Cate's head was nestled on Baze's chest, his arms wrapped possessively around her when the alarm clock went off. Cate immediately shot up.

She'd gotten used to getting up early with Lux and she knew they needed to get back before Abby left for school.

Baze's eyes fluttered open when Cate broke free from his grip. He hadn't wanted to let go of her.

"Hey," Baze protested, fixing Cate with sad puppy dog eyes. "Come back."

Baze was hard to resist, well, all the time, but especially when he gave her that look. She hoped Lux didn't inherit her dad's pout. Cate would never be able to tell her daughter no if she had. "We're already cutting it close," Cate said, biting her lip.

"Just a few more minutes?" Baze pleaded.

Cate summoned all of her strength and shook her head. She glanced around the bedroom, looking for her dress. "Have you seen my dress?"

Baze smirked as he watched Cate move around the room wearing nothing. Even with no make-up on and her hair tousled from sleep, she looked beautiful. He held up the dress. "What? This dress?"

Cate glared at him, hands on her hips. "Hand it over."

Baze shook his head. "Nah, you're gonna have to come over here and get it." He patted the bed.

Cate sighed and sat down beside him. Baze pulled her to him, kissing her softly. He shifted so Cate was underneath him and would have a hard time getting up. Baze kissed Cate's neck.

"Mmm," Cate murmured. She was trying to think, but her mind was cloudy. All she could think of was how much she wanted Baze.

Baze continued kissing a trail down Cate's body. Cate moaned. It felt like he would never enter her. When he finally did, she cried out in pleasure. She breathed heavily, lying contentedly in Baze's arms.

Baze glanced at the clock. "Crap! We gotta go."

Cate punched his shoulder lightly. "That's what I said…" She glanced at the clock and swore. "Half an hour ago!"

They hastily threw their clothes on. Baze took their bags out to the car while Cate cleaned up the kitchen.

Cate scanned through the radio stations when Baze started his car. She found her favorite morning show and turned the volume up. She'd listened to the show as she ran before school back when she was trying to lose the weight she'd gained from her pregnancy.

"We're taking applications for our summer internship program," Slacker announced.

"Yeah, Slacker's too lazy, so we need someone to pick up the slack," Ken joked.

"I desperately need another girl, so ladies, please send your applications to the station. I'm stuck here with these idiots," Jennifer said lightly.

Cate made a note to look into that later. She'd always been very motivated, but since Lux had come into her life she'd put her own future. She knew she needed to get on top of things if she wanted to have a future.

She'd been waiting for Baze to decide where he was going to college. She cast a sidelong glance at him. "Have you, uh, decided where you're going to college yet?" Cate asked, trying to sound nonchalant. She'd asked him a few times. The answer was always the same. He didn't realize how frustrating it was for her to not know.

"No," Baze replied. "Have you?"

Cate hesitated. Normally she just said no, but this was getting them nowhere fast. She took a deep breath. "Actually I've been waiting for you to decide where you're going. I, uh, didn't know if you wanted me to factor that in." Baze's expression was impassive. Cate quickly added, "Or not."

Baze shook his head. "No, I don't want you to factor me in."

Cate's face fell. She averted her gaze. "Oh. Yeah. OK."

"No, Cate, what I mean is, you should go wherever you want to go," Baze said quickly. "You're smart. You can do anything you want. I don't wanna hold you back. I don't wanna be that guy."

Cate nodded slowly. She knew he was trying to do the right thing, but it didn't feel right. How could it be the right thing if it meant they might no be together?

Baze's ocean blue eyes bored into Cate's chocolate eyes. "I'll do whatever I have to, you know, to be with Lux and you."

Cate smiled slightly, though she couldn't help but wonder if Baze wanted to be with her or if he just wanted to be close to Lux. She immediately felt like a horrible person for being jealous of her own daughter.

Baze grinned. He held Cate's gaze. He realized that what he'd said was true. He would do anything to be with her. He'd never felt like this before in his life. It overwhelmed him.

Every time he looked at her, every time he touched her he knew in his gut that he belonged with her. Whenever they were apart, he wanted to be with her.

Their trip had made him realize what had been right in front of him all along. He loved Cate.

When they'd exchanged gifts, Baze had loved the jersey Cate gave him, but he'd been even happier that Cate loved her necklace. For the first time in his life, he cared more about making Cate happy than making himself happy.

Cate felt Baze's gaze and blushed slightly. "What?"

"Cate, I, uh…" Baze trailed off. For some reason, he couldn't bring himself to say the three little words he desperately wanted to say. What was wrong with him? There was no doubt in his mind that he loved her.

"Yeah?" Cate said.

"I, uh, want to be with you," Baze said lamely.

Cate flashed Baze a perfect smile. "I want to be with you, too." She reached for his hand, intertwining her fingers with his.

"Will you be OK?" Baze asked when he dropped Cate off in front of her house. They were seventeen minutes late. Traffic had been worse than they'd expected.

Cate nodded. She knew he needed to get ready for school. There was no way they were going to make it to first period as it was. "Yeah. Go ahead."

Laverne was waiting for Cate in the foyer. "Where the hell have you been?"

Cate swallowed. "I was out with Baze."

"Yeah, I know. All night," Laverne said angrily.

"I'm surprised you noticed," Cate muttered. Normally Laverne would have been too drunk to care where her daughters were.

"I'll bet you are," Laverne shot back. She glared at her daughter. "You can't do this."

"Can't do what?" Cate cried out.

"Stay out all night," Laverne spat out, hands on her hips.

Cate crossed her arms in front of her chest defiantly. "Look who finally sobered up and decided to be a parent."

"Oh, and you think you're a better parent than I am?" Laverne asked, venom in her voice.

"Yeah, I do," Cate said.

"I may not be perfect, but I never left you and Abby all night when you weren't even a year old," Laverne pointed out.

"No, you brought your boyfriends home," Cate retorted.

"Your sister was late for school. I had to call in sick to work so I could stay here with your daughter," Laverne said, her tone accusatory.

"I'm sorry!" Cate half-whined, half-shouted.

Laverne's expression softened. "Cate, I know this isn't easy for you. I'm impressed with how good you've been with Lux."

Cate looked up in surprise. "Thanks, Mom."

Laverne nodded. "You've been forced to grow up fast, but you're not a grown up yet. You're still my daughter. I can't allow you to stay out all night. I mean, do you want another kid?"

"No, of course not," Cate said quickly.

"You and Baze, you're getting very serious," Laverne said tentatively.

Cate shifted uncomfortably under her mom's gaze. She blushed slightly. "We're being careful."

Laverne smiled ruefully. "Condoms aren't one hundred percent effective as you know all too well. You need to go on the pill."

Cate nodded slowly, avoiding making eye contact. "OK. OK."