idolized his grandparents for managing to keep it together, no matter what came their way.
"Mom promised the ring to me . . . for you." Daniel revealed.
"Oh," Betty replied, her heart stopping for a moment as she comprehended the significance.
"Only now, Amanda has it," Daniel said, frustrated.
"Daniel, it's okay. I'm flattered that you would want me to have it. But I wouldn't mind a ring from vending machine if it came from you," she assured him. "Have you honestly thought about marrying me?"
"Of course I have – since the second I realized I was in love with you," he said. "I told my mom to hold onto the ring because I knew you wouldn't be ready for it yet. And then she had to go and give it to Tyler of all people."
"You shouldn't be so hard on Tyler – he's your brother. And like it or not, that makes him family. You should at least try to get along – he and Amanda might be moving here. Wouldn't it be nice to have some family close by?" Betty advised.
"Maybe your family . . ." Daniel grumbled. "Tyler seems like an okay guy. I don't hate him or anything, but I don't feel the need to bond with him either. And none of this fixes Mom giving him your ring."
"Babe, I know it means a lot to you, but don't get upset over it for me. I love you for you – not the material things you can give me. But if it bugs you this much, maybe you should talk to your mom about it. I know her - I'm sure she had a good reason," Betty tried to console him.
"I guess so," he shrugged. "So are you okay with what I just told you – getting married someday?"
"To you?" Betty asked.
"Nah, I was thinking Derek Jeter," he teased.
"Hmmm . . . that's actually not a bad idea," she played along.
"Hey!" Daniel protested, attacking her in a tickle fight.
"You said it – not me!" Betty giggled, trying to fight him off.
"Well I didn't mean it!" he argued, holding her down with one arm and tickling her with the other until she surrendered.
"Ok – I promise I won't marry Derek Jeter!" Betty giggled.
Daniel stopped.
"Good," he replied, brushing her hair back from her face and sinking his lips into hers.
"Or any other guy," Betty smiled, caressing his cheek.
"Any other guy?" he asked.
"I think I could make an exception for you," she flirted.
"Seriously?" Daniel asked.
"Seriously," Betty confirmed. "Whenever you're ready, just ask."
A long pause fell upon them as Daniel contemplated whether or not it was the right moment. He finally decided to take the risk.
"What if I am asking?" he replied, his stomach flip-flopping as he spoke.
"What if I'm answering?" she responded, her lips tenderly meeting his.
"Was that a 'yes'?" Daniel asked, uncertain.
"Yes," Betty assured him.
Daniel grinned and devoured her lips in a fervent kiss as they celebrated through the night.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Betty fluttered eyes open as she sensed lips and fingers gently tracing every curve of her naked body. The warmth of her fiancé's touch was indescribable. The heat of his bare skin against hers sent shivers down her spine – the good kind. If he only knew what he was doing to her . . . Knowing Daniel, he probably did. If she could wake up every morning like this, she would.
"Mmmm . . . morning," she moaned, smiling sleepily.
"Morning, future Mrs. Meade," Daniel greeted her with a kiss so hot if she hadn't be fully awake before, she definitely was then.
"Wow . . . what did I do to deserve this sexy wake-up call?" Betty wondered.
"You only gave me the best gift ever," he answered, kissing her left hand.
"After last night, I thought I was becoming a true artist of seduction with whipped cream, but I didn't realize I was this good," she flirted.
Daniel laughed into her shoulder.
"No, you really are. I think we're both still a little sticky in certain places, actually," he noticed.
"I guess we need to fix that . . ." she said, running a finger over his lips.
"Probably so. But what I really meant was you agreeing to be my wife," he told her. "You have no idea how happy you've made me."
Betty turned on her side to face him, lazily draping her leg over his hip.
"Judging by this morning, I think I do," she giggled, tracing lines over his well-molded chest and abs. "And I still can't believe you want to be my husband. I'm going to be Betty Suarez-Meade – married to my best friend, the most wonderful man in the world. I'd be jumping up and down right now if I wasn't so tired."
"Too tired for this?" Daniel roughly whispered, cupping her breast as his tongue flicked her ear lobe.
"Mmmm . . . God, Daniel you really have a way with convincing me," she groaned with pleasure and sucked on his bottom lip, giving in. "Okay . . . one time. But then we really need to shower and get some errands done."
"Want me to protect you in there?" he teased.
"You wouldn't be my Dark Knight if you didn't," she flirted. "C'mon. Why don't we multitask?"
"Or we could have Round 1 in here and Round 2 in there?" he bargained.
"Or what if I promise to do that certain thing you wanted tonight?" she countered.
"What thing? You mean watch 'Die Hard', if I find it?" Daniel replied, totally oblivious to her subtle offer.
"Okay . . . Or you could actually use that beautiful brain of yours and get what I'm saying," she hinted.
"Huh?" he struggled to figure out what she was talking about, then it finally hit him. The edible underwear Amanda forced her to buy when they'd gone shopping. He knew how uncomfortable she got in those places. "Oh. Oh! Really? I thought you said you'd never wear those?"
"What can I say – being with you has opened my mind to a lot of things I've never tried before. Like moving in with someone after only two days or getting engaged in three weeks. I'll wear them if you will?" she slid her hands over his firm ass and squeezed it.
"Deal," he grinned. "Can we watch 'Die Hard', too?"
"It's either 'Die Hard' or hard-on," she playfully offered, her fingers roaming his lower region.
"I'm smart enough to know that answer," he joked.
Betty laughed and coaxed him out of bed. They heatedly kissed, fumbling their way into the shower.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"I'm sorry, dear. Tyler came to me and announced he was proposing to Amanda. I was so thrilled he wanted to share his news with me that I offered him the ring by mistake. I hope you'll understand. Your brother doesn't have much from his biological family and I wanted to let him know that he truly is a part of our lives," Claire explained over Skype.
"Fine! Give him your million dollar Renoir or-or that hideous Grecian three-headed gargoyle that's in the foyer. Hell – give him your whole damn house for all I care! But that ring was Betty's! It means something to me – it doesn't mean a damn thing to Tyler, other than it came from you. He didn't know Nana and Grandpa Jack. He didn't know the relationship they had. I did! You offered it to me first! I asked you to save it for me less than a month ago!" Daniel exclaimed.
"Daniel, darling, I can't just rip it off of Amanda's finger and give it back to you. And how would Betty feel if she were to know?" she pointed out. "You both care about Amanda – think of her feelings."
God, he hated when his mother was right! And he knew he was being childish, to a point. But on the other hand, she had no right to do what she did.
"This is bullshit! I didn't do anything wrong and neither did Betty and yet we both get screwed, and everyone else is happy. I should've taken the freakin' thing with me when you offered it. I should've known something would go wrong – it always does," Daniel ranted. He couldn't help it – he had to get everything off his chest and his mother deserved to feel guilty.
"I truly am sorry, sweetheart. If there were any way to fix this, I would. But there isn't. All I can offer is some money for you to buy Betty the most beautiful and unique ring you could imagine. And you can pass it on to your own grandchild someday," Claire offered. "I hope you can forgive me, eventually . . . At least before I'm too old to remember I have a son."
"Why is it that every time I get pissed at you for something you did, I'm the one who ends up feeling guilty?" he complained.
"It's a mother's gift," she smiled. "Now, I will wire the money to you first thing tomorrow morning. Please give my love to Betty, and I hope to visit soon – that is if you'll still have me."
"Mom!" he berated.
"I love you, son," she said.
"I love you, too, Mom," Daniel sighed and closed the window on his laptop only for Alexis to pop on not five minutes later.
"What's this I hear about you being pissed at Mom for giving Tyler Nana's ring?" she jumped right to the point.
"She promised it to me," Daniel explained.
"So? Suck it up little bro! Why do you always have to be such a baby?" she said, unsympathetically. "Tyler's our brother, now, so just deal with it!"
"Easy for you to say – you've got Grams' ring," he countered. "And what are you best friends with him, now?"
"No. But I've spent some time with Tyler and he's not a bad guy. He's great with DJ. You should give him a chance," Alexis suggested.
"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Daniel groaned.
"Because it's true, dumbass," she replied. "And quit whining like you're the only one who didn't get a special ring! It's not like Grams is our bio grandmother."
"Wait - what?! What do you mean?" Daniel asked, floored.
"Grandma Meade died of cancer when you were a baby. Gramps remarried when you were still too little to remember and he was too old to realize she was a gold digger. We never bothered to tell you because we didn't want to confuse you and by the time you were old enough to know, we didn't think about it," she explained.
"What the hell?! Who are you people?! How could you not tell me?! And don't you think it's a slap in the face to Grandma's memory not to honor her?"
"We do honor her – every year on her birthday," Alexis said.
"Oh my god!" Daniel groaned. "How the hell did I get stuck in this freakin' family?"
"Hey, D – can you help me with these? I had to replenish our stock of food after Marc threw all of it away," Betty came in the door with her hands full of groceries.
"Danny, it's not that big of a deal – wait, who is that?" Alexis asked, hearing Betty's voice.
"It's Betty – didn't Mom tell you?" he answered.
"No – she just said you were pissed about the ring," she said. "Betty?! Our Betty?! Frizzy-haired, braces wearing, fashion-impaired Betty?"
"Daniel!" Betty yelled, then got frustrated and went to the living room to drag him over to the kitchen. "Babe, I already have half of the food put away. Why didn't you come help me? Oh! Hi, Alexis!"
Alexis looked up from drinking her coffee and immediately spewed it all over the screen. She wiped it off with a napkin and gained her composure.
"Betty? Y-You look . . . gorgeous?!" Alexis observed. "No wonder Danny's finally fallen for you!"
"Thank you," Betty smiled, uncertainly. "I think."
"Alex!" Daniel yelled at his insensitive sister.
"It's okay, Daniel. I know I've changed," Betty stopped him from saying or doing something he'd regret.
"I didn't mean it as an insult to you, Betty. I meant it for Danny. You know how superficial he is," Alexis excused.
"I am not!" Daniel argued.
"You are so!" Alexis insisted.
"Am not! Am not!" he repeated.
"Yes you are!" she continued to harass her brother. "You are so freakin' shallow you wouldn't know a decent woman if she bit you in the ass!"
"Screw you, Alex!" Daniel retorted.
"You're such a dick, Danny!" she accused.
"Oh yeah? Well at least I still have mine!" he smirked.
"Is that what you call that pathetic little thing?" she snickered. "The only way you ever succeed in man-whoring around is picking the sluttiest bimbos and getting them so hammered they can't tell an orgasm from -"
"Hey, hey, hey! Time out! What the hell is wrong with you two?! I can't believe I still have to play the freakin' referee!" Betty rolled her eyes as she broke up the siblings' immature argument. "Alexis, your brother truly isn't superficial or a man-whore anymore. And I know for a fact that your other accusation is false as well."
Daniel looked at his sister with a smug expression.
"And wipe the smile off your face, Meade," Betty commanded.
It was amazing how before even turning to look at him she knew.
"How do you do that?!" he pouted.
Betty stared at him knowingly.
"Just stop making jokes about your sister's sex change," she scolded.
Daniel started to object.
"Don't give me the 'she started it' BS," she warned. "And both of you – what are you five years old? Grow the hell up!"
The siblings grumbled, muttering something about their mother, but sheepishly agreed to stop fighting.
"Thank you," Betty sighed in exasperation.
"So you're saying Danny honestly doesn't sleep with model after model?" Alexis asked, skeptically.
"No, he hasn't done that for a long time," Betty confirmed. "He's wanted serious relationships for a while, now."
"Told you I'm not who I used to be," Daniel smirked at his sister.
"Wow! When Mom said you'd quit MODE and had gone after Betty, I thought you were just chasing some random tail again," Alexis said, shocked. "So, are you guys seriously together?"
"We're engaged," Betty awkwardly smiled.
"Oh, so that's why Danny threw the big stink about the ring," Alexis put it together. "Congratulations, sweetie! You're the only girl who could make my brother act like a halfway decent guy. Make sure he treats you right. Danny, if you screw this up I'll come over there and beat your scrawny little ass!"
"Glad that's something I won't have to look forward to," he muttered to Betty. "She wears stilettos, now!"
Betty leaned into his chest stifling a giggle.
"It'll be nice having some sisters for a change," Alexis told her. "Although, I'm not so sure about Amanda . . ."
"She'll grow on you," Betty smiled, knowingly.
Alexis laughed.
"Text me your number – we'll talk designers and wedding planners," she said.
"I will," Betty promised.
"Gotta go – need to pick DJ up from soccer practice. I'd say 'welcome to the family', Betty, but you know what you're getting into. And fortunately, I think you're strong enough to survive in it. Danny, love ya bro – we'll talk soon!"
"Thanks, Alexis. Tell DJ we said 'hi'," Betty said.
"Love you, too, sis. Remind DJ I'm coming to one of his games next fall. I might bring Betty with me," Daniel said, and looked at Betty who nodded in agreement.
"Great – can't wait to see you guys. Bye!" Alexis waved.
Daniel closed the laptop.
"Well, that was interesting," Betty commented, heading back to the kitchen.
"Betty, what Alex said . . . I hope you didn't believe any of it," he said, following her. "How you look isn't why I fell in love with you – it's only part of it."
Betty continued to put away the rest of the groceries.
"Daniel, you don't have to explain," she assured him, reaching around him for the top shelf.
Daniel took the box from her and put it away.
"No, I do," he insisted. "You're the whole package, Betty. You were always beautiful. I fell in love with you because of who you are and what you became. We both grew up so much in these past four years. You're not the same naïve girl who slammed into the conference room, who saw everything through black and white and never in shades of gray."
"And you're not -" Betty began.
"The jackass screw-up who didn't know a thing about my job and only cared about which model I'd go home with each night. I know I treated you like shit that first week. I'm so lucky you gave me a second chance – I didn't deserve it." Daniel finished for her.
"You're right, you didn't," Betty agreed. "But I needed the job. Plus, I figured any East-Side guy who'd go all the way to Queens – in a town car - to beg me to come back must be really desperate."
"I was," Daniel confessed. "My hubcaps got stolen, by the way."
"Serves you right," she teased, putting her arms around his neck.
Daniel instinctively placed his hands on her waist and pulled her closer.
"You didn't happen to know those guys, did you?" he wondered.
"Daniel," Betty leaned her forehead against his.
"Yeah?" he asked.
"Shut up," she said, planting soft, seductive kisses on his lips.
