"The One" – Part 40

Summary and additional notes in part 1.

Author's Note: Thanks for the awesome reviews guys! So glad to hear that you all like Finlay :D

Anonymous - Thanks for the kind words :D

This is not related to my Degrassi timeline fics. (See my Author's profile for details!)

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Degrassi!

-oOo-

"Maybe I should go back out there?" Fiona suggested.

Holly J sent her a frustrated look.

"I left him out there with my mom," Fiona noted.

Holly J sighed. "And Finlay. When we left he and Adam were hitting it off," she pointed out.

Finlay was a friendly kid, but it usual took time for him to warm up to new people. It surprised her, but she could tell right away that Finlay liked Adam. He invited him to play with his toys, which was a good sign.

Fiona giggled. "You're right. Finlay did seem to take a shine to him."

"Yes, so let's finish this! The sooner you know what you're going to wear, the sooner we could go back out there and get some food," Holly J pointed out.

A half hour later they were set.

"You sure you don't want to start on the packing?" Holly J asked.

Fiona shook her head. "It's not really my strong suit." She was going to get one of the maids to do it.

Holly J playfully rolled her eyes. In this moment Adam's favorite nickname for her seemed quite fitting.

"I'm ready," Fiona declared. This wasn't quite the evening she envisioned, but she was elated that they were all here. "Andiamo!"

As they walked down the hall they heard more voices. In the kitchen they spotted Mrs. Coyne talking to the cooks. The older woman looked up and smiled at them.

"There you guys are! We're about to serve dinner. Everyone else is in the den," Mrs. Coyne revealed.

"Thanks Mom!" Fiona said. She shared a quick look with Holly J and the two continued onwards to the den. The sight that met their eyes made both of them smile from ear to ear.

Declan and Mr. Coyne had both arrived. Her father was sitting on the couch with a delighted expression as he watched Declan and Adam play a game with Finlay on the carpeted floor. In addition to his train, there were wooden building blocks and the little boy was elated as the train travelled on an 'invisible' track around the 'towers'.

"Hey look, it's Mommy!" Declan pointed out to his son.

The toddler looked up with a huge grin. "Hi Mommy! Daddy and Adam helped me build a city!"

All the adults laughed.

Holly J smiled at him. "That's a wonderful city. Right, Aunt Fifi?"

Fiona briefly glanced at Adam, amused. "I agree!"

-oOo-

The mood was relaxed and jovial around the dinner table. Conversation flowed easier this time around, as they discussed how their day went and various other topics of interests.

"And then I told him, that's what happens when you take the L.I.E.!" Declan finished.

The whole table laughed. Even Finlay, who didn't get the punch line but loved to laugh.

Adam leaned towards Fiona. "What does that stand for?" he whispered.

She grinned at him. Sometimes she forgot he was still new to the city. "Long Island Expressway."

"Oh," he said with understanding.

Mrs. Coyne grinned as she took another sip of her wine. She was pleasantly surprised at how well the evening was going. Despite her reservations, Adam seemed to fit right in! She knew her husband and son genuinely liked him. Holly J seemed to be warming up to him. And her grandson, Finlay, already adored him. She finally felt like she could relax about Fiona's choice. Beth was a good person, but so was Adam.

"So Adam, tell us more about the wedding. Where is it being held?" Mrs. Coyne inquired.

Adam looked up and smiled at her. "Well, my good friend Brian recently got married to a lovely woman named, Carla. They both work at the Boston branch of my company. The wedding was two weeks ago in the Bahamas, where Brian's family is originally from." The groom still had lots of extended family on the island.

"That sounds lovely," she remarked.

Fiona smiled broadly, sensing the sincerity in her tone.

"They're holding a reception this weekend to celebrate with everyone who couldn't make it," he concluded.

Mr. Coyne cracked a grin. "That's nice. Sort of two weddings instead of one," he remarked.

Adam chuckled. "Yeah, in a way."

"So why didn't you go to the wedding?" Declan asked. Fiona had told him he hadn't but didn't disclose the reasoning behind it.

Holly J sent her husband a scolding look and he shrugged innocently.

"I wanted to. I was slated to be a groomsman," Adam revealed. "But my job transfer date was pushed back. I was in a midst of starting here and couldn't get time off to go."

"That sucks," Declan stated. He didn't have such limitations. As an executive for a multinational corporation he took vacations whenever he wanted to.

"It is unfortunate," Mrs. Coyne agreed. "So, you were going to be a groomsman? That sounds like you're pretty close to them."

Adam nodded. "Yes, I've known Brian for three years. He was my mentor when I first started. I've known Carla for about just as long as he has."

Fiona grinned at him. "And without you there might not be a wedding!" she pointed out. He was being so modest.

"Is that so?" Mr. Coyne said surprised.

Adam smiled at Fiona. "Possibly. I introduced Brian to Carla."

"Oh, that's wonderful!" Mrs. Coyne thought it was so sweet of him.

"Ah, you played matchmaker?" Declan smirked.

Adam grinned as he walked up to the coffee stand. Carla Hernandez was next in line to order her AM energy boast – an Americano.

"Just say 'yes'!"

She turned around at the sound of his voice. Her long, wavy black hair flowed independently. "Oh, you again," she deadpanned.

Adam smirked. "Believe me, I've learned not to say 'Good Morning' until you've had a few sips of that stuff!"

She gave him a look and then turned back to Vincent, the coffee guy. She paid for her coffee and wished him a good day. As she walked away Adam fell into step right beside her.

"Did anyone ever tell you that you're persistent?" she quipped.

Adam chuckled. "Yep, and they usually think that's a good thing."

She shook her head and took a sip of her coffee. "You're not going on line to get your own?"

"I will in a minute," he shrugged. "So, do you have an answer yet?"

Carla sighed. She had only known Adam for about a week. Her best friend Bridget was getting married and they had a night out with the girls to celebrate. Bridget didn't want a traditional bachelorette party with a stripper so they went out for drinks and ended up at a nondescript bar. As the night went on a number of men approached them, but Adam Torres had left an impression. There were only two bridesmaids that were single. Carla and Emily.

Emily was the maid of honor and sister of the bride, so when Adam and his wingman came over they all focused on trying to get her a date. Carla was a little bit annoyed at them pushing Adam and Emily together, because she was single too but she figured it was just as well. She wasn't into one night hook ups. Carla wanted to meet someone real and have a relationship but it was so hard meeting a good guy. Adam knew this about her too, because at the bar they had played the 'why are you single?' game. Usually she was never so honest, but she didn't think she would ever see him again. She was shocked when she ran into Adam at the coffee stand outside of their workplace the following Monday.

"I barely know you! Who's to say your friend isn't an axe murderer or something?" she joked. As far as she knew the guy he was bugging her about wasn't his same friend from the bar.

He laughed. "You're right. You don't know me from Adam! Right now all we have in common is that we work at the same place and we both know Emily."

Despite herself, she grinned. "True. How's that going by the way?"

Emily and Adam had become rather physical as the night progressed. Carla and her friends dismissed them as a drunken hook up so she was surprised to hear that they were still in contact!

Adam smiled broadly. "Pretty good. She's… I think we're well matched."

Carla snorted. "Uh huh. You guys have one significant interest in common!"

He shrugged. "Okay, enough deflection! Honestly, I don't know you well but I do know this. You have nothing to lose from meeting up for coffee." His friend Brian was a great guy.

Carla thought about it. She hated being set up. It never went well, and it was downright strange for a guy she barely knew to set up a blind date for her. However, she recognized that sometimes in life you had to take a chance.

"I'll let you know," she told Adam.

He smiled. "Fair enough," he conceded. "Anyway, I'm going to get on the line for coffee before it grows any longer."

Carla laughed. It had doubled in size since they stopped to chat. "Good luck with that!"

"Thanks!" he said as he walked away. "I'll see you at the wedding and badger you some more there!"

Adam looked at Declan and shrugged. "I just thought they would make a good pair."

Fiona sent him a knowing look.

.

tbc

A/N: Well, wonders never cease! Mrs. Coyne has put away the knives ;-) Finlay continues to be adorable. And Declan continues to be… Declan? Lol. And, yeah it sounds like Fi's right the role Adam played in setting things in motion…

Reviews rock! :D

In the next chapter… family is at the forefront!

Another Note: I can't believe this is up to chapter 40! Insane! Before I started writing about Fadam, I was lucky to finish 5 or 6 chapters of a story! This is definitely my longest story ever. It's well over 100 pages in Word. Again, insane! Thanks for the following! I really do appreciate every review. It's fun to read reactions and the support does help when I'm writing :) Okay, end of rambling. I tend do so during milestones, haha!