The Ways That Count Part Six

Mark and Lexie arrived at the park just seconds apart. They walked together, with Ava between them, towards the picnic table where Meredith, Derek, Mrs. Shepherd, and Derek's sister, Lisa, were sitting. Lisa's two children were playing in the playground.

"Mark Sloan! Look at you!" Carolyn Shepherd jumped up from her seat when she saw her

'second son' approaching. She greeted him with a hug, "And who is this?" She asked, looking at Lexie and Ava.

Meredith walked up to the group, "Mrs. Shepherd, this is my half-sister Lexie." Meredith unconsciously emphasized the word half. "And her daughter, Ava."

Carolyn shook Lexie's hand, "It is so nice to meet you dear." She smiled down at Ava. "And how old are you Ava?"

"Three." Ava smiled shyly at the older woman. Her hand clung to Lexie's.

"Come and sit." Carolyn and Meredith led Mark, Lexie, and Ava to the picnic table.

"Dr. Mark? Will you sit next to me?" Ava asked as she and Lexie sat down at the picnic table.

"Sure kid." Mark could not help but grin at the little girl.

"You must be Lexie." Derek's sister extended a hand across the picnic table.

"Yes." Lexie shook her hand, "It is Lisa, right?"

"Right. How old is Ava?"

"Three, but she'll be four soon." Lexie glanced at the kids playing in the playground. "How old are yours?"

"Cody is 8 and Sara is 5." Lisa smiled, eying Mark, Lexie, and the child sitting between them, "Did you and Marky come together?"

"Um, kind of." Lexie told her. "We..."

"We went swimming!" Ava interrupted excitedly. "Dr. Mark did a canon ball. He made a really, really big splash!"

Lisa laughed, "He did? That's awesome!"

"It was awesome." Ava said in a serious tone.

"Is everyone ready to eat?" Carolyn asked as set out paper plates.

Lisa glanced over her shoulder at her two children. "Cody! Sara! Come and eat!" The two children ran up to the picnic table, sitting on either side of their mother. "Cody, Sara say hi to Lexie and Ava."

"I made three different kinds of sandwiches, egg salad, turkey, and ham." Carolyn pulled out a large Tupperware container out of the color. "And I have bottled water and grape juice boxes."

"Mom makes the best egg salad sandwiches." Derek told Meredith and Lexie.

"An egg salad sandwich sounds great." Carolyn handed her one. "Would you like one of my famous egg salad sandwiches Lexie?"

"Um..." Lexie suddenly felt like everyone's eyes were on her. "I...I would love one...But..."

"Mommy is llergic to eggs." Ava told the table. "If she eats them she gets all red and itchy."

"Oh! Then definitely don't eat one!" Carolyn laughed, "Would you like turkey or ham?"

"Turkey, please. And a ham for Ava."

"What would you two like to drink?"

"Two grape juices."'

Mark was half way through his egg salad sandwich he noticed Ava looking up at him. "Is your ham sandwich good?" He asked.

"Dr. Mark, can I ask ya a question?"

"Sure?" He frowned slightly. What on earth could Ava possibly ask him?

"Will you lay my Mom?"

Lexie nearly chocked on the bite of turkey sandwich that she was chewing on.

Mark felt his eyes widen, "What?"

Before Lexie could stop her, Ava said it, "Renee and Mike said a year and a half was way too long. Mommy needs a good lay." She paused for a moment, "I didn't know what a lay was but my friend Becca said it was when to grownups take a nap together."

"I..." Lexie blinked, she wanted to cry. She wished she could disappear, "I, um..." She looked up to see Meredith's face twist in shock and in slight disgust.

"What's wrong Mommy?"

Lisa laughed, breaking the tension, "It's okay, Lexie...Believe me I know, little ears. You would not believe some of things Cody and Sara have repeated something Bill or I said, or what they have said in public. When Cody was four he would walk up to random women and ask to see their boobs."

"Mom!" Cody hit Lisa's leg. "Stop it." The boy's cheeks turned pink in embarrassment.

Carolyn laughed, "Derek used to do the same thing."

"Mom!" Derek sighed in embarrassment, "Stop it."

Carolyn laughed again, shaking her head, "So, Lexie, Meredith Derek tell me you are a doctor to."

"Yeah, well, I'm an intern." Lexie told the older woman before finishing off her sandwich. "You are a doctor to, aren't you Lisa?"

"Yes. I'm a pediatrician." Lisa explained, "I just opened my own practice."

"Wow. That is amazing. Congratulations!"

Lisa smiled. "Thank you, Lexie. I've been wanting to open my practice for years now. I still cannot believe it actually happened. Do you know what you want your specialty to be yet?"

"No, not yet." Lexie shook her head, "I want to be able to really explore all my options before I choose one."

Carolyn smiled, "You have plenty of time to decide. How about you Meredith? Have you decided?"

"Yeah. Nero." She smiled nervously at Derek, "I knew fairly early into my intern year that Nero was the place for me."

Carolyn's smile brightened just slightly, "That's wonderful. Derek, you must be so proud."

Derek took Meredith's hand, "I am."

Ten minutes later the children were playing together in the playground, while the adults watched them from the picnic table. "Ava looks so much like you Lexie."

Lexie nodded in agreement, "She really does. You should see my baby pictures compared to hers. We are identical. I haven't seen an ounce of her father in her yet."

"What is the deal with her father?" Lisa asked.

"Lisa..." Carolyn scolded.

"What?" Lisa sighed, "It's just a question. We were all thinking it."

"I'm sorry, he is just not the easiest subject to talk about."

"Was it a one night stand?" Meredith blurted out. She quickly realized just how mean that sounded, "I mean, you don't seem like the kind of girl who has one night stands..."

"Bobby and I were together for almost three years before I got pregnant." Lexie looked Meredith in the eye. "When I told him about that I was pregnant and I was keeping the baby he broke up with me."

"I'm sorry Lexie." Lisa apologized to her sincerely, "I didn't mean to pry."

Lexie gave her a small smile, "It's okay, don't worry about it."

"Has he ever seen met her?" Meredith asked curiously.

"He has spent a total of six days with her?" Lexie thought for a moment, "He showed up at my door one night when she was six months old, stayed around for two days and left. About a year later he showed up again, and stayed for four days. I haven't seen him since." She quickly decided to leave out the part she took him back, and slept with him, both times.

"I can see you are doing a wonderful job without him, dear." Carolyn gave her hand a small squeeze.

She smiled, "Thank you."

"Uncle Derek!" Cody yelled from the swings, "Come play with us!"

Derek smiled at Meredith, "Let's go play with the kids Mer." Before Meredith could protest Derek grabbed her hand and walked her to the swings.

"Mommy..." Ava walked up to her mother. "I need to go potty."

Lexie smiled. "Okay sweetie, I'll take you." She turned back to the group, "I'll be right back."

"We'll be waiting..." Mark muttered, as he turned to watch them walk away.

Lisa laughed, "You are so checking out her ass."

"I am not." Mark quickly denied it.

"Yes you are!" Lisa grinned.

"No he wasn't." Carolyn told her daughter.

"Thank you Mrs. Shepherd."

"You have a lot to learn, Lisa..He wasn't checking out her butt...He was watching her walk away...There is a difference."

Lisa gasped, as her eyes lit you, "You like her! Don't you Marky? You like the single Mom!"

"Her name is Lexie." Mark automatically corrected her.

"But you do!" Lisa seemed excited now. "That's why you took them swimming..."

"I didn't swimming...They came to hotel and used the pool."

Carolyn rolled her eyes, "Lisa go make sure your children aren't torturing Derek. I want to talk to Mark alone."

"But Mom."

"Go."

Lisa sighed, "Fine."

"Come on, Mark, tell me the truth. Do you like her?" She paused, "And don't lie. You are like a second son to me. And I know when my children are lying."

Mark sighed, "I do like her. But I'm not sure if I should..."

"Why not?" Carolyn crossed her arms. "She's a lovely girl."

"Because of me. She's sweet...And I'm just not." He shook his head, "And she has a daughter. And I'm me."

"So it bother's you that she is mother?"

"No." Mark quickly told her, "Not at all. I actually really like Ava. She's cute."

"So what's the problem?"

"I always seem to hurt women, you know, break their hearts. I don't want to do that to Lexie. Or Ava." He scratched the back of his neck, "And she's young."

"You have such low expectations for yourself Mark Sloan." Carolyn shook her head, "Since you were a little boy. you always have." She smiled, "It's time to raise them." She paused, "You don't always hurt women. And I think you need to give this a shot...She likes you, you know."

"You think so?"

"Trust me. Mother knows best." She laughed, "Promise me, you'll think about it?"

He smiled, "I promise."

TBC...? Please review.