Paul walked through the back entrance of the pub. He held a legal folder in his hand, a confident lilt to his steps.

Paul, standing in the hallway, peeked his head inside the pub's office. Seeing a familiar blonde head, Paul knocked on the door.

Will, hands in his hair, smiled helplessly, frazzled look in his eyes.

"Hi," Will heaved a heavy sigh.

"What's wrong?" Paul wondered. He sat across from Will.

"Bills came in today," Will pouted, lower lip sticking out and everything. "I told my aunt I'd take care of it but I have no idea what I'm doing."

"I usually let my financial guy deal with this stuff," Paul said. "But I could help you out. Maybe."

"Any help would be welcome," Will decided.

Will scooted his desk chair over, making room for Paul.

Will knew what he should do. He should ask Sonny for help like Kayla wanted him to. With Sonny's strange behavior and what T said the other night, Will felt wary.

Sonny is working hard enough, Will thought. He doesn't need to deal with this too.

Plus, a part of Will wanted to prove that he could do it. He knew Sonny thought his involvement with the pub was almost a joke. Will took it seriously though. He needed to show he could help his family out.

If Paul wanted to offer help though, Will wouldn't refuse him.

"You have everything handled?" Chad questioned into his phone. He had a manic gleam to his eyes.

Sonny, looking up from the stack of paperwork he was going through, narrowed his eyes. He didn't trust that look.

"Excellent," Chad cackled. "Okay, let me know the results."

As soon as Chad hung up, Sonny demanded answers.

"What are you talking about?" Sonny wondered.

"Well," Chad sat across from Sonny. "I pulled some strings and the pub is getting a bit of a surprise today."

"Surprise what?" Sonny sighed. "What did you do?"

"Health inspection," Chad responded. When he noticed Sonny's glare, Chad held up his hands innocently. "What? All restaurants go through them."

"I told you not to mess with the pub," Sonny grunted. "Damnit, Chad."

"You might not be that desperate," Chad pointed out. "But I am. We need to do whatever we can to help our business. I know you're only upset because of Will anyway."

"You should be as well," Sonny said. "He's your best friend too."

"Yeah," Chad dismissively waved a hand. "Well, it's not like he's invested in the pub or anything. He's just helping. Besides, I don't even know if the inspection will turn anything up. If it does, it's for everyone's benefit that it be punished. No one wants to eat at a place with gross violations."

"Chad," Sonny pinched the bridge of his nose. He could not deal with anymore problems with Will. He really couldn't. "Call whoever it is and cancel it."

"Why?" Chad whined. "I'm not doing anything bad."

"It's the principal of the matter," Sonny argued. "We aren't going to be like my uncle or your father. Got it? We want to run a respectable, clean business."

"Oh, really?" Chad smiled sardonically. "How is it legal for Will to drink here then?"

"That's different," Sonny maintained.

"No, it's not," Chad stated flatly. "You, my friend, are a hypocrite."

Sonny turned away, focusing on his work again.

"It's true," Chad stated. "You can do whatever you want. But, god forbid anyone do something you don't approve of."

"Knock it off," Sonny requested.

"How in the world does Will put up with you?" Chad shook his head.

"Cancel the inspection," Sonny repeated. "Or I'm letting you deal with Will."

Chad rolled his eyes.

"Ugh, he whines more than you do," Chad remarked. "Plus, the damn puppy eyes."

Chad weighed the cost and benefits.

"Fine," Chad pulled out his phone. "I'll call it off."

"Just leave the pub alone," Sonny ordered.

While his phone was ringing, Chad couldn't stop from commenting. "Well, it'll probably sink on its own anyway. Kayla and Will aren't exactly a dream team."

"There you go," Sonny said. "We might not have anything to worry about anyway."

"Did I do my math right?" Will asked Paul.

Paul calculated the numbers before nodding.

"Yeah," Paul decided. "It looks right."

"Great," Will responded, tone anything but pleased. "That means our profit for the month was $127."

"Yeah," Paul frowned. "That's…not good."

"Ugh," Will threw his head back. "What made me think this was a good idea?"

"Okay," Paul suggested. "Forget the money."

Paul disliked seeing the distress on Will's face. He wanted to do whatever he could to alleviate Will's stress.

"How would you change this place?" Paul questioned. "If money wasn't a problem, what would you want?"

Will thought long and hard about it. There were so many things he would want to do. So many things that were new when he was a child. Will didn't exactly know what he could change that would make a difference though.

"I'm not exactly the most qualified to answer that," Will mumbled.

"None of that," Paul insisted. "Come on, it doesn't have to be perfect. Just throw out some suggestions."

"Well," Will rubbed his lips back and forth. "I always hated the curtains."

"Good, me too," Paul smiled. "What else?"

"All the stupid chrome," Will added. "It isn't the '90s anymore."

"I'm a hundred percent certain if it looked better more people would come," Paul nodded.

"I hate all the dishes," Will continued. Now that he started he couldn't stop. "And the stupid cups. Oh, and the appliances are older than I am."

"See," Paul encouraged. "I bet the things that bug you bother customers too."

"I'm pretty sure all our customers are here out of habit anyway," Will revealed. "I don't think we get new people in. Not that many young people either."

"I've walked by loads of times before I met you," Paul confirmed. "And I never once thought about going inside."

"Exactly," Will said impassioned. "It's stuck in the past."

"That's why we're going to change it," Paul decided. "Turn everything around and make it the cool place to be."

"But not too cool," Will said. "I don't want to freak out the regulars."

"True," Paul nodded. "I bet we could modernize everything though. There's bound to be designs for that. Modern pub with a vintage feel."

Will smiled thinking about it. Vaguely, he thought of Sonny's old friend Brent. Will almost burst out laughing imagining Brent or Sonny's face if Will called him for advice.

"Am I missing something?" Paul wondered, bemused.

"No," Will shook his head. "No, just imagining the possibilities."

"How about we make those fantasies reality?" Paul smiled mischievously.

Sonny leaned against the bar conversing with Ben Weston. Sonny made to move away when the door to TBD opened to loud laughter.

"Hey," Sonny greeted, smile playing at his lips.

Moving over to the bar were a handful of Sonny's old friends.

God, Sonny thought. When was the last time I saw any of these guys?

Sonny had been so swamped with work that he hadn't had much time for anything else. He didn't have enough time to see Will and Ari let alone his friends.

"Dustin, Kareem, Mateo," Sonny greeted. "What are you guys doing here?"

"Checking out this alleged new and improved menu," Dustin answered.

All three sat down on barstools, grinning at Sonny.

"Yeah," Kareem agreed. "Usually we end up at the pub but we figured we'd help you out instead."

"Although," Mateo smiled devilishly. "We have been enjoying the new artwork at the pub."

Sonny's brows furrowed, feeling like he was missing something when they all laughed.

"Meaning," Mateo elaborated. "Your husband in that uniform."

Everyone's laughter increased when Sonny's face darkened.

"Hey," Sonny sputtered.

"Oh, like you haven't noticed," Kareem teased.

"Seriously," Dustin nodded enthusiastically. "If his shirt was any tighter…" Dustin whistled.

"And that ass," Mateo muttered under his breath.

Sonny reached out and punched Mateo in the arm.

"That's my husband you're talking about," Sonny grumbled.

"Exactly," Kareem encouraged. "You should join us in the ogling."

"Did you seriously come here to objectify my husband?" Sonny rolled his eyes.

"He's nice and legal now," Dustin maintained. "It's not creepy anymore."

"Yeah," Kareem chuckled. "You were the only one comfortable enough going after a teenager."

"And you'd never let us talk about how hot he was before," Dustin insisted. "You owe us this."

"Remember at the bachelor party when he danced with the stripper?" Kareem recalled with a dreamy sigh. "Now, that was a good time."

"Oh my god," Sonny shook his head. "We are not talking about how hot Will is. I'm married to him. Trust me. I already know he's good looking."

"Yeah, you're not the only one," Mateo pointed out.

"What does that mean?" Sonny wondered.

"Well," Mateo shrugged. "We noticed, clearly. But I'm sure others have too."

"Yeah," Dustin agreed. "We've seen his admirers."

"Admirers?" Sonny leaned closer to his friends across the bar.

"At the pub," Dustin explained. "Whenever we're in there he's getting hit on left and right, guys and girls."

"Dude must make a fortune in tips," Kareem nodded. "Not that he even seems to notice the attention."

Sonny crossed his arms, frown marring his features. He didn't like hearing about this.

"Especially that one sexy one with the muscles," Dustin acknowledged. "Dude takes up all of Will's time when we're there."

"Who can blame him?" Kareem said.

Mateo, meanwhile, noticed Sonny's agitation.

"You alright?" Mateo questioned.

"Yeah, I guess," Sonny replied in a low voice.

It wasn't news to Sonny that Will was attractive. He knew that from the first moment they met. Even now Sonny had a hard time keeping his hands to himself when Will was naked. He also couldn't blame his friends for admiring Will's looks or body. Because they were Sonny's friends, Sonny trusted them.

They would look, posture a bit, maybe tease Will until he blushed. That was it though. They knew Will belonged with Sonny. A stranger didn't know that. A stranger might push things too far, flirt a little too much.

Sonny never worried that Will would want anyone else. But Sonny didn't think he'd ever want anyone either. Then Paul came to town.

I still don't know who Will's interviewing, Sonny realized. If it is Paul, would Paul be interested in Will? He'd have to be blind not to.

"Dude," Kareem loudly snapped in front of Sonny's face. "We're just messing around."

"Besides," Dustin grinned. "We all know Will's only ever had eyes for you."

"Right," Sonny swallowed. Not wanting to worry his friends any further, Sonny slipped on a wide smile.

"I think I need to talk to Will about how tight he wears his pants," Sonny joked.

"Then I'd never go to the pub," Kareem pouted.

Guess I can tell Chad I found out how to steal business from the pub after all, Sonny laughed.

"After you talk with your lawyer," Paul suggested. "What are you going to do first? Assuming you take the money I'm offering."

"Probably the appliances," Will offered. "See if they can get fixed or if we need ones."

"That's a good idea," Paul agreed. "Maybe you should get some paint samples."

"That's true," Will nodded excitedly. "I wonder if there are some magazines or something I could pick up."

"You should look for a designer too," Paul recommended. "I bet they could do a much better job than we could."

Paul admired the glow in Will's bright blue eyes. The way the light gleamed off of Will's blonde lashes.

God, he's beautiful, Paul thought.

Paul never had a specific type before beyond good looking. Will wasn't his first with blue eyes or his first blonde. He wasn't his first baseball fan either. There was just something about Will though.

Will was young and sweet, devoted. Shy and yet opened up so easily. Innocent with a hint of something more behind those blue eyes.

Will intrigued Paul in so many ways.

"Hey," Will tapped his hand on the desk. "Christmas is in a few days. What are you going to do?"

"I don't know," Paul shook his head. "Probably just watch movies in my hotel room."

"That's depressing," Will remarked. "Why don't you go spend it with your mom?"

"She's going with my grandfather to Japan," Paul revealed.

"Why didn't you go?" Will asked, annoyed on Paul's behalf. "You would have loved that."

"I still need to do my physical therapy," Paul replied with a pout.

"Lame," Will jeered. "You should have gone."

"I know," Paul agreed.

"I don't want to think about you being alone," Will responded.

"It's one day," Paul told Will gently. "It won't be so bad. But I appreciate your concern."

"You're my friend," Will smiled. "I worry."

Paul bit his lip and nodded.

Right, friend, Paul thought.

Paul looked at the clock inside the office.

"I need to head to the hospital," Paul revealed.

Will stood up and walked Paul to the door.

"I'm going to be busy the next few days," Will said. "So, this might be the last time I see you before Christmas."

"Is Arianna excited?" Paul questioned.

"For the most part," Will confessed. "She'll go crazy later. She has to help me wrap all the presents."

"That'll get her going," Paul laughed. He could just picture the tiny, beautiful little girl bouncing all over the place.

"I hope you have a Merry Christmas," Will smiled at Paul.

"You too," Paul took a deep breath. He wanted to say something else before thinking better of it. "Tell Ari I said Merry Christmas."

After Paul left for a physical therapy appointment, Will talked with his aunt Kayla.

"I have all these ideas," Will told her. "And I know this is the only way to get it."

"Will, Sweetie," Kayla sighed. "I love all your ideas. You know I do. I'm just…concerned about how the money is coming about."

"You don't need to worry about Paul," Will promised. "He genuinely wants to help us."

"But why?" Kayla pressed. "What is there to gain from it?"

"Good press?" Will guessed. "The satisfaction of helping a small business succeed?"

"I just don't know," Kayla stated. "The whole thing seems too good to be true."

"Aiden is coming in to look over everything," Will continued. "He'll tell us if there are any loopholes or anything to worry about."

"That does make me feel better," Kayla admitted. "I just wish I had time to meet with Aiden and this Paul person myself."

"I know," Will agreed. "I really do trust Paul though."

A heavy silence fell over them.

Reluctantly, Kayla said, "And I trust you."

"So?" Will pursed his lips.

"If Aiden says it's alright," Kayla revealed. "I'll sign the contract. But," Kayla cut Will off from celebrating. "Small things for now. I don't want any major renovations or anything ridiculous."

"Of course, I promise," Will assured her. "Trust me. This is going to be great."

"Well," Aiden set down the paperwork Paul brought over. "I'll admit contracts aren't my specialty. But I do think this one is fair."

"It's not going to secretly screw us over in the end, right?" Will clarified. He refilled Aiden's cup of coffee before sitting down across from him.

"No," Aiden smiled, laughing at Will's blunt speech. "Of course not. It's straightforward."

"Good," Will beamed. "I can take the paperwork to Aunt Kayla later."

Aiden took a sip of his coffee.

"So, are you all ready for the holidays?" Aiden questioned.

"Mostly," Will said. "I finished shopping this weekend. Well, except for Ari. I can't seem to stop buying her gifts."

That's going to be one expensive credit card bill, Will thought.

"That happens with all kids," Aiden admitted. "Chase is a lot older than Arianna and I still have a hard time saying no to him."

"Are we going to see you and Chase around the Horton house for Christmas?" Will wondered.

"Oh, I don't know," Aiden remarked. "I've heard that's a pretty big deal around here."

"It is," Will acknowledged. "I've got my fingers crossed this year someone remembers to get Sonny an ornament."

Aiden smiled secretively.

"I might have heard a rumor," Aiden revealed. "But you didn't hear it from me."

Will stood up to continue working. His smile never once left his face.

"No, Ari," Will half-laughed, half-sighed. "That's too much tape."

Ari finished placing practically an entire roll of tape around the package in front of her.

"Sydney is going to have a fun time opening that," Will told Ari.

"Help," Ari informed Will.

"Yep, you're my little helper," Will agreed.

Will's phone buzzed across the table top.

"Hello?" Will answered.

"Will," Zoe spoke. "How's the article?"

Non-existent, Will thought.

"It's going well," Will evaded. "I'm getting a lot of interesting stuff from Paul."

"Good," Zoe sighed in relief. "I was afraid I was going to have to spell out what I wanted."

Will frowned.

"I know it's going to be Christmas soon," Zoe continued. "So, I don't expect anything quite yet. But soon. Got it?"

"Yeah," Will mumbled. "Sure."

"Merry Christmas, Will," Zoe stated before hanging up.

"Crap," Will said out loud. "Why haven't I worked on any of this?"

"Dunno," Ari said, watching Will closely.

"I don't know either, baby girl," Will sighed. "I don't know either."

Ari grabbed another too-long piece of tape.

Will shook his head at Ari, giving up.

"Sure, play with the tape," Will chuckled. "Whatever."

Sonny walked into the apartment to see Will covered in tape and wrapping paper.

"Daddy," Ari said, pointing at Will. "Present!"

It took Sonny a few seconds to understand.

"Oooh," Sonny put down all his things. He swept Ari up into his arms. "Should I open up my present?"

Ari nodded her head up and down enthusiastically.

"I wonder what this could be," Sonny stated, tapping his chin. "Ari, you want to help me?"

Sonny, with Ari's help, unwrapped Will.

"Wow," Sonny over-exaggerated his surprise. "How did you know exactly what I wanted?"

Will laughed loudly when Sonny and Ari began smothering him with kisses.

Author's note:

This one was mostly filler. But it sets up a few things that happen later on.

Thanks for reading!