A Second Chance

Chapter 24

"Lee?"

"Yeah?" He asked, looking up from feeding Logan and seeing Clementine, shuffling her feet with her head hung low. It had been three days since his return, and things had never been going smoother in his relationship with Carley.

"You know when you were in Savannah?" She asked, obviously testing the ground. He nodded, placing the empty bottle down beside him on the log and bringing his son up to his shoulder, gently rubbing his back. "Did you find my parents?"

Logan promptly spit up, covering his shoulder. He swore lightly, moving the smiling boy away.

"Car! He did it again!" He yelled, gesturing for Clementine to wait a second.

"Again? When are you going to remember the burping cloth?!" Her voice called back, slight laughter in it. He watched as she hopped out of their tent with the small, rather grubby cloth in her hand. He took it gratefully, handing her over their son in exchange.

"Thanks." He grumbled, slipping his blue button-down off and wiping the white spit-up away gently. His face scrunched up in disgust when the left over spit up on the material rubbed off, leaving an even bigger stain. "Oh, shit this fucking cloth…"

"Watch your language, Lee!" Carley lectured, bouncing Logan in her arms and glaring at her boyfriend. "The kids could hear you!"

"Yes dear." He mocked, pulling a funny face and grumbling as he set back to work on his shirt. After several unsuccessful attempts, he just growled and pulled it back over his head. "Screw it."

"You are so gross…" Carley said, rolling her eyes and chuckling. She looked down at the baby in her arms. "Come on, L.J, you need your diaper changed. Say 'bye daddy!'"

Lee smiled at the use of his son's nickname. Hell, he was proud to say he was the one to come up with it. He waved slightly, going to hug his girlfriend when she backed away, staring at the puke-stain hesitantly.

"No way, Everett." She laughed, turning her back and walking over to their tent. "I may love you. But not enough for a pukey hug."

"Thanks babe." He muttered, sitting back down on the log. He remembered Clementine and turned to her quickly. "What did you want to ask me, Clem?"

It took her a while before finally replying, seeming to think her words over carefully

"It doesn't matter…"

"You sure?" He asked, checking that she was absolutely certain.

"Yeah." She muttered, walking away from him, towards Duck, who was playing with a patched up soccer ball by the clearing. He leaned back and watched as they dribbled the ball to each other, laughing all the while. Then, David (Carley's father) emerged from his tent, his hair ruffled and his eyes dark.

"Hey David!" He shouted, standing to approach his un-official father-in-law. He turned to look at him and smiled, waving him over.

"Hey Lee. How're you doing, son?" He asked, clapping him on the shoulder and leading him away from the camp.

"I , uh, wanted to talk to you about something." He replied. He felt his heart beating beneath his ribcage and took several steadying breaths. Once they were far enough away, he started. "Obviously, Carley will have told you about my past."

"Yes she has." He nodded, crossing his arms over his chest and looking at the younger man with admiration.

"And I want you to know that… what I did…. I regret it every day. I will never ever harm your daughter, Logan or Clementine. I promise." He said, looking directly into David's emerald eyes. It was almost like talking to his girlfriend.

"Thank you, son. That means a lot to me." He responded, unfolding his arms and stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Now, is there anything else? I know for a fact that wasn't the only thing you wanted to talk to me about."

Lee was taken aback. Shit this guy knew people!

"Actually, I was wondering if you would consider marrying us, if I had your blessing to ask her in the first place." He mumbled. This was nothing like the last time. He and Carley had kids to think about now. "I know you probably hate my guts for what I've done in the past, but I know I love her and our kids. And I want to spend whatever time I have left in this world as your daughter's husband."

David seemed to think over Lee's words for a moment. Here was a man with a lot of regrets. A lot. Yet, he was going through absolute hell for a child that wasn't his and his new family. This, David thought, was a real man. He wasn't pretending to be brave or tough. He wasn't risking his life over every tiny bump in the road. He was just trying to do what was best for his family and the people he cared about.

"Of course you have my blessing, son. I know how you feel about each other. And who am I to deny love?" He grinned, pulling the younger man into a hug. He laughed when he felt Lee's heartbeat going about five times too fast. "Just don't go giving me any more grandchildren until this entire mess is over with." He laughed, pulling away from their embrace.

"Anything you say, sir." He chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck and walking away, leaving David to think over what had just happened.

Lee approached their tent, hearing gurgles of happiness coming from inside; no doubt it was Logan laughing at his mother. He opened the entrance and was met with the cutest sight he had ever seen.

Carley was laid on her back, her legs bent with Logan resting against them, being jiggled and squealing in pure happiness. She looked towards the sudden light and grinned at him, gesturing for him to approach them. He did as she asked, plopping down next to her and gently stroking the duck-fluff that was his son's hair.

She leaned up to kiss her boyfriend's cheek before sitting up and cradling her baby boy in her arms. Her left hand made its way over and her fingers snaked between his, her head resting coming to rest gently on his shoulder.

They stayed in silence for a while, just enjoying being together once again.

"So…" Lee started, breaking the comfortable quiet they had formed. Carley moved her head away from his shoulder and looked up into his dark brown eyes. "We're pretty much a married couple by now, aren't we? We just have different last names."

She nodded, her mouth forming a grin as she did.

"Yeah, you could say that." She agreed, squeezing his hand gently.

"Well, how about we change that? Logan and I are getting lonely being the only Everetts around here." He said, his voice light and joking. His eyes, though, were more serious than she'd ever seen.

"What?" She gasped, her emerald orbs widening in shock. He chuckled, nodding his head and turning so he was on one knee, still holding her hand firmly in his.

"Carley, I'm asking you to marry me. I love you. We've got our son and daughter. I want us to be a proper family. So, what do you say? Will you marry me?" He said, allowing words to flow from his mouth. His eyes were still locked securely on hers, waiting for some sort of answer.

She let go of his hand, stood up and placed Logan in his porta-crib before practically pouncing on him, kissing him passionately, at the same time toppling both of them backwards onto the floor. They stayed in the lover's embrace for a while before Lee pulled away, breathing heavily.

"So, is that a yes then?" He asked, laughing when she nodded happily, once again tugging the front of his shirt and bringing him in for a heated kiss.

A/N- OMFG guys im so sorry! I've had such a busy week so I haven't updated in like forever! Please feel free to send me a virtual slap (my girlfriend will do it for you) in the reviews.

So, pour your CarLee feels out in this chapter! I decided to give you quite a fluffy one to make up for the huge update break! Again, I'm so sorry! Please review? HPTwin OUT!