A/N: I'm really sorry for the long update time, but I've been sick all weekend and haven't been able to access my computer. Thank you for all the reviews!!! Here is Chapter 10, hopefully it was worth the wait.
Chapter 10: Day at the Pier
"C'mon Jack, Aaron and Claire will be here any minute now." Kate yelled out, informing Jack of his half-sister's impending arrival.
By all accounts, it had been a quiet morning. Jack didn't have any surgeries today, but he had told was heading in to St. Sebastien's that afternoon to get ahead on his paperwork. Kate had the day off, but had promised Claire she would babysit Aaron for the day so that she could have some alone time with Charlie.
The Paces' hadn't had a peaceful, romantic day since before DriveShaft's tour a few months ago. Unfortunately for Claire, the tour consisted of constant traveling and a never-ending stream of concerts. As much as she loved Charlie's band, an international tour was just too much.
Moments later, Jack walked down the stairs in jeans and a form-fitting t-shirt, and Kate had to take a second to realize just how good he looked in it.
Lost in Jack's figure, it took her a minute to realize that Jack isn't dressed in his normal work attire: shirt and tie.
"I thought you said you were going in to work, Jack?" Kate asked confused.
"Yea, well, I figured I could take a day off. I don't need to do any paperwork, and I haven't seen Aaron for months. Plus, I like spending time with Aaron…" Jack said, and added, noting Kate's smirk, "and you."
"Smooth, Jack. Real smooth." Kate said as the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it." Jack said, as he walked to the front door.
"Jack!" Claire yelled before throwing her arms around her brother an embrace.
Kate had walked over to the door to see the two siblings locked arms, with little Aaron, not wanting to be left out, holding tightly to Jack's right leg.
"Aww…" Kate said to herself, not able to resist a smile.
"Hey little buddy. You ready to have some fun today?" Jack greeted the child, ruffling his hair affectionately.
"Yes!!" Aaron yelled jumping up and down on the doorstep.
"Hey Kate, I hope this isn't to much trouble?" Claire asked politely, giving her friend a wave.
"It's no trouble, I love hanging out with Aaron." Kate responded kindly with a smile.
Claire turned her attentions to Jack, and asked in a lower voice, "So, you're stayin' home, huh? Any particular reason you decided to take your first day off in years?" she addressed Jack with a grin, before, turning to Aaron without waiting for Jack's retort, "Be good for Uncle Jack and Auntie Kate, OK baby?"
"Uncle Jack! Auntie Kate!" Aaron said, a huge smile on his face.
"I guess he's all set then" Claire laughed, "Don't get in to much trouble Jack, or there'll be hell to pay." She said softly to Jack.
"I'm sure Kate will keep me in line." Jack chuckled.
"I'll make sure Kate tells me everything." Claire warned him jokingly.
"Why am I not surprised?" Jack said sarcastically.
"OK, well I guess I'll see you three tonight then, I'm not really sure when we'll be back. Charlie's says the entire day is one big secret."
"Sounds fun, Claire. We'll be fine here. Enjoy yourself today. God, you had to endure months of Charlie singing, you deserve it. We'll be fine here." Jack assured her.
"Don't be to much trouble, baby. I'll see you later." Claire leaned down to kiss her boy on the cheek.
"Bye, mommy." Aaron said.
"You're sure you're ok with this? I mean…" Claire began, not wanting to ruin Jack's day. If he and Kate were both home, alone, she didn't want to interrupt. She didn't even know Sarah and she still thought Kate was 'the one' for Jack.
"Claire, it'll be fine. Besides, I've got Kate here to keep me company." Jack comforted her.
"Yea, of course you do." Claire said as walked back to the car.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jack yelled after her.
Claire didn't stop walking, just turned and smiled at him before continuing on her way.
The trio walked back into the living room and Jack turned the TV on for Aaron while he made him some lunch.
When he walked back with the sandwich in hand, Aaron had snuggled up next to Kate on the couch while they watched cartoons.
Jack had to smile at how cute they looked together. Kate really would make a great mother some day.
He put the sandwich on the coffee table in front of them and sat down on the other side of Aaron. "So buddy, what do ya wanna do today?"
Aaron removed himself from Kate's side, sitting up, and tried his best to think of what he wanted to do with Jack and Kate for the day.
"Uhhh…" He began, having trouble thinking of anything.
The room remained silent, both Jack and Kate adoring how Aaron's nose scrunched up as he thought.
Suddenly, as if he'd come up with an idea, Aaron's face lit up, and he said pointing to the window, "Outside!"
"Outside?" Jack asked quizzically. "Ok, we can do that. So, what's it gonna be? Park?"
Aaron shook his head.
"Playground?" He continued, going through the list in his mind.
Again, Aaron shook his head.
"Pool?" He said.
Aaron took a moment to consider this, and then shook his head once more.
"How about the beach, baby?" Kate suggested.
Aaron's face lit up again. "Beach!" He yelled.
"I guess that settles it." Jack laughed, "I know just the place."
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It hadn't taken long to convince Aaron to go to Santa Monica. Once he'd heard there was an aquarium, a beach and miniature golf, he almost ran straight to the car.
Thirty minutes later and Jack pulled the car into the Santa Monica Pier's parking lot.
"OK, buddy. What do ya wanna do first?" Jack asked the child seated in the car seat in the back.
"Fishes!" Aaron squealed in delight.
Jack turned to Kate, "Aquarium it is then." He said, smiling.
Jack parked the car, and the three of them headed into the aquarium. It was amazing what kind of exotic creatures this particular aquarium held. It definitely wasn't your normal run of the mill aquarium.
Aaron was fascinated by all of it. The first thing he saw were the penguins, and they quickly became the coolest thing in the world. Jack and Kate could only smile at the excitement on the boy's face as he watched the penguins jump and slide into the water.
Next stop, was the sharks.
"Uncle Jack! What they?" Aaron asked, pointing to the tank.
"They're sharks, buddy. Big, scary fish. Cool, huh?" Jack told the boy.
Aaron just nodded, and turned back to watch them swim majestically through the water.
Kate was amazed at how well Aaron and Jack got along, she had always thought Jack would make a great father, she just hadn't realized how great.
Kate's thoughts were interrupted when a woman's voice was heard from behind her.
"You're boy is beautiful." She said, addressing Jack and Kate, "You two look great together."
Kate jaw almost dropped to the floor in surprise. She was speechless, what was she supposed to say? Luckily, Jack spoke up for her.
"Thank you. He's great, isn't he sweetie?" He said, putting his arm around Kate's waist.
Kate was surprised at what he said, but replied, "Yea, definitely, Aaron's amazing."
"Aaron? That's a beautiful name. Well, I better go before my boy's run off again. Enjoy your day." The woman admitted, walking off to find her sons.
Kate watched her leave before saying, "What was that about, Jack?"
"Well, I didn't really wanna tell the whole story. Besides, we do look great together. Even if it's just as friends." Jack admitted, smiling.
As much as his last word's hurt, she had to admit they were the truth. "Yea, I guess we do." She said, returning his smile.
After that awkward incident, the rest of their trip to the aquarium passed by smoothly. They saw seals, all types of colorful fish that had Aaron wide-eyed, and finally back to the penguins. Aaron just couldn't resist seeing them one last time.
As they left the aquarium Jack asked, "OK, buddy. Your choice. You hungry?"
Aaron nodded.
They began to walk towards the food stands, when Aaron suddenly stopped.
Kate asked worriedly, "What's wrong, sweet pea?"
When Aaron didn't speak, she followed his gaze. Her eyes settled on a huge Pirate-themed miniature golf course.
Kate smiled, "Guess the food can wait, huh?"
Aaron just nodded. Kate took his hand, and they began to walk over to the course.
They chose their clubs, and began to make their way to the first hole. Aaron was going to go first, Kate second, and Jack, who was keeping score, would go last.
Aaron took his first shot, and missed horribly. But being the toddler he was, he walked over to his ball, picked it up, then proceeded to drop it in the hole.
"Hole in one!!!" He squealed in delight.
"Good job, buddy." Jack remarked, chuckling. Next it was Kate's turn.
Kate brought the club back and swung, the ball looked like it was headed straight for the hole, but at the last second veered off to the left, missing the whole by a foot.
"You hooked it." Jack said, "Try keeping your left arm straight."
"You givin' me tips?" Kate asked smiling, remembering the last time they'd had this conversation.
Jack blushed, and shrugging his shoulders said, "Kate, I'm a doctor…"
"So you think you can do better?" Kate said, challenging him.
"Kate, anyone can hit a ball. That's not golf." Jack began to explain, just like he had last time.
"Then what's golf?" Kate replied, right on cue.
"Golf…golf is accuracy." Jack explained, his cheeks getting redder.
"Well…why don't we play a few holes and see which one of us is more accurate?" Kate said, clearly enjoying this.
Out of nowhere, from behind Jack, Aaron voice could be heard "Oooooooooohhh!! Uncle Jack in trouble!!!!" He said, clapping his hands together.
Both Jack and Kate laughed. "18 holes, we play for bragging rights." Jack nodded, "Well, what are we waitin' for?"
This time, Kate wasn't going to let anything stop her from winning they're little bet this time.
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They had slowly made their way through the course. They were now on the 18th hole. They were all level so far, and so this whole would decide who gets the bragging rights.
"Well, you're up, Kate." Jack said, after watching Aaron get his 18th hole in one.
"Lucky me." Kate remarked, dropping her ball.
Kate hit her shot very accurately this time, being careful she didn't hook it. She couldn't have Jack making fun of her again. The ball kept true, and stopped merely inches from the hole.
"Nice." Jack complimented.
"Looks like, you're up." She said, eager to see him try and match her.
Jack took his time setting up this shot, he knew if he lost this game he'd never hear the end of it. When he was satisfied, he brought the club back and swung. It initially looked like a very good shot, but it hit the ramp at the wrong angle and flew off, landing half in a puddle, and half in the sand.
"Wow" Kate remarked smugly. "You really put it in there."
Jack finished out, and Kate, thoroughly satisfied she'd beaten Jack, got her bragging rights.
"Looks like you won buddy. You got…. 18!" Jack said, seeing all the ones on the scorecard.
They ate lunch on the boardwalk before heading down towards the beach; there last stop for the day.
Kate found a spot, which was relatively secluded for Santa Monica in April, and they spread a towel down. As they did so, Aaron kept himself occupied with a bucket and shovel Jack had bought for him on the boardwalk.
He didn't stay busy for long, and soon he was begging to be taken into the water. Kate volunteered, and began to strip down to her bathing suit as Aaron put his shovel away.
As they walked down towards the shoreline, Jack marveled at how good she looked. He knew he shouldn't be having these types of thoughts while he was dating another woman, but he couldn't help it. Kate had always made him weak in the knees, and to be honest he was surprised he hadn't fallen for her again since she had moved in with him.
Jack watched, as Kate carried Aaron into the shallowest part of the water. Letting the remnants of the waves lap up against their legs. Jack even saw one bigger one come in and Kate barely had time to lift up Aaron before it splashed against her, rising up to waist.
"We go deeper?" Aaron asked Kate, gesturing towards the people swimming.
"No, sweet pea, you're a little to young to go all the way out there. Maybe next time." Kate replied, sweetly.
Aaron nodded, "OK, Auntie Kate."
Kate continued to pick up him and put him down as the waves splashed around them, a few of them splashing Kate above the waist, extremely cold against her shocked, dry skin.
After one such wave, Kate put Aaron down and instead of walking back towards the water; he was looking at her in a funny way.
"Aaron, are you OK?" She asked, leaning down towards the child.
"Aaron didn't say anything, but she could now tell he wasn't looking at her, he was looking behind her.
She turned, and saw Jack in just his bathing suit, sneaking up behind her with a finger to his lips so Aaron didn't give him away.
Before Kate had time to react, Jack picked her up over his shoulder and they headed into the water, as Aaron watched on, jumping and laughing in excitement.
"You wouldn't, Jack." Kate screamed in an attempt to keep her hair dry, and herself warm.
To her relief, Jack stopped. "You're right. I wouldn't." He said, turning around slowly.
"Should I, Aaron?" He yelled to his nephew, secretly hoping he'd say yes. But, just in case, he had a play in case he said no.
"No be mean to Auntie Kate!" Aaron yelled back, and Kate breathed a sigh of relief.
Kate laughed softly, "I knew you wouldn't, Jack."
Instead of responding, Jack put his plan into action. He took his next step slightly to far, and lost his balance on purpose, sending both Jack and Kate tumbling into the water.
Jack surfaced first, but he couldn't see Kate.
Immediately worried, he said loudly, "Kate? Kate?"
Out of nowhere, she burst out of the water behind him, jumping on his back, sending them both back into the water.
Aaron fell to the ground laughing at them.
"What was that for, Kate?" Jack asked with a grin on his face.
"Oh, like you don't know." Kate replied, with an equally wide smile.
Jack walked back to the shore, and picked up Aaron, bringing him back to the area where Kate was still standing, where the waves crashed around Jack's waistline.
Even though Aaron was barely in the water, he enjoyed it even more than watching Jack and Kate jump all over each other from the shore.
After a while of lifting Aaron up over the waves, he complained he was cold. Satisfied, they headed back up to their towel to dry off and head home.
They were almost done, packing up their stuff when a photographer showed up behind them.
"Hi, can I interest in you in a souvenir photo?" He asked.
"Oh, no, sorry. We're ok." Jack began to answer, but Aaron interrupted.
"Picture!" He shouted, jumping up and down.
Jack continued, "OK, then. We'll take one."
Aaron held his arms out to Kate, and Kate dually obliged, picking up the child and holding him to her chest so he faced the camera, while Jack put his arm around her waist.
Snap! The picture was taken, and three minutes later they got to see the Polaroid fully developed. Aaron was nestled happily in Kate's neck and Kate had a huge smile on her face, Jack's arm wrapped around her. Jack had one of his signature ear-to-ear grins on and looked happier than he'd seen himself in a while. In truth, he was.
Kate put the picture delicately in her purse and they began the short walk back to the car, followed by the shorter drive back to Los Angeles, stopping only to get Aaron a huge lollipop on the way out.
They arrived home around dinnertime and Jack ordered some pizza, while Kate sat down with Aaron to watch some TV. He was worn out from the day.
Two hours and a lot of cartoons later, they had eaten their pizza and Claire arrived to pick Aaron up.
"So, how'd it go?" Kate asked her friend.
"It was great, I'll have to tell you all about it soon. How was Aaron?" Claire happily replied.
"He was great, Jack and I took him to Santa Monica." Kate explained.
"Ohh, that sounds fun." Claire exclaimed.
"It was, tiring, but fun. I finally got to finish my golf bet with Jack!" Kate yelped.
"Oh, he pull the 'I'm a doctor' line on you, again?" Claire said knowingly.
Kate laughed, "Yea, he did. I showed him though."
"I bet you did, Charlie even says he not very good, and coming from Charlie…that's bad. Let's keep that between you and me though." Claire joked as Aaron came running over with Jack close behind.
"Mommy!" He squealed.
"Hey baby, how was your day?"
"Great, mommy! Wanna do it again!" Aaron yelled smiling.
"Maybe sometime baby, maybe sometime. We've got to go, so say goodbye to Auntie Kate and Uncle Jack!"
The boy walked over to both of them and hugged them, and then waved to them the entire way back to Claire's car.
"Alright, I'm going to bed." Kate said tiredly. "Aaron's a lot of work, and you dunking me into the ocean didn't help either." He said, looking pointedly at Jack.
"Oh, come on, you enjoyed it!" Jack said, grinning mischievously.
"Alright, I'll admit it was pretty fun." Kate replied, chuckling to herself as she walked upstairs.
Jack was feeling pretty tired as well, but he had one thing to do before he went to bed. He went over to the drawer in which he kept his random household supplies and grabbed a small frame.
He slipped the picture from the beach together into it and set it down on the table near the front door. All three of them looked really happy, enjoying each other's company.
To anyone passing by, they really looked like the perfect family.
A/N: That's it! Hope you liked it. Please Review, it's what keeps me writing.
Coming Up: Mark comes for a visit, and makes a move on a certain brunette.