Disclaimer: Do not own. Wish I did but don't.

Rating M for language, violence, and sexual content.

The sun tickled her eye lids, asking for her to open them. She complied, the heavy shields fluttering open slowly. The sky was painted a sea blue, white clouds patching the otherwise clear sky, the sun slowly making its way up to join the rest of his family.

A slight rumble sounded through Tifa's ears, suddenly bringing her back down to earth. She let her eyes trail up the muscled form to find Cloud's haunting blue eyes looking at her. Immediately, Tifa blushed.

"You're awake," he stated, his chest rising and falling slowly. She merely nodded, feeling incredibly self conscious. Never before had she had his attention so solely devoted to her. She didn't know what to think, she felt almost childish.

His eyes flickered over her features, taking in the sight of her beauty, "Why are you red?" He asked her, his voice rough with the gift of morning. She swallowed, "I'm embarrassed," she admitted, giving a nervous laugh.

Cloud stared at her, his face solemn as always, "Of what?" Tifa buried her face into his side, her fingers curling to form small fists, "I didn't think you would be here when I woke up. I figured that you were just…that last night was…I don't know. I'm just embarrassed."

"Tifa-"

She raised her eyes up to him again, the tenderness in his voice a rarity that she needed to enjoy while she had it, "Why would I leave?"

Tifa sat up, holding the blankets to her nude chest, her bed hair falling into her face slightly, "I just assumed that last night was a fluke, that you were drunk or something."

"Did I smell like alcohol?"

She shook her head. He cleared his throat, "Then I wasn't drunk. I wasn't anything other than me. I wasn't sleeping, either. I had stayed up so that I may speak with you."

Tifa looked at the destroyed bed sheets and smiled slightly, "Well…that wasn't exactly how things turned out, huh?"

Cloud didn't answer; instead he remained perfectly still, "I couldn't let you go on a date with Reno. I had to show you…I needed to show you…"

She raised an eyebrow, her eyes curious, "And what exactly were you trying to show me?"

One of his strong hands found hers and squeezed it, "How I felt. I'm not all that great when it comes to emotions. I tend to just pretend like I don't feel, it makes life easier. But with Reno trying to take you away, I stayed up the entire time you were working to think about things. And I came to terms with that Reno was all wrong for you, that he didn't know how to treat you. I wanted to try to convince you not to go, but once I was at your door, something came over me. I realized that I didn't just want to convince you, I wanted you to know why you shouldn't go."

Tifa's pink tongue sleeked out of her mouth and licked her dry lips before returning to its home inside her mouth, "Why shouldn't I?" She asked him, trying to milk his openness for all that she possibly could.

Cloud's head bowed down so that all she could see where pigments of blue peering at her through golden hair, "Because he can't love you the way you need to be loved, because I couldn't stand to lose you."

She leaned towards him, tucking the strands of blond behind his ears so that she couldn't look at him better, "But if he can't love me the way I need to be loved, who can?" Tifa asked Cloud, her voice suggestive.

Cloud's eyes gave a flash of lust before it disappeared quickly, being replaced with a flirty twinkle, "You shouldn't have to ask."

************

"Mommy, I said I want pancakes!" Marlene wailed, her eyes rounding in displeasure as she eyed the sausage and biscuits that Tifa was preparing. Denzel glared at his sister, "Shut up Marley, if mommy doesn't want to make pancakes she doesn't haveta."

"Thank you Denzel, but don't tell your sister to 'shut up'," Tifa said, concentrating on the sausage gravy she was cooking.

"Mommy, you look pretty today. You haven't dressed in that outfit before," Denzel told Tifa, smiling at her from his spot at the table beside Marlene. Tifa glanced down at her clothes and smiled. It was true; she had tried something different today. She wore a red, form-fitting t-shirt, a pair of jeans that hugged her thighs and rear, and a pair of red flip flops to match. She had her hair pulled up off of her shoulders in a messy but public ready pony tail.

"You're pretty in red," Marlene added, sneering at Denzel. Her brother glared at her, realizing that his sibling was trying to out do his affections.

"Thank you, you two. That's very sweet. Mommy just wanted to try something different," she added, stirring the thick liquid around in the pan.

"Hey Mommy, how come Cloud slept in your room last night?"

Tifa froze at Marlene's question, her eyes round with horror, "What…how did you know that?"

Marlene glanced at Denzel and then shrugged, "I had a nightmare and I wanted to have Cloud check under my bed for me, but he wasn't in his room, so I looked in your room and he was having a sleep over in your bed with you. You two looked really sleepy so I just woke up Denzy. Did Cloud have a bad dream too?"

Tifa's eyes caught Denzel's, who seemed just as curious as Marlene, "Um, yeah. He had a bad dream."

"Oh, well tell him that if he ever wants to, he can come sleep on the floor in our room, he doesn't have to always sleep over in your room," she offered, her smile sincere. Tifa couldn't help but return the sentiment, a warm smile consuming her face as well, "I love you guys."

Denzel blushed and Marlene giggled, "We love you too, Mom."

Tifa turned back to the breakfast she was preparing, listening to her two adopted children bickering back and forth over pancakes and sausage gravy when she heard the floors creak, "Good morning, Cloud!" Marlene exclaimed, Denzel offering his own greeting shortly afterwards.

"Morning," responded Cloud's thick voice. The martial artist/full time mom's breath caught in her throat, her mind swimming. Just the thought of Cloud being in the same room with her after their night together was enough to make her squeal in girlish delight. He had all but confirmed his feelings for her verbally, and had done so physically. And what made her heart beat fast was that he had in a round about way, which was typical Cloud, told her that he wanted to love her, take care of her. Her whole life she had waited for this, and now that it was here, she was simply euphoric.

"Look at what Mom dressed in," Denzel said, probably pointing towards Tifa's dangerously straight back. The floor boards creaked again, and soon she could smell him, the intoxicating cologne, the smell of his soap, the smell of his skin, all of it.

"What's the occasion?" Cloud asked her, his voice having a hint of humor. Tifa couldn't help but let a goofy grin claim her face as she turned to look at him. He was dressed as usual, his blue eyes warmer today as he regarded her, "Oh just felt like something different."

His eyes worked their way from her face to her feet, and then back up again, lingering on certain aspects of her anatomy, "Change is good," Cloud commented, his lips pulling into a slight smile. Her heart raced again. Tifa was sure that her cheeks were turning red again as she turned back to the breakfast she was preparing, grabbing four bowls and placing a couple golden biscuits inside each one of them. Next she scooped out the sausage gravy and spread it over the bread, sighing at the sight of the meal.

"It's ready," she said, turning the stove burner off and setting a bowl in front of each of the table's occupants. She grabbed hers and joined them, Cloud directly across from her, a sardonic expression on his face.

Suddenly Marlene giggled, "What?" Tifa asked, swallowing a bite of her food.

"Cloud likes your outfit!" She teased, pointing at Cloud and giggling some more. Denzel looked at Cloud, as did Tifa. He had turned his head so that he could look the other way, but Tifa was quite sure that she had caught sight of a blush.

************

Tifa had cleaned up after breakfast, letting the kids run out to play, Cloud leaving to make a delivery. She breathed in the fresh air around her, relishing the sound of silence. It was truly golden. Bobbing her head to the side as she jogged down the stairs towards the bar, Tifa hummed a song. She was feeling extremely upbeat today, the cause more than obvious, at least to her and to Cloud. Only they knew their secret.

The long haired beauty had been taking stock in the back room when that thought had frozen her in time, her mouth slightly parted. How long would they remain a secret? If it had taken Cloud this long to show his feelings for her, to claim her as his own, how long would she need to hide it? Tifa Lockhart is an affectionate girl, damn it! She thought to herself, her eyes falling down to the floor, busying themselves with the patterns that the wood created. She hadn't thought about this part before, it was always the journey of winning Cloud over, not what she should do once she got there.

Her face fell, a mild form of depression forming in her chest. "What do I do, now?" She asked herself, exhaling. And for the first time in her lifetime, Tifa was left completely helpless.

I know, I know, SHORT! But, I promise the next chapter will make up for it. Keep the reviews coming. I like to know that my stories are appealing to others. Until then, much love!

~Nikki~