Sorry not to have posted anything in a while! I was on vacation and didn't have a whole lot of time to spend on the computer. Thank you so much for reading and for your responses - they're greatly appreciated! Here's the next chapter and another addition will be coming soon. Enjoy! :)
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Betty was flabbergasted. She knew this talk would come eventually - that she kept postponing the inevitable. But never did she imagine such a heartfelt confession to come out of his mouth . . . for him to be so vulnerable – about her. She was floored. She wasn't even sure if she was ready for this, now that it actually might be happening. The whole moment was so surreal . . . as if she were watching someone else's life, some movie.
"Daniel, I – I don't know what to say. Are you sure? Are you serious?" she needed to know it wasn't all in her head.
"Yes, I've never been more sure or serious in my life," he affirmed.
Daniel hoped Betty wasn't about to laugh in his face or run away again. He searched for the right words to make her understand how much he wanted this - how much he wanted her.
"I want to be with you. I don't know how we got here or where it'll lead, but I'm ready to find out. We can take it at whatever speed you want. The last thing I want to do is pressure you," he told her.
She looked down at their joined hands and was about to speak when she heard the door open.
"Hey, you two . . . Sorry to interrupt, but Papi can't find your mixer – he was gonna make sopapillas," Hilda peeped her head through the door.
"It's in the bottom cabinet next to the fridge under the – never mind . . ." Betty gave Daniel an apologetic look.
Daniel got up, then helped her up. While Betty went in to find it, Hilda purposefully stayed behind.
"How's it going? You and my baby sister seemed pretty comfy . . ." she fished, but Daniel refused to take the bait.
He liked Hilda, but he knew she tended to be extremely nosy. There was no way in hell he was going to expose the most intimate details of her sister's and his imminent relationship – even though he had an inkling Betty would probably tell her later anyway.
"How's Justin doing at playing basketball? I could set up some more time to work with him, if he wants. Bobby plays, doesn't he?" he evaded Hilda's questions.
"Okay . . . I can take a hint," she smiled, noticing Betty had appeared in the doorway.
"I'll let you guys get back to your . . . discussion," Hilda snickered as Betty shoved her back into the apartment and slammed the door behind her.
"Sorry about that. My sister may be older than I am, but she acts like a 5 year-old sometimes," Betty apologized and rolled her eyes. Daniel smiled.
"So," he nervously shoved his hands in his pockets.
"Soo . . . back to the elephant in the room . . ." Betty looked at the ground, then back at him.
She was still uncertain of what to say. She wanted to be with him, but there were so many reasons why she shouldn't. Unable to give him a solid answer, she slowly began to voice her doubts.
" . . . What happens if it doesn't work out - where will we be then? I can't lose you – you're my best friend. I can't imagine not ever talking to you again . . . but I also can't see us going back either – it'd be too hard, too awkward. Should we really be doing this?" Betty looked at him unsure.
Daniel attempted to answer when she started frantically spouting out more concerns.
"And what about MODE? I don't want everyone to start calling me 'Daniel's Girl' again, and act like every little article or promotion I get is because I'm dating the boss. It was bad enough last fall, after you slugged Matt and made the big scene. Not that I didn't love you for it - but I just got people to start respecting me again - promise you won't give me any special treatment! . . . And then there's Wilhelmina . . . and your mom . . . and – and –" Betty continued to ramble.
"So is that a 'yes'?" Daniel hopefully asked, amused by her moment of freaking out.
". . . Yes," she smiled, hesitantly.
He grinned and happily covered her lips with his in a sweet, tender kiss. Slowly parting, he rested his forehead against hers, relieved.
"You know, I kinda like the sound of 'Daniel's Girl' – it has a sexy ring to it . . ." he teased.
"Daniel . . ." Betty blushed and placed her hand on his chest.
He held onto it with his own and became serious again.
"It feels so good to be this close, knowing you won't shove me away or slap me. Why did you do that, again?" he asked, half-teasing.
"I'm so sorry! I was afraid – of you . . . of us . . . that everything I was feeling was real . . . that you might not feel the same . . . or even that you actually might. I overheard you telling Wilhelmina that you didn't feel anything for me and then you barged into the bathroom and acted like you did. I thought you were just feeling sorry for me . . . humoring me because I was your friend. And I couldn't believe you wouldn't just tell me what you had told Wilhelmina . . . I feel horrible . . ." she explained.
"It's okay – I get it. You thought I was lying to you – or at least not telling you the whole truth – and we promised never to do that to each other. But I meant what I said – any guy would be lucky to be with you. I'm just glad you're letting me have that chance," he assured her.
Betty smiled, coyly.
"You just seem so confident - isn't there a part of you that's freaking out a little?" she asked.
"Look, I'm not saying I'm not scared, too – because I am. Believe me, after you kicked me out that morning I spent the whole time trying to wrap my head around everything. But I guess I realized that a part of me has always felt something for you. Those feelings just kinda grew over the years to the point where I felt it'd be stupid not to find out where they could lead. I know we're risking a lot here and I don't want to lose you as a friend, either – you're all I've got, really," he admitted, embarrassed.
Her heart melted even more, knowing how hard it was to find true friends.
"But I guess I feel what we've got to gain is worth it – we could have it all . . . Work might be a problem for a while and I promise I'll be a real hard-ass if you want me to. But like I've told you before, it's not how you get the job - it's what you do with it that counts. And I have never given you anything I didn't think you could handle. Plus, if you think about it, MODE and Meade were built on nepotism . . ."
Betty gave him another look.
"But if you want to keep this quiet for a little while, maybe gradually show signs we're together, that's ok - whatever makes you comfortable," Daniel assured her.
"I think that might be best – the subtler it is, the more likely everyone is to not even make a big deal out of it," Betty agreed.
"Okay . . . So are we telling our families?" he asked.
"I think we probably should – besides, Hilda won't stop nagging me about you," she laughed.
"Yeah, I could tell from the comment she made to me about the couch, and then out here in the hallway, that she's been dying to say something more," he chuckled.
"Come on, for putting up with that, you can help me kick her out of my apartment," Betty joked and grabbed his hand.
Daniel laughed and followed her inside.
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The next few weeks were perfect, at least in Daniel's eyes. Betty's family moved into the hotel suite Daniel had offered to pay for and it was actually beneficial for everyone. They all had more space, Betty was a lot less stressed, and it ended up giving him more time with her without her worrying about getting home at a decent hour to play hostess.
He finally had her back - all of her – without any awkwardness or tension. His best friend, who told him he needed to finally shut up and quit being a baby about Tyler - that he needed to bond with him. The one who didn't care if he wore Gucci or an off-brand . . . who would call him an Oompa Loompa because of his ridiculous Cheeto tan or laugh at his fetish for high-fives . . . who would sacrifice half of her cookie dough ice cream when he was having a bad day . . .
Except now he had the added bonus of being able to kiss or touch her whenever he wanted . . . curl up with her on the couch, knowing she wouldn't freak out if they fell asleep. They were learning more and more about each other and growing closer, more comfortable with their romantic relationship. It was new, fun, and easier than any other serious relationship he'd had, because they basically knew each other's dirty secrets and real selves. There weren't any fronts – they were just them: flaws and all.
"You're not brooding about Tyler again, are you?" Betty asked as she came up behind Daniel and kissed his cheek, while wrapping her arms around his waist.
Before he could speak, she started in on another pep-talk.
"You need to let it go. It really wasn't his fault you didn't know he existed. And really, when you think about it, he got three times the shock you did – you, Alexis, and Matt. Talk to him – you guys might have more in common than you think. And talk to your mother – for real this time – not just to announce we're together and then walk out of her office. You know what? We're having a family dinner when we get back from London – then you'll have to talk," she finally stopped rambling.
Daniel turned his head from the window of Betty's apartment and briefly kissed her lips.
"Actually, I already talked to him and we agreed to go bowling sometime next week and grab a couple of beers afterward. My mother's another story . . ." he trailed off.
"Daniel . . . never mind. I get it - you need more time. She was wrong to have kept something like that from you, but she's still your mother and she loves you. Just promise me you won't wait too long to talk to her. You've already lost your father, and I know if I had the chance to talk to my mother again – even if she did something like that – I'd still jump at the opportunity to make it right . . ." she said, swallowing back her tears.
"We can take the people we care about for granted, because we just assume they'll always be around. But you could lose them in a second and never have the chance to say to them what you always wanted to say; know you'll never get to share the most important moments in your life with them," she advised.
"For you, I promise I will attempt to make amends with my mother," he assured her, kissing her temple.
"Thank you," she squeezed her arms a little tighter around him.
"But really, you didn't need to give me another speech to make me feel better," Daniel told her.
"So you just let me go on and on for nothing?" Betty asked, annoyed.
"Well, it was pretty much impossible to stop you once you got going," he pointed out.
Betty reluctantly agreed.
"So what were you thinking about?" she inquired.
"I was just thinking about us," he answered.
"Oh? And . . .?" she asked.
"And what?" he looked back at her.
"What were you thinking?" she wondered.
"That if we don't clean up this place soon, you're gonna have a few new roommates – and I have a feeling they won't be as pleasant as I would be," he teased, looking around at the pile of Chinese cartons and pizza boxes scattered everywhere.
"Daniel . . . seriously. I know it had to be more than that. You had that rare pensive look you hardly ever get," she rested her chin on his shoulder. He sighed contently.
"It was nothing – just that I'm glad we got past everything and are back to being us again . . . only better," he replied.
"Better, huh?" she smiled.
"Yeah," he coyly said.
"And what exactly makes us 'better'?" Betty mischievously inquired.
Daniel turned around to face her, Betty's arms still encircling his waist.
"Well there's this . . ." he seductively kissed her lips.
"And this . . ." he worked his way down her neck and along her shoulder. "And this . . ."
He leaned in to kiss her again, but started tickling her instead, causing them both to fall to the floor, rolling over with laughter.
"Hey – you cheated!" Betty exclaimed while lying on top of Daniel, finally able to breathe normally again.
"How did I cheat? I didn't know this was a contest," he intentionally played dumb.
Betty sighed and lightly smacked his shoulder. "You cheated me out of a kiss," she answered, only half annoyed.
"Really? Well it seems I've got some making up to do, don't I?" Daniel grinned playfully and rolled on top of her.
"Mmm-hmm . . ." Betty smiled.
Daniel leaned down and teased Betty with his lips, sucking on her bottom lip, then pulling away.
He deviously contemplated his next move until Betty made it for him, pulling him back down, causing their lips to crash into each other's.
"You're impossible," she smiled, breaking away.
He chuckled.
"Hey, you knew exactly what you were getting into . . ." he joked, kissing the tip of her nose.
"True. I guess I can live with it . . ." she teased.
"Really? Well you're no picnic yourself, you know?" he began tickling her again.
Betty giggled and unsuccessfully tried to escape from under Daniel.
"I don't think so," he laughed, capturing her wrists above her head.
"Let me go!" she giggled in protest, then caught the serious look that suddenly ran over his face.
"Never . . ." he softly said, staring intently at her.
"Promise?" she smiled timidly.
Daniel tenderly kissed Betty's forehead then slowly rested his forehead against hers.
"Promise," he vowed and slowly rolled off of her.
Unaware of the greasy half-eaten pizza in the open box behind him, he jumped up, feeling the sauce seep into the back of his shirt. Betty giggled.
"You think that's funny, do you?" he gave her a mischievous look. "We'll see how you like it . . ."
Daniel picked Betty up and threatened to throw her into it.
"No! Don't you dare! Put me down!" she squealed in protest.
"Ok . . ." he flipped her upside down and held her even closer to the mess, acting like he was going to drop her in it, head-first.
"Okay, okay – I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" she apologized.
He put her on her feet.
"Now . . . back to cleaning up this crap . . . You know I'm not a neat freak, but it looks worse than when your family was here," he pointed out, smiling as he watched her try to regain her composure.
"Yeah . . . well you're a pretty big distraction, Mister," she teased.
He gave her a skeptical look.
"Fine. But first . . . take off your shirt," Betty commanded.
"I'll take off mine if you take off yours . . ." he gave her a wickedly sexy grin as he pulled up the bottom of her shirt.
"Down, boy!" she playfully smacked his hands away. "I meant you've got day-old pizza all over you and need a new one."
She shook her head and rolled her eyes. Daniel took off his ruined t-shirt and tossed it to her. She caught herself staring at his chiseled chest long enough for him to notice.
"Are you sure that's the only reason you asked me to strip for you?" he asked, messing with her.
Frustrated with herself, she made a dig at him to cover.
"Men – all they can think about is getting a piece of ass," she muttered as she absently bent over to pick up the pizza box before she went to find him a clean shirt.
Daniel leisurely gazed at her backside.
"But it's such a nice ass . . ." he smiled devilishly, defending himself.
"Shut up," Betty playfully warned, trying to hide a smile as she walked out of the room.
Daniel shook his head, knowing he had flustered her and loving every minute of it.