Spencer got out of the shower and threw on some sweats. He left the room to find Carly and Freddy in the kitchen. "Hey guys, how was school?"

"Lame, as usual," Sam injected, walking through the front door. Spencer laughed, then got serious. "History test, Carly." He said, holding out his hand. She pulled the paper from her bag, and then handed it to him. "B+, not bad, Carly!" he said, giving her a one armed hug. He then turned to Sam, holding out his hand. She grumbled and handed it to him. "D-, Sam?"

"It's no big deal," she shrugged, pulling a chicken wing out of the fridge. Spencer frowned. "Sam, I want a rough draft of your history paper by Wednesday, ok?"

Sam sighed but agreed. Spencer tuned back to Carly. "Hey kiddo, you ok on your own for a bit tonight?"

Carly grabbed a chicken wing and sat down at the table. "Of course. Got a date?"

"Actually, I do…"

"OOOOO" all three kids replied. Spencer turned slightly red.

"Don't start with me or you're all grounded." They just giggled.

A week later, Spencer found himself strolling around the docks with a beautiful girl. He was asking her about growing up in Philadelphia, how she got involved in Marketing, and about her family. Although he was listening to what she was saying, he still couldn't help but stare at Kayleigh. She was beautiful, and sophisticated. At 26 years old, she was motivated but knew how to have fun, and her life was going places. He was enjoying his third date in a week with her.

"So, Spencer, you know all about me, tell me more about you! I know you have a father in the military, a little sister, and you can't handle the responsibility of a goldfish."
"Well, what else do you want to know?"

Kayleigh twirled on her heels, enjoying the breeze blowing. She turned a full 360 before slipping her hand into his. "I want to know everything about you! This is our third date, open up!" She laughed her tinkling laugh, the one that made Spencer want to kiss her every time he heard it. He hadn't kissed her yet though.

Kayleigh turned to face him. She was giving him a look that just begged him to kiss her, but he couldn't. He didn't know how to handle this. He liked this girl a lot, but a relationship wasn't possible; he had too much going on to commit to something. She put her arms around his neck. He could feel her breath on his face, and her hips were dangerously close to his. He felt his pants tighten ever so slightly, and he pulled back. Kayleigh's face fell. "Spencer, what's wrong?"

Spencer shook his head. "I'm sorry, Kayleigh, I can't do this," Spencer apologized, turning around and walking away.

Spencer was sitting on the couch depressed when Carly came home. "Got you a smoothie!" she shouted, tossing a cup to Spencer. He caught it but said nothing. "What's wrong, Spence?" Carly asked, sitting down next to him.

"It's that girl, Kayleigh. I think I blew it with her."

"But I thought you really liked her?" Carly asked, putting her feet on the table.

Spencer sighed. "I do, Carly, but she's a serious relationship girl…and I just don't have time."

Carly sat up straight. "Spencer…don't do this because of me! You never have serious relationships, and I know it's because of me. I'm almost 15, I can handle being alone sometimes if you want to take her out. I know the birds and the bees, it's fine if you want to have a real relationship, bring her back here. I want YOU to be happy."

Spencer faced Carly. "But you are my sister, and you come first."

Carly smiled. "I know. But if the smile on your face this past week is any indication, she's so awesome I'm sure she'll understand."

Spencer smiled back. "Maybe you're right…"

She nudged her brother. "Go call her!"

Spencer grabbed his phone. "Will do, lil' sis…" he started to walk to his room. "When I'm done…pie?"

"heck yeah!" Carly yelled.

Kayleigh was waiting at the restaurant when Spencer got there. She looked amazing in a short blue dress and high heels. She wore her hair down; it fell to halfway down her shoulder. Her body language showed she was nervous, which Spencer could understand; he had walked out on her." He leaned over and kissed her cheek...to her credit, she did not pull back.

"Hi," Kayleigh said. "Hi," he replied. They were spared any further awkwardness by the waiter coming over to bring them to their table.

The kept the conversation light; Kayleigh's new marketing campaign, Spencer's newest scuplture. Finally, halfway through the entrees, Kayleigh got to the point.

"Can we please talk about the elephant in the room?" She asked.

Spencer got very nervous, but her body language didn't seem hostile. "Kayleigh, I'm so sorry. It's been a long time since I've had a serious relationship...my life is…a little complicated," Spencer said. He had no idea how this was going to go, but it had to happen. "See…my mother left when I was a teenager, and my father is in the military and is permanently stationed in Europe…" he paused. Kayleigh reached out and touched his hand. He met her eyes and she was smiling, encouraging him. He cleared his throat and continued. "So he left my sister with me…I've been raising my sister since she was 12…she's almost 15 now."

Kayleigh looked surprised, but not in a bad way. "Wow, Spencer, that's a lot of responsibility," she responded. Spencer nodded.

"I know…it's rough sometimes, but worth it. I'm really close with my sister, and it's been a lot of fun. Dating can get, well, complicated though."

"How?"

"Well…I don't keep alcohol in the house ever. I can't just go to the bars at night with friends on a whim. And I can't be bringing girls back with me."

It was Kayleigh's turn to nod. "Have you ever introduced girls to your sister?"

"Oh yeah, they hang out there, but I can't have girls spending the night," Spencer said, turning slightly red.

Kayleigh smiled and squeezed his hand. "Spencer, I think that's so admirable of you! It shows that you are mature and responsible. I'm certainly not scared off, if that's what you're thinking. You should have just told me." She gave him a knowing smile. Spencer had to laugh while Kayleigh continued. "Look, let's just take it slow, ok? You call the shots; I don't want to cross any lines. So you set the rules, ok?"

"Well…Carly said that if things went well tonight, I should bring you back to our place for ice cream sundaes. Her best friend is over for the night too."

Kayleigh smiled. "I'd like that."