So I know it's been a full month since I've updated...but so much has been going on in rl...a few weeks ago I became an Aunt! So my focus hasn't really been on fanfic but I finally got back on track. This chapter's kinda angsty but yet fluffy, so I hope you guys enjoy! Thanks for reading! reviews are appreciated! I don't on glee...thank the heavens that i don't!

"So, Sam and David are going to be at Amaya's party, right?" Santana asked as she, Brittany and Mercedes begun prepping everything for Amaya's birthday party the next day.

"Uh, yeah. Sam said he'd be here."

"Does he know that your whole family is going to be here tomorrow?" Mercedes side-eyed the hell out of her best friend.

"If you're trying to freak me out, you gotta try harder than that, Santana." Santana threw her head back in laughter.

"I'm not trying to freak you out. I'm just trying to see where your head is at. I mean, you're going to have your ex-husband and the man you're dating in the same room. Not to mention your father and RJ " When her best friend mentioned her father and brother, that freaked her out. She was damned if she was going to show it.

"I'm not really worried about them. Sam's a good guy. He's good around the kids. Once Daddy and Rj see that, it'll be all good."

"How do you think David's going to react?" Brittany asked.

"I really could care less what he thinks, to be honest. If he acts up….I'll set him straight."

The next day, Mercedes woke up pretty early to get the house "party" ready. She got the kids up and made sure they had their rooms cleaned and got dressed by noon. After she got dressed and did her hair, she headed out to pick up Amaya's cake and last minute party favors.

Amaya's party was princess themed, but not just any princess theme. Amaya specifically requested she have a Princess Tiana inspired party. While Landon thought she was buying into the princess thing too much, Mercedes thought it was the cutest thing. It had totally slipped her mind to let Sam know about it. She was just going to have to wait and see his reaction when arrived.

At around 2, Mercedes' parents showed up and began helping her set up everything. Santana and Brittany showed up shortly after. Her brother showed up a little after 3. When he stepped inside the house, he scooped his niece up for a birthday hug and kiss.

"Hey R.J." Mercedes greeted him once he finished his hugs.

"Hey Mercy, ready for some fun?"

"Of course!" Rashad studied his sister for a few seconds. She knew he was trying to read her. She gave him an annoyed look.

"What?"

"There's something different about you." Mercedes rolled her eyes.

"Boy, you are crazy." She headed towards the kitchen and he followed close behind her.

"Am not! There's definitely something different about you….you been getting some?"

"No!" She snapped.

"Not yet" Santana murmured. Mercedes whipped her head around, not knowing Santana was in the kitchen. She gritted her teeth at her and narrowed her eyes.

"Santana, Shut up!"

"No, Santana. Don't shut up! Tell me what's got my baby sis glowing like a light bulb." Mercedes gave her best friend a look that told her that if she blabbed her mouth, she'd kill her. Santana just laughed.

"I'm gonna let Mercy tell you when she's done being a punk. I only came to ask if you got the ice for the coolers."

"Oh crap! I knew it was something I forgot. I don't have time to go get any." Santana flashed a wicked smile.

"Ask David…or Sam. Sam is still coming right?"

"Sam who?" Rashad asked curiously. At that point Mercedes wanted to do nothing more than to cut Santana. She knew what she was doing. Mercedes shot her a death glare before looking at her brother.

"Shad, Sam is a friend." Before she could stop herself she smiled as Sam's name escaped from her lips.

"Oh, a friend that makes you blush?" She frowned at her brother, slightly cursing herself for not being able to hide anything from her big brother.

"He is a new friend of mine….and is also Landon's chemistry teacher." Mercedes watched as her brother's eyes damn near popped out of his head.

"MA!" She rolled her eyes as Santana busted into a laughing fit. Mrs. Marlena Jones walked into the kitchen.

"What are you yellin' for boy?"

"Do you know about Sam?"

"No!"

"Yeah," Mercedes and her mother answered simultaneously. Mercedes looked at her mother in shock.

"How do you know?"

"Amaya told me," she answered coolly. Mercedes threw her hands up in disbelief. Her own daughter had ratted her out. Her mother gave her a bright smile.

"So, Sam's coming to the party?"

"Yes…I have to see if he'll bring ice on his way here."

She found her phone and sent a quick text to him. He quickly replied stating that he was on his way and would stop and get the ice for her. She smiled and then proceeded to carry the rest of the party snacks outside. Her mother followed closely behind.

"Mercy, why didn't you say anything about Sam until today?" She sat the bowl of chips down.

"Honestly, Mama, I didn't think it was going to be anything."

"That's not the impression I got from the kids."

"Both of them have talked to you about him?"

"Amaya does more than Landon. If I knew any better, I'd say that she had a thing for him." Mercedes and her mother shared a laugh together.

"I'm just so surprised as how…inviting…she is with him. I'm surprised at how I am around him. I never expected to find someone like him so soon. I don't even think I was looking, to be honest."

"Some of the best things appear when you're not looking."

"I'm starting to realize that."

"Good. I can't wait to meet this man who's got both my girls walking around with mile wide smiles."

"I really want you guys to meet him...could you please make sure R.J doesn't act a fool?" Her mother laughed and gently rubbed her daughter's back.

"Don't worry, I got you sweetheart."

A little bit after four, guests began to arrive. Her neighbors Tina and her husband Mike were the first show up with their daughter Malina and their thirteen year old son Harrison. Malina was also Amaya's classmate. Shortly after some of Amaya's classmates had arrived, David and Olivia had showed up.

"Where's my birthday girl?" David sang as he and Olivia walked out the patio door and into the backyard.

"Right here, Daddy!" She excitedly ran to her father and jumped into his arms.

"Happy birthday sweet pea." He gave her a big wet kiss on her cheek, causing her to squeal and laugh.

"Eww Daddy!"

"What? Now that you're a year older you don't my kisses anymore. I'm hurt My My."

"Aww Daddy, no! I still want your kisses. Just not so sloppy. You'll ruin my dress." Mercedes watched from a picnic table where she and the other adults sat. She couldn't help but smile at the scene. David had let Amaya down and she ran back to play with her friends. He and Olivia then proceeded to the picnic table where Mercedes had sat.

"Hi David….Olivia." Olivia smiled brightly as she looked around.

"This is really cute, Mercedes! I like how you made it like that Princess and the frog movie."

"You're still into cartoons, quierda?" Santana murmured.

"My name is Olivia."

"I know that. Mercy, want me to go check on the weenies? " Mercedes tried to hide a laugh as she nudged her best friend and nodded. David sat next to Rashad as Olivia sat next to David and across from Mercedes.

"Where's Landon?" He asked.

"Probably playing Xbox with Tina and Mike's son Harrison."

"Oh okay, I'll go and say hi in a bit….you look nice today." Almost everybody sitting at the table was completely caught off guard by David's comment. Mercedes opened her mouth to speak when she heard her daughter's voice squeal, "Sam!"

Mercedes looked up and saw Santana walking out the patio door with Sam. Amaya jumped up from the crowd of her friends and ran over to Sam.

As if they had rehearsed before, he dropped down to his knees just in time as she jumped into his arms and into a hug. Mercedes' heart felt like it was going to explode right out of her body. This man, whom she'd only known for almost a month, had opened his arms to both of her children. Mercedes got up from the table and stood next to Santana. She caught the tail end of Sam complimenting Amaya's dress.

"You like it?" Amaya asked excitedly.

"Yeah! Prettiest girl here!"

"No way! Mommy is." Sam laughed and looked up at Mercedes.

"How about this….since you're a spitting image of your mom, you're both the prettiest girls here."

"Okay," she said with a giggle. Sam sat her down onto her feet carefully and she ran back over to her friends. Sam gave Mercedes a lopsided grin.

"Santana let me in. The ice is in the freezer."

"Thank you so much for stopping last minute. I thought I grabbed everything earlier."

"It's no biggie, anything I could do to help out."

"Okay then. Ready to meet everybody?" Mercedes asked with a nervous laugh. Sam flashed her favorite smile and nodded.

"Of course, lead the way." He followed close behind her as she walked towards the large picnic table. She gave a quick introduction to everyone at the table. When she introduced David, she merely stated that he was Amaya and Landon's father, not her ex-husband. That bothered David for some reason. He had no idea that Mercedes was seeing anyone. The kids never said anything to him. When she finished her introductions, Rashad stood and held out his hand.

"So you're the guy that's been giving my nephew guitar lessons, huh?" Sam smiled and shook his hand. Mercedes on the other hand had let out a breath of relief, feeling better that her brother hadn't embarrassed her.

"Yeah, I'm trying. It's the least I can do after torturing him with chemistry work."

"Oh that's right, Mercy mentioned you were his chemistry teacher, too. That's great man."

"Yeah, Sam is a school teacher by day and a guitar god by night," Santana praised as she slid over to make room for Mercedes and Sam to sit.

"I really wouldn't say all that," Sam said sheepishly. Mercedes playfully swatted his arm.

"Stop being modest. We saw him play at Mac's Place a few weeks ago. He cut up on that stage."

"Do you play there often?" Mike asked.

"Every other weekend. I've been trying to get Mercedes to come back out, but she's been busy getting this party together. You guys are all welcome."

"What are you doin' teaching high school kids if all you want to do is play music?" David asked in a tone that didn't please Mercedes one bit. She narrowed her eyes at him and was about to say something when Sam just smiled and said, "Because, teaching is my passion, whether it is in front of chalk board or behind a guitar. It's something I plan on doing for a very long time." David pursed his lips and nodded.

"Whatever you say, buddy." Mercedes rolled her eyes and sighed when she felt Sam gently squeeze her thigh under the table. She looked up at him as he gave her a smile the simply told her not the sweat things. She returned the same smile before saying, "I'm going to go see if I can get Landon and Harrison to step away from the Xbox and join us and see if my dad is ready to start grilling."

She quickly stood up from the table and all but ran towards the house. As soon as she was out of sight, Santana leaned over to Sam and whispered, "Don't mind David. He was born a natural Asshole." He gave her a lopsided grin.

"Oh I'm not worried about him."

"Good."

Shortly after Mercedes slipped inside, another woman walked out of the patio door and towards the table. Once he got a good look at her, Sam then realized that the woman was Mercedes' mother. Mercedes the very spitting image of her mother, just as Amaya was to Mercedes. Her mother walked towards the table with a big smile on her face that reminded him so much of her daughter.

"You must be Sam." Sam smiled as he stood up and placed himself in front of Mrs. Jones.

"Yes, Ma'am. No need to question if you're Mercy's mom, she's the spitting image of you. I can see where the beauty comes from in the family for sure." They both laughed as he leaned lower and pulled her into a welcoming hug. He was surprised how tight she had returned the hug.

"Oh well aren't you just the charming one, huh? It's so nice to finally put a face to the name that's been going around nonstop from the kids. You've left quite the impression on them."

"Well, I just want them to see that I'm more than a nerdy school teacher."

"Oh you're far from nerdy, I'll tell you that." Sam let out a loud laugh, completely caught off guard by her remark. They chatted for a little while longer until he spotted Mercedes coming back out with Landon and another teenager whom he had seen Landon with at school. The two teens greeted Sam, Landon adding a handshake/hug into his greeting.

The party went by with a breeze. More guests arrived. Mercedes' coworker Kurt had showed up with his boyfriend Blaine. After she had introduced them to Sam, Kurt pulled her aside and told her that he understood why she blushed whenever she talked about him. When Mercedes' father had joined everyone outside to begin barbequing, Sam learned that Randy was a man of few words. Sam noticed that Mercedes was more like her father in a lot of ways and Rashad was outspoken like their mother. Mercedes' family quickly welcomed Sam into their lives just as quickly as she did. David, however, was not won over. He couldn't grasp the fact that there was a new man in Mercedes life already.

"Mercedes, what are you doing?" David asked as he found her in the kitchen putting candles on Amaya's cake.

"I'm getting ready to bring the cake out," she answered absently.

"I'm not talking about the cake. I'm talking about with this….Sam guy." She finished setting the candles up before she looked up at him.

"That's really none of your business, David."

"Oh it's definitely my business if he's going to be around my kids." His voice began to rise.

"Okay first off, you need to lower your voice when you are talking to me. Secondly, don't you dare come at me about who is in Landon and Amaya's lives."

"I don't think it's appropriate for you to be seeing Landon's teacher."

"Oh you're one to talk about what's 'appropriate'," she scoffed.

"You don't have to get smart, Mercedes. I just find it unfair that I had to find out about this guy today when clearly he's been around for a while."

"I have every damn right to get smart…but like I said, it's none of your damn business. I'm really trying to be civil with you for the fact that it's our daughter's birthday. So do me a favor, David, and get the hell away from me."

David glared at her for a few seconds before heading out of the kitchen and out the patio door. Mercedes let out a frustrated sigh and turned towards the refrigerator. She grabbed her bottle of her favorite red wine and poured her a big glass. She was in mid gulp when she heard someone open the patio door.

"Easy there, tiger." Sam said as he entered the kitchen. She held up her finger as she continued her wine. When she finished she put her glass in the sink and looked at Sam.

"Did Santana send you in here to check up on me?"

"No, your mom did. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good."

"The way you chugged that glass of wine says otherwise." They both laughed.

"I know I shouldn't have had that glass…but that damn man. I'm trying to keep face for the kids but I just want to punch him."

"I definitely understand why you want to. Has he always been that way?"

"Sadly yes, but I don't want to talk about him."

"Okay." He moved closer to her and pulled her into his arms. She sighed happily as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"This is much better than talking about him." He chuckled and held her tighter. A few seconds later, Mercedes pulled away and looked up at him.

"Let's get back out there before my brother starts to act a fool. He and Santana together is a deadly antidote."

"I believe you, too. I'll see you out there." He leaned down and gave her chaste kiss on the lips before sliding through the patio door. Just like that all anger towards David seemed to be forgotten. Mercedes lit the candles and headed out with the cake in her hands. She walked into the backyard and started singing happy birthday in only the way her family did it, in the tune of Stevie Wonder's "Happy Birthday".

After she cut the cake and let everybody eat, Amaya was ready to open her presents. Amaya received any and everything a 7 year girl could possibly want. She got a slew of clothes and books. Mercedes and David had went into together and got her a limited edition set of all seven Harry Potter books and all of the Princess Diaries books as well. When it came to Sam's gift to be opened, he couldn't help but get nervous. He had searched hard for the perfect gift for her. Mercedes had lifted the nicely decorated gift bag and handed it to Amaya.

"This one is from Sam, My My." Mercedes watched her daughter's face light up as she took hold of the bag. She excitedly pulled the paper from the bag. She pulled another wrapped square shaped object. Behind the paper was a journal of some sorts.

"Ooh! This is pretty! It's got Tiana on it! Look Ma!" She turned it so her mother could see. The journal had a hand painted picture of Princess Tiana dressed in an elegant green gown similar to the one she wore in the movie only more modernized. She knew she had never seen it in stores.

"That is pretty." Amaya looked over at Sam with a mile wide smile.

"Thank you Sam!" When she was finished with presents, Amaya and her friends went back to playing in the big blow up Princess Bounce house Mercedes had rented. Mercedes decided to put all of her presents inside instead of after the party. Sam joined Rashad as he started putting up the food. When Sam was finished, he sat back at the picnic table and watched as Landon and Harrison played with the kids in the bounce house.

"So uh, is this some kind of experiment for you?" Sam turned to see David sitting next to him.

"Excuse you?"

"You heard me. You got tired of dating your blondies, so you decided to step over to the dark side, huh?" It took every bone in Sam's body not to curl up his fists and start swinging.

"Listen man, you have no clue what you're talking about, so I suggest you just enjoy the party."

"You think that just because you're tutoring my son you can just charm your way into my kids' lives….Mercedes' life? What do you think is going to happen when you start to get sick of playing 'daddy'?" Sam let out a laugh to keep himself from getting angry.

"No one is playing 'daddy', tutoring Landon is one thing, but what goes on outside of the classroom is none of your business unless Mercedes makes it your business. I'm gonna be in their lives whether or not you like it." Before David could try to argue anymore, Sam got up and left the table. Leaving David looking like the moron he had acted like.

The party started to wind down by seven and guests had started to leave. Sam stuck around helping everyone clean up. Mercedes had put the cake up as her cousins were getting ready to leave.

"Mercy, that Sam sure is cute," Mercedes' cousin Felicia gushed as Mercedes walked her and her daughters to their car.

"Yeah….I know."

"I bet David is just kicking himself."

"Let him….he can get himself in the balls while he's at it." The women shared as laugh as Felicia leaned in for a hug.

"I'm so glad you're smiling again. I've missed it. Tell Sam to keep doing what he's doing." She said with a wink as she slid behind the wheel. When she went back inside, David and Olivia were heading out as well.

"Oh ya'll are leavin'?" She asked, trying not to sound too excited.

"Uh, yeah. I gotta go into the office, we've got a big account underway."

"Okay then, thanks for coming. Did you tell the kids you were leaving?"

"Yeah, they were in the bounce house with Sam and Rashad." Mercedes tried not to notice the bitterness in David's voice when he said Sam's name and just nodded.

"Okay, well I'll see you guys later then." She walked them to the door and saw them out. When she made her way back to the backyard, Landon, Rashad and Sam were coming out of the bounce house. Amaya was in Sam arms, her head on his shoulder.

"Is she asleep?" He met her in the center of the yard

"No, but I think she partied too hard. Is it okay if I take her inside?"

"Yeah, she can lie in the TV room." He went inside and Mercedes sat on the swinging bench outside the door. Her brother sat next to her and said, "Sam's a great guy Mercy."

"I know," she said with a bright smile. Rashad flung an arm around his baby sister's shoulder and pulled her close to him.

"You have no idea how much I've missed that smile….and I also noticed that blush when you came outside with Amaya's cake." Mercedes laughed as she playfully rolled her eyes. There was no sense in denying it anymore.

"It's Mama's fault anyway. Sending him in to check on me…So I had a right to blush."

"I know, which is why I ain't saying anything else. I knew David would end up doing something to piss you off anyway. I tried to stop him from going in there and cornering you…but you know David."

"Yeah but I also know myself…..I'm not going to allow him to dictate my life. He's just going to have to get use to the fact that there's going to be another man in the kids' lives. Just as I have dealt with the fact that he has that…woman in their lives."

"You're right…I just hope Sam knows what's ahead if you guys go any further in your relationship."

"Yeah I hope so too." They sat in silence for a few minutes until Sam returned from inside.

"She is out like a light." She looked up at him and smiled.

"Thanks Sam."

"No problem. Is there anything else you need help with?"

"You can take my seat while I go help Santana finish cleaning. You guys have been running around all day. Both of you rest." Rashad ordered as he stood up and offered Sam his spot. Sam and Mercedes could only laugh as Sam did indeed take Rashad's spot. He even put his arm around Mercedes' shoulder. Rashad disappeared into the house as Sam and Mercedes sat in silence.

"I had some words with David earlier," Sam said, finally breaking the silence. He felt her body tense up.

"Oh God, what did he say?"

"Nothing worth repeating."

"I totally understand if you just want to stick to tutoring and giving Landon guitar lessons."

"Hey, It's going to take more than a few words to scare me away….I'm not going anywhere." He pulled her closer and held her tighter. She sighed and draped her arm over his waist.

"Good."