Despite traveling extensively as a kid and as his father's protégée once he graduated college, Steve had never been to LA. His father had despised the city, telling him more than once he'd rather sell the company than deal with the aspirations and the less formal attitudes. Which meant Steve had always wanted to go.

A two-month trip with his boyfriend and his daughter was not how Steve had imagined it, but he wasn't complaining.

Their first day was amazing. After settling in and christening the place, Steve had coaxed Eddie into going shopping with Charlie's help. A fully stocked kitchen did wonders to make him feel at home, and he couldn't wait to try out that bread machine. But first, he wanted to make something for Eddie's reunion. He knew he was nervous about seeing his old band again on their turf, especially Ronnie. Steve wanted to do anything he could to help.

So, with Charlie's help, they spent the following day baking as Eddie paced nervously around the house, occasionally coming to help, but mostly, he left them to it. Charlie was fantastic, his own little protégée, and the best part was she loved it as much as Steve did. He had bought her an apron recently, a black thing with colorful swirls and cupcakes that she wore every time they baked.

Jeff had sent him a message with everyone's favorite treats, and soon Steve had the table packed with muffins, strudels, and truffles. Those last ones had been the hardest to make, but they were Ronnie's, and he ensured they were perfect. Eddie was lured in by the smell and helped pack everything away, rewarded with one of Charlie's cupcakes for his efforts.

"It'll be fine," Steve told him reassuringly when Charlie ran off to change. It was getting dark out, signaling their leaving time. "If they didn't want you here, they wouldn't have asked."

Eddie just grunted, leaning over the table in the tiny space not taken up by Tupperware to continue scribbling in his notebook. Steve had quickly learned that Eddie got easily absorbed in his writing, and it was hard to pull him away, let alone have a proper conversation. One thing that never failed was kisses, so Steve came up behind him and pressed his lips softly to Eddie's neck. It worked instantly, Eddie relaxing with a weary sigh.

"Your wrist will start hurting again." Steve took Eddie's hand and massaged the joint, smiling at the groan of relief he got in response. "Tell your brain to take a break."

"Ha, I wish." Steve shut the book, poking Eddie's side to make him turn around. He smiled, wrapping his arms around Steve, and leaned forward to kiss him properly. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"Everything." Eddie's expression softened, and it tugged at Steve's heart.

How had he gotten so lucky? Not only did he have such a wonderful boyfriend with an amazing mind, but he also had a little girl that he could dote on, too. Instead of crying, like he wanted to, or dropping to his knees to blow Eddie, an impulse he had to curb, Steve only smiled back. "Come on, we need to change as well."

They were meeting for drinks at Jeff's place, so it wasn't anything fancy, but Steve still changed into a dress shirt and slacks. He turned around, shirt still unbuttoned, to find Eddie watching him. Discovering how much Eddie liked body hair was amusing but also flattering. Most people had preferred him to shave.

Not Eddie, though, because he came over to press a hand against Steve's chest with a sly smile. "You should go like this. It's a good look."

"Only for you."

"Should I start a petition? I bet I'll get a few thousand signatures that agree with me."

Steve rolled his eyes, batting Eddie's hand away, and ignored the wounded noise he made as he buttoned up the shirt. No doubt Eddie would be tearing it off later. Steve decided to leave a few buttons undone just to tease him.

Eddie's eyes narrowed, clearly realizing what he was doing. His response wasn't all that surprising but still gratifying. He came over to undo another button, capturing Steve's lips in a bruising kiss before biting his lip. The slight shock of pain made Steve's knees go weak.

Lips curving in a smirk, Eddie nipped him again before whispering, "Later, big boy. You need to get that under control before we leave."

"Asshole." There was no venom in the insult, and Steve took a deep breath, willing his dick to calm down. It didn't help that Eddie's fingers were toying with his nipple. "Stop it before it becomes a real problem."

"So easy to tease." But Eddie let him go as the sound of Charlie's footsteps grew louder. She danced into the room, twirling in her yellow dress, and Eddie picked her up in a spin. "Looking beautiful, babygirl. All ready?"

"Yep."

"But you forgot something."

Charlie frowned. "What?"

Eddie brought her over to Steve, and he held out his hands automatically. Charlie went easily enough, and they both watched Eddie turn to rummage in his bag. Steve raised his eyebrows at her, making her giggle. Finally, he got whatever it was and came back to them. In his hand was a small brooch. When he fixed it to Charlie's dress, Steve saw it was a deer.

"This was your grandmother's," Eddie said softly. "So look after it, okay?"

"Okay." Charlie touched it gently, and the smile she gave Eddie was wobbly. "Did she like deer?"

"It's from Chicago. She liked the city." Eddie cleared his throat, smile a little wobbly, too, before he leaned down to kiss her head. "Right, let's go. You grab the food, okay?"

"Okay!"

Steve set Charlie down, and she ran off immediately. He turned to Eddie, smiling when he laughed wetly. "You've never mentioned your mom before."

"Yeah, she, um, died when I was a little older than Charlie." He shrugged, but Steve saw through the act, opening his arms, and Eddie immediately came into them, letting out a shuddering sigh. "I told you I crashed in Chicago, but that wasn't quite true. I was drawn there because of my mom and her love of the music. The Chicago Blues. She loved it. I guess I wanted to find her again, feel close to her."

"Did it work?"

"Yeah. She helped me find you." Eddie smiled at him sweetly. "Do you remember what song was playing when we met?"

"No?"

"It was I Just Want To Make Love To You, by Muddy Waters. Thought it was weird, considering the genre and age of the song. Then you sat next to me and kissed me." Eddie's smile struck Steve so hard in the chest he felt breathless. "Felt like fate. Or maybe I'm just trying to justify how much I love you. Honestly, it's kind of scary."

"I know. This still feels like a dream to me. I mean, it's insane that we're in LA together."

"Lucky for you, I accepted insanity when I was a teenager."

"We're gonna be late!" Charlie called up, breaking them apart.

Eddie wiped his face quickly, laughing when Steve grabbed a tissue to clean him up. "Thanks."

"Anytime."

Charlie was waiting at the foot of the steps with a very Robin-like expression on her face. She was even tapping her foot, and the Tupperware was stacked neatly by the door. "I was ready ages ago. What took you so long?"

"Maybe I wanted to kiss Steve without you pulling a face." She stuck out her tongue at him. "Exactly. Now, I hear Jeff outside, so out you get."

Giggling, Charlie opened the door and ran to the car waiting on the curb. Jeff got out to help her in, waving at them as they collected the Tupperware. It barely fit into the trunk, and Steve had to shoo Eddie away when he tried to force them in. He had a way with words, sure, but he had hopeless man hands. Rough from years of playing the guitar and raising a child. Steve wasn't so delicate either, but he was better at packing things into small spaces.

Once everything was secure, he joined Eddie in the back since Charlie had called shotgun. She sat happily in the front, talking nonstop to Jeff the entire ride about everything from the flight to the people busking on the streets. The jugglers had been her favorite. Jeff seemed happy to talk to her, keeping up with the conversation, which allowed Steve to spend the ride teasing Eddie's fingers and playing with his rings.

By the time Jeff stopped, Eddie was fidgety and shooting Steve heated looks. So he took his time getting out, trying not to laugh when Eddie asked Jeff to go ahead with Charlie. They had barely disappeared through the gate to the side of the house with the Tupperware when Eddie shoved Steve against the car to kiss him hotly. "You are a menace," he growled between kisses.

Steve gave back just as good, slipping his hands in Eddie's back pockets to grind their hips together. Eddie groaned softly, breaking away to pant against Steve's cheek. He sounded wrecked already, and Steve felt a little guilty for teasing him so much during the ride, kissing his cheek in apology.

"Okay, okay. I'm good." Eddie let him go and took a deliberate step back, running a hand through his hair. "You're not allowed to touch me for the rest of the night."

"Impossible."

Eddie cracked a smile, holding out his hand, and Steve took it. They walked through the gate together to find the band sitting around a table, Charlie holding court in their midst. She stood on the table, marching back and forth as she recounted her daring rescue of Steve from the two fierce dragons. Apparently, Eddie had merely been present and taken all the glory for himself.

"So selfish," Steve whispered, squeezing his hand reassuringly because Eddie had stiffened up as soon as they'd rounded the corner. "Come on, there's seats for us."

Steve recognized everyone except the woman who looked startlingly similar to Eddie, from the brown curls to freckled noses, even if hers were more noticeable. You had to look close to see Eddie's. They were dressed similarly, too, with matching denim vest jackets and ripped jeans. She caught Steve's eye and smiled, showing off dimples. They could have been twins.

"Ronnie?" He asked Eddie, who nodded, looking sick.

"And Daddy got to kiss the Princess!" Charlie finished, waving her arms exuberantly, and she stopped before Steve, beaming at him. "He didn't turn into a frog, either, which is good. I like Steve, and that would have sucked."

"I'm sure," Gareth laughed as Jeff made a loud croaking sound.

Charlie held out her arms to Steve, so he stood up to lift her from the table and settled with her in his lap. She grabbed a cookie to eat, apparently done talking.

Michael took the reins, producing a six-pack of beer and another of coke. Steve took a coke, pressing another into Eddie's hands with a reassuring squeeze.

"So," Jeff started after taking a long drink from his beer. "We finished the tour, but we're not done yet. We want to start the next album, and we have loads of material left over. But…"

"We're shit at it." Ronnie finished, leaning forward on the table to look unflinchingly at Eddie. He, however, was looking down at his drink. "You were always the writer, Eddie, and everyone knows the last two albums have taken a nose dive without you. There's a lot of material, and we- Iknow you can make it into something good."

Eddie nodded, still looking down.

"Daddy can make it great! He's the best writer ever!" Charlie piped up, and it worked. Eddie looked up in surprise and then smiled at her. "Right?"

"Right you are, babygirl." He nodded, inhaling deeply. "Okay, I'm not making any promises, but I'll take a look at what you've got. But I gotta warn you, I remember what you lot were like, so my expectations are low."

Steve was surprised when everybody laughed. Even Charlie joined in, though he doubted she knew why they laughed.

Michael grabbed Eddie in a hug, ruffling his hair despite his protests. "Welcome back, man!"

"Get off!" But Eddie was grinning when he got free. He looked younger somehow, surrounded by his old friends, and it wasn't long before he was joking and laughing with them like no time had passed at all.

At least Steve wasn't the only odd one out. Charlie stayed with him, chatting about their plans in LA while Eddie was working. Steve would have to work, too, at some point, but he wanted to explore first and take Charlie with him. There was plenty to do and see, so he wasn't worried about either of them getting bored. And even if they did, they could always go with Eddie to the studio and annoy him.

"Hey," Eddie said softly during a lull in conversation, leaning into them both. "You doing okay?"

"Oh yeah, Charlie and I were cooking up ways to annoy you at work. But I won't spoil it."

"Gee, thanks." He booped Charlie's nose when she giggled. "Nothing extreme, you hear?"

"Uh-huh."

She held out her arms, leaning in to wrap them around Eddie's neck so he took her from Steve. "Oh, you getting tired, huh? We've only been here an hour or so."

"Mhmm. It's dark."

"I know, babygirl. We can go soon, okay? Jeff, can we borrow your couch?"

"Sure. Come on."

Steve felt at a loss without Charlie or Eddie as a buffer. It didn't help that Gareth and Michael shared a knowing smirk before making excuses about going for a piss and abandoning him too. So it was just him and Ronnie, who was looking at him curiously. He smiled back awkwardly.

"So you're the boyfriend?" She asked in a too-casual tone. It was the sort of thing he would have expected from Chrissy if he hadn't known her so well before finding out she was Eddie's cousin. "Didn't realize Eddie had enough game to pull someone like you. How did he do it?"

Steve couldn't help laughing. Mostly because of the insinuation that he was somehow out of Eddie's league. "You want the truth or some bullshit story about how we fell in love over parents evening?" She raised an eyebrow, curious apparently, so he explained. "I was Charlie's kindergarten teacher."

"Jesus, he seduced his kid's teacher?"

"Not on purpose. A long story, and I think I'll let Eddie explain it to you." He got enough grief as it was from Robin and Chrissy. He didn't need another woman adding to the list.

Ronnie nodded, finishing her can of beer before twirling it on the table with a tinny rattling noise. "You know, Eddie never believed in love when we were teens. Neither did I, to be honest. People treated us like second-class citizens because of where we lived. Eddie had it worse, though, because of his father. He tell you about him yet?"

"No."

"You're not missing out on anything good. Point is, he never wanted love, and he almost didn't have Charlie. Took a lot of convincing to make him keep her. Can't blame him for leaving this place to raise her somewhere safer. But you? Was not expecting that."

"A good surprise, I hope."

Ronnie smiled suddenly and leaned forward to hook a finger around the chain on Steve's neck, pulling out the guitar pick. "Yeah, definitely a good one. The way Eddie looks at you is sickening, but I'm glad he found you."

"So am I." Steve smiled back, relieved to be accepted. Ronnie had let slip a lot of information he wanted to talk about with Eddie, but maybe they weren't ready for that yet. Eddie's father and Charlie. They had time to get into the painful things later. They were working on building their relationship up at the moment. The last thing he wanted to do was push Eddie too far, too fast. "So how gawky was he as a kid? Do you have pictures?"

"Not on me. Damn, I should have thought of that! Oh, wait until you see his buzzcut. It always makes me cry when I remember. And, by the way, these truffles are awesome. I like you just for bringing them." She laughed heartily and popped one into her mouth. Just like that, Steve had a new friend.

The others returned shortly after, and Steve was mercifully allowed to exist in the background again. He liked listening to them talk about the old days, to learn about a different side of Eddie as he held his hand and helped drink the coke.

It was only when Charlie stumbled out, trailing a blanket behind her and rubbing her eyes, that they decided to call it a night. Steve picked her up as Eddie said goodbye, and she was soon fast asleep again in his arms. This time, Eddie sat in the front with Jeff so Steve wouldn't wake her up.

The drive back was quiet, and Eddie hung back to speak with Jeff after opening the door for Steve. He'd just got Charlie into bed when he joined them, kneeling next to Steve to check on her. "Okay?"

"Yeah, she didn't wake once."

"Good." He smiled, kissing Steve's cheek. "Come on."

Led back into the hallway, Steve was surprised to be taken downstairs instead of their room. Eddie only stopped in the living room and got Steve to sit in front of the fireplace. He knelt to fiddle with it, and after a moment, the fire started up, bathing the room in its warming glow. Steve smiled as Eddie sat opposite him, their knees pressed together.

Without a word, Eddie leaned in to kiss him, kneeling between his legs to push him back on the plush rug. There was no heat to the kisses, not even when their clothes were pulled off, and their naked bodies pressed together, flushed from the fire.

It wasn't sexual, Steve could feel that. The press of Eddie's lips against his thigh felt more like worship than desire, and he kept moving, trailing kisses down his leg to reach his foot. Eddie looked up and gave Steve that unfairly heartbreaking smile as he lifted Steve's leg around his waist so he could crowd in and kiss him again, their bodies pressed together and radiating warmth. "I love you," he breathed, the words whispering into Steve's skin, and he wanted to tattoo them to make it last.

He kissed Eddie until his lips were sore and then just watched him in the firelight, playing with his curls. Eddie didn't seem to mind, fingers trailing across Steve's chest instead. "What are you thinking?" Steve finally asked.

"Nothing." Eddie smiled, resting his chin over Steve's heart. "Just feeling."

"Yeah?" He nodded, expression so tender it made Steve want to cry. Then he realized he was crying, and laughed wetly, jostling Eddie. "Sorry. Guess I'm feeling a lot too."

Steve wrapped his arms around Eddie, watching the flames flicker as he began to doze. He didn't remember falling asleep, only waking up to sunlight warming the room, the fire long extinguished. Despite the ache in his back, Steve didn't regret a second of their night. He smiled and nuzzled closer to Eddie, listening to his slow breathing and feeling his steady heartbeat beneath his palm. It was quiet, only birdsong somewhere outside interrupting the silence.

How he could have ever thought Eddie wouldn't wait for him was ridiculous. They were in love, something Steve had never experienced so strongly and pure before. He never wanted to let go.