Chapter 10

It had been, Niles thought, one of the best night's sleep a man could possibly ever have. And now it was finished, not interrupted, just ended by what appeared to be rays of sun from a beautiful morning shining in through the gap in the curtains.

His entire body felt rested, and the body next to his own that stretched leisurely as she awoke surely felt the same. Her idea to stay awake until midnight so that they saw in their anniversary in style had been an extremely good idea.

C.C. turned over to face him, a beaming – if sleepy – smile spread across her face.

"Good morning," she murmured, reaching up and stroking his cheek with the tips of her fingers as he wound his arms around her waist and back, still delightfully bare from the night's activities.

"It certainly is," he leaned forward, and kissed her on the lips. "Happy anniversary, love."

"Mm. Happy anniversary," C.C. returned the sentiment by kissing him again, slightly harder. "You think we can get away with staying in bed a little longer, before we have to get up and make it a public celebration?"

"Hm..." leaving one arm around her, Niles rolled himself over to check the clock, and he frowned. "Not if we want to be ready by the time the guests arrive."

C.C. groaned, hiding her face in the crook of his neck. She didn't really want to get out of bed, but they had too many things to do. They'd spend a lazy morning in bed some other time, but for now they had to get up.

"Fine," C.C. grumbled, propping herself up on her elbow. "But we are taking a shower together."

Niles smirked. It was a blessing Amelia had spent the night at Stewart's (the older man had jokingly said it would give them time to have their own private celebration) because if not they wouldn't have time for a pleasant shower. Not to mention it gave them the liberty to be as loud and as… spontaneous… as they pleased.

"If I ever say no to a suggestion like that, I want you to kill me," Niles said as they disentangled themselves from one another and made their way to the en-suite bathroom. It had a wonderful and ample double shower, which provided them with numerous (and very interesting) lovemaking possibilities.

"With pleasure," C.C. chuckled, wrapping her arms around his middle as they went.

As usual, Niles took care of preparing their shower, setting the temperature exactly the way C.C. liked it. It really wasn't a surprise when their double shower took them twice as long, but they couldn't bring themselves to care – they felt far too elated to care.

Today wasn't a day to be in a rush – today was a day of celebration.

And so, after their more than pleasing (pleasing being the operative word) shower, the couple swiftly got into their selected outfits for the day before finally emerging from their room, hand in hand and ready to have breakfast.

They had to eat in a bit of a hurry, though – they had taken so long in the shower that they had little time to finish preparing the house before the guests arrived! So, while Niles finished preparing the entrée, C.C. selected a few bottles of the best wine they had in their wine-cellar.

Both Niles and C.C. knew Amelia was due to arrive with Stewart, and they were almost certain that they'd be the first to arrive.

And indeed, almost as soon as Niles had finished washing their breakfast dishes, all things requiring straightening out had been put in their correct places, and they'd seated themselves in the living room to watch TV as they waited for their guests, the doorbell rang.

It was typical, but they had to get the door for Stewart and Amelia. They couldn't very well leave them outside!

So Niles rose from his seat and shuffled towards the front door, breaking into a beaming grin when he caught sight of Amelia in her grandfather's arms.

"Hi, Niles!" the little girl cried, clearly full of energy after having spent the night at Stewart's. The older man did spoil her, and there had probably been a certain amount of candy involved at some stage.

"Hi there, Little One!" Niles opened his arms out to receive the girl, who was passed over to him by Stewart, and he hugged her tight as he moved aside to allow the older man inside as well. "Did you enjoy your night at Grandpa's?"

"Yeah," Amelia giggled as Niles slipped her out of his arms onto the floor, and she looked around. "Where's Mommy?"

"I'm right here, sweetie!" C.C. called to her daughter from the entrance to the living room, and she bent down to scoop up the little girl, who had run towards her to greet her with a kiss.

Stewart greeted Niles with a hearty slap on the back, "Congratulations on the first anniversary, Niles!"

"Thank you, sir," Niles replied before closing the door. "Time has certainly flown past!"

Both men shared a light laugh as they made their way to the living room, where C.C. and Amelia awaited. Mother and daughter were snuggled on the sofa, and Amelia was telling her mother all the things she'd done at her grandfather's mansion.

Amelia adored going to Stewart's, and her grandfather had even built a beautiful room for her there; filled with toys and nice pictures. It was the same room in which C.C. had stayed during the last few weeks of her pregnancy and the first two months after Amelia had been born. Given that C.C. had been alone, her father had insisted on her moving in with him so there would be someone with her in case she went into labour, and afterwards he'd wanted to take care of her while she recovered and give her a hand with Amelia, too.

Thus, it had been natural to give the room to Amelia when she'd first started visiting her grandfather's mansion.

Of course that Stewart's place had a lot more fun to offer than just a wonderful room; the older Babcock had numerous pets with which Amelia like to play, and there were a number of entertaining rooms, like a playroom, a music room, a home cinema and even an interior pool!

Actually, Amelia was telling C.C. everything about the four hours she'd spent inside the interior pool. Her excitement was incredibly endearing, and so was the fact that she had only gotten out of the pool when Stewart had suggested she had been inside it for far too long!

"But Mommy, how do you know that a person has spent a lot of time inside the water?" Amelia asked, wrapping her arms around her mother's neck.

"Well..." C.C. began, taking on a thoughtful countenance as she tried to find a way to answer her child's question. "Mia, haven't you noticed how wrinkled your skin gets when you are inside the water for a long time?"

Amelia nodded.

"Well, that's how you know!" C.C. said cheerfully. "Your skin gets all wrinkled."

There was a moment of silence while Amelia thought about what her mother had just told her. Eventually, she looked between her mother and Niles and her brow furrowed.

"Niles, did you stay a long time in the pool, too?"

Niles paused half-way to seating himself on the sofa, and made a noise which sounded like he was choking, even though he hadn't eaten in quite a while. If he looked at Stewart, he could see the man was stifling his own laughter at what Amelia had just said, too.

It was the best reaction he could hope for, considering C.C. didn't even try to stifle hers. Her laughter echoed through the house, her head thrown back in absolute glee and amusement at what her daughter had just said.

"Hey!" he protested lightly at Amelia, rethinking sitting down. "I thought that you were supposed to be on my side!"

Amelia giggled, shrugged, and cuddled against her mother, "I go with what side works."

That only delighted C.C. further, and she hugged her daughter tighter, "Oh! She's just like me, I'm so proud!"

Niles frowned, unimpressed, "The rest of the world should be terrified, but I'm glad you're happy about it."

C.C. reached over to tug on his hand so that he would sit down.

"Oh come on, Niles; don't be such a sourpuss. Especially not today," she said, scooting both her and Amelia over so that he could sit next to them.

He knew Amelia hadn't really meant it, and it was quite funny, hearing her come out with it so quickly...

She really was like her mother, and he was much more than a little pleased by that notion.

Niles rolled his eyes, feigning reluctance as he allowed her to pull him down to them, "Oh, alright..."

"And I still love you, Niles," Amelia said, jumping from her mother's lap to Niles'.

And there she was again...

Saying that she loved him. Niles could feel the lump in his throat and his eyes watering. Hearing her saying that produced in him the most wonderfully odd sensations – he felt an overwhelming need to protect Amelia; he felt like he belonged...

And he felt an overpowering feeling of love for C.C.'s child.

He still didn't know just how to answer to that – granted, he knew he loved Amelia, but would C.C. consider it was too soon for him to say that to her? Would she dislike it? Maybe it would be best to wait...

So, instead of saying that he loved her too, Niles held Amelia close and gently rocked her in his arms.

"Oh, sweetheart..." he whispered and dropped a kiss on the top of her head.

"I mean it..." Amelia said, tightening her hold on him. "You are the best."

He couldn't help the few tears that ran down his cheeks – tears which were wiped away by a smiling C.C.. It didn't take long for him to notice that she had tears in her eyes, too. Luckily (or maybe not...) the emotional moment was interrupted by the bell ringing – the Sheffields had arrived. Niles honestly didn't know if he should feel thankful or disappointed...

They were getting too close to the point where it would be necessary to star discussing exactly where they stood now that they'd been a couple for a year. Clearly Amelia liked him, but was that enough to take the next step? He didn't want to pressure C.C... The last thing he wanted in the world was for her to think that they were moving too fast. Moving too fast might result in one of them ending up on a different page in the relationship, and if that happened, then the entire thing could go up in smoke.

Either way, they had guests to take care of.

So, releasing Amelia, he rose to his feet and went to answer the door as C.C. stayed with her father and daughter. Fran's beaming smile was the first thing which greeted him as he opened it to the other side.

"Hiya, Niles!" she cried, throwing her arms around him and planting a sound kiss on his cheek.

Her cheerful mood actually helped somewhat, and he lightly embraced her back (carefully pulling her away from the door to let her husband and children in, too).

"Hello, Mrs Sheffield," he let go of her then so that she could step further into the house and greet C.C., Amelia and Stewart. It also gave Niles time to shake Maxwell's hand as the kids rushed in to go see Mia. "Hello, Mr Sheffield."

"Hello, Old Man!" Maxwell gave him a pat on the back, as Stewart had done. "Congratulations on your first anniversary! Well, your first anniversary as a couple, because you two have known each other for twenty years!"

Niles chuckled as they made their way to the living room. It was true, they'd known each other for ages! That's why their relationship was going so smoothly – they'd already taken the time to know each other beforehand. They knew their ups and downs, their likes and dislikes, their good and bad habits...

They had twenty years of spending most of their time together; at this point they knew the other like the back of their hands.

That's why it frustrated him not to know exactly how to proceed. He wanted to take the next step, but part of him feared that C.C. didn't want that. They might have known each other for decades, but now there was Amelia to consider. The child had only known him for little over a year, so maybe C.C. wasn't ready to move to the next step so soon.

Maybe she wanted her daughter to get used to him, even if she seemed to adore him just as much as he adored her.

It was a matter of patience, really, and playing his cards right. He'd waited for her for twenty years already... he could wait a little longer.

"Thank you, sir," Niles eventually said. "We are certainly very happy ourselves. Now," he looked between his guests, C.C. and Amelia. "What do you say if we move this to the dining room? The children have a little table set in the living room, in front of the TV."

"What, is this all of us?" Stewart asked as the three little children ran to the living room, babbling about all of the cartoons they wanted to watch. "Isn't your mother coming, Kitten?"

"No," C.C. replied airily. "She had to attend D.D.'s fifth engagement party, but she did call to congratulate us."

C.C. shrugged uncomfortably. Although she and her mother had started talking again, she and D.D. hadn't really fixed their relationship, and D.D. still disapproved of Amelia. As a consequence, D.D. hadn't talked to C.C., Stewart or Noel since Amelia had been born; B.B. was actually the only one who was in touch with D.D.. Granted, her rejection still stung somewhat, but C.C. wasn't willing to let her sister's words affect her.

"Oh, yes...I was informed of D.D.'s latest nuptials," Stewart pulled a face. "You know, sometimes I think that she should just give up the entire idea of marriage. It clearly isn't for her!"

The conversation moved with them into the dining room, where Niles had put out a spread of easy to prepare (but delicious nonetheless) vol-au-vents, hors d'oeuvres, and canapés to serve as an appetiser before their main meal.

Not that Fran was treating them that way – her plate looked like the foundation for the world's smallest pyramid.

Picking out her selection didn't stop her from commenting, though, "Well, who knows? Maybe this one'll stick. Sometimes people just need a little time to figure out what they want – who they want!"

"She said it would stick the last time," C.C. helped herself to another little pastry. "And the time before that. Not that it really matters. Until she learns to behave in a civilised matter when it comes to Amelia, it doesn't matter to me one whit what she does with her life."

"That's the main concern," Niles agreed, pulling a chair out for her before taking one himself. "How many times she chooses to marry someone is none of our business if she herself is not involved in our lives."

"Oy, I was just makin' a comment," Fran said, a little taken aback by the strong negative reactions from Niles and C.C.. The brunette didn't really know much about just how hard it had been for C.C. to be accepted by part of her family, nor how much it still hurt to be judged because of Amelia. "But speaking of marriage..."

Fran made a pause to take a bite of one of the many canapés on her plate. "When are ya two goin' ta tie the knot?"

And it was instantaneous – Niles' eyes widened and he nearly choked on the canapé he was munching on. Had she just said...? Oh dear Lord, leave it to Fran and her big mouth to ruin everything!

Luckily, Maxwell seemed to realise just how out of place that question had been and he quickly intervened. "Sweetheart, I think we-"

"Oh, Max, please!" Fran scoffed, waving a dismissive hand. "It's only natural! They've known each other for so long now!"

"Mrs Sheffield," Niles' slightly panicked (if angry) voice interrupted. "I agree that we've known each other for long but-"

"But? Oh, Scarecrow! What buts can there it be? Ya two are perfect for each other! And ya did give her a promise ring!"

"Yes, I did bu-"

"And there you go again with your buts," Fran chastised, taking a sip of her wine. "We know ya both want it, so just do it already! Pop the question! And what a better time to do it than on yer anniversary!"

"Mrs Sheffield," Niles tried again, growing angry and worried in equal measure. "Could you-"

"Oy, just let me get my camera! I bet you'll want the memory of this wonderful moment to-"

"Would you please shut up?!" Niles finally snapped. He knew his friend didn't mean any harm, but it would ruin everything... and he cared too much to let everything he loved slip through his fingers thanks to Fran's mouth. "I won't ask C.C. to marry me now!"

And suddenly it was like a bomb made of silence had exploded in the middle of the room.

Fran, who had been fumbling around in her purse for the camera she'd hoped would capture a real-life Kodak moment, allowed the little device to slip back into the bag, and allowed that to fall helplessly back into her lap, mouth on the brink of gaping.

Niles was focused on her. He felt too afraid to look anywhere else.

Somewhere, off to one side, Stewart coughed uncomfortably.

Niles wanted to say something. Anything. As long as it relieved the tension, it wouldn't matter. But he had nothing. Not a single thing of any value that could make what he said sound less...awful. But it was true, he wasn't going to propose to C.C. right then and there! He was going to make it special, and he was going to make sure that he knew it was what she wanted, first.

She had Amelia to think of. Her little girl would always come first, and if C.C. wasn't ready to introduce the idea of him being...being a stepfather, then he was going to wait until she was. Which she almost certainly wasn't now.

Not that he would know for sure – she hadn't said anything, and from the corner of his eye he just about saw her bitterly swallow the bite of canapé she had in her mouth.

And the silence... the longer it extended, the more anguishing it became. He lowered his gaze to his plate, completely aware that no one was moving – perhaps even breathing – around him. He'd fucked up... God he'd fucked up good!

But what could he say? He wasn't going to ask her to marry him right then and there. It wasn't time. And it certainly wasn't the place...

God... why did this have to happen on such a special day?!

He could tell by the sudden tensing of her body that C.C. wasn't pleased, and he had no clue how to make it better.

He knew that the way in which he had answered could be considered... harsh. But it was a reaction born out of his panic and the stress of the moment! He hadn't wanted Fran to keep insisting on the subject, and he had simply... snapped.

He only hoped C.C. wouldn't take it wrongly. He didn't know if he could bring himself to discuss this if she hadn't. Because doing so would open the door to a number of conversations he'd rather not have yet. She was the one in charge – she marked the pace, and he was terrified of losing her and Amelia for imposing his own wishes over hers.

Just as the silence was becoming unbearable, relief came. It truly was a blessing to hear three sets of feet running into the dining room.

"Mommy!" Amelia said, climbing onto her mother's lap. "Mommy, isn't it true that we spent my first birthday in France? Eve didn't believe me when I told her that grandpa took us there to celebrate it!"

"Hm?" the presence of her daughter seemed to take C.C.'s attention away from what had just happened. "Oh! Well, of course it's true, sweetie. And if we go back in the living room, I'm sure I can find the photos with us all in them."

She lifted her daughter into her arms and rose to her feet, swiftly preparing to leave.

"Kitten, what about lunch?" Stewart asked, gesturing to the almost completely untouched spread still on the table.

"I'm not that hungry," she quickly replied, picking up her pace and hurrying out before anyone else could say anything, or stop her.

Everyone else looked at each other, and at the plates, and just vaguely around in general. No one quite knew what to do or say.

Should they follow her into the living room, and try to change the subject as well? It seemed a reasonable course of action. Maybe they could still salvage something from this day. It had all been going so well, and Niles refused to let it end so horribly!

"I think we should all do that," Niles said quickly before gulping down the rest of his wine. It was almost as if to gather strength to face C.C. again...

And so, he slowly rose to his feet, and walked after C.C., leaving their very uncomfortable guests behind.

AN: Hello! Sorry for the delay, college and work have been a bit crazy lately. Anyway, we hope you enjoy this chapter! As usual, we appreciate reviews.

H&L