Topic: Family Futures

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:07 EST
Sundays tended to be lazy days in the Western world. If you were lucky enough not to have a job that required you over the weekend, Sunday was sacred. But when you live with a dog, there are some things that just can't be put off until later. Aaron had had a couple of days to get used to the fact that there was an affectionate English woman sleeping on his couch, together with her elderly brute of a Mastiff, but he had yet to be embarrassed by the sight of Tia wandering around in her underwear first thing in the morning. And why' Because she woke early every morning, and went for a run with her dog. She'd even fallen into the habit of picking up breakfast on her way back.

And even on Sunday, revered day of rest, that was how she started, her new key jangling in the lock as she and Solo edged back into the apartment at around nine. The dog barked hopefully - he'd become quite attached to Aaron over the last few days.

"Shhh! He might still be asleep!"

On the contrary, as Tia should know well by now, Aaron rarely slept late and was usually up with the sun, even after a restless night's sleep. He had yet to join her in her morning run, but he had his own morning routine to abide by, and thankfully, most of it was accomplished before she and her dog returned. This morning was a special one, though, not only because she was going to meet his family today, but because he was making breakfast, the smell of which met her at the door.

"Or not," she added with a low chuckle as Solo loped ahead of her to greet Aaron, nudging his big head against the man's good knee affectionately. A moment or two later, Tia came into view, setting the coffees she'd picked up on her way back to the apartment down on the table. "Good morning, Sandwich Man."

"Morning, Yoga Girl!" he greeted her in return, a warm smile on his face for her, before turning back to flip something he had cooking in a pan on the stove. "And hello to you, too, Solo!" he said, at the dog's affectionate greeting. It had only been a few days, but in those days, they had managed to work out a bit of a routine for themselves, and he found he was enjoying the companionship, despite his initial worries.

"This all looks very yummy," she commented cheerfully, laying one hand against his back to lean up and brush a kiss to his cheek. "That man at the coffee shop already knows my order - he was already making it as I walked up to the counter this morning," she added with a giggle. "He said to tell you he says hello, and he approves, whatever that means."

"I thought I smelled coffee," he replied with a grin, glad he hadn't bothered to make a pot. He knew her habits pretty well, after all. He chuckled at her remark, not that anyone's approval mattered really, not even his family's. "I must have good taste in women," he remarked, though he hadn't been with any women besides her in years.

"He meant me?" Tia blinked, surprised for a moment before she burst out with a loud giggle. "Oh, good grief ....that explains all the searching questions about my taste in men." She shook her head, rolling her eyes as she stepped away to open up the fridge and serve Solo the breakfast he'd earned with their run. "Oh, that reminds me ....you know that woman who lives down the hall" The one who puts lipstick on with a spatula" She fancies you."

And speaking of spatulas, Aaron was sliding an omelette onto a plate as she spoke, further proving his capabilities in the kitchen. Though he rarely bothered to cook for himself, he had far more reason to do so with Tia living there, temporarily or otherwise. He arched a brow at her claim, with a sidelong look her way. "What makes you say that?"

"Because she despises me with every atom of her being, and all I've ever said to her is "good morning"," she informed him with a smile. She probably shouldn't have enjoyed that bit of conflict as much as she did, but it was always nice to know that someone envied you. "She informed me that my arse looks like a pair of trapped Beagles in these leggings this morning."

"Are we talking about Susie?" he asked, all curiosity. She had never been anything but nice to him, but he'd never stopped to really think about why that was. He picked up both plates and took them to the table, no sign of his cane this morning.

"Mmhmm." She nodded, glancing up as Solo dipped his head into his bowl. "Maybe you've been her secret fantasy for years and never even knew it." Exposure to Aaron had somewhat quelled her tendency to fill every silence with a litany of rubbish, but she still had her moments and likely always would. Rising to her feet, she unhooked the sweater from about her hips, laying over the back of one of the chairs at the table.

"Does she know her secret fantasy only has one leg?" he asked, trying not to sound bitter. Even after almost a year, he was still trying to come to grips with that fact, but he was way past feeling sorry for himself. "And I can assure you that there's nothing wrong with your ass," he added, with a pointed look in that direction as she took her sweater off.

"Sure you don't need to check to make sure I'm not smuggling Beagles?" she teased, wiggling said part of her anatomy in his direction for a moment before turning back to face him. Her hand claimed his hip as she stepped close, fingertips of the other hand drumming against his chest as her head tilted back to meet his eyes. "Does it really matter what she thinks?" she asked softly. "I don't care. You're no less a man for what you might lack; I think you're more of a man for what you've endured, personally."

His brows lifted upwards at her claim, a little surprised to hear her say that, without even knowing how he'd been wounded in the first place. "I knew there was a reason I like you," he told her, his arms going around her waist, touching a kiss to her lips in reward for her faith in him. He smirked a little as he eased his hands down to give her rear a squeeze, as if to prove his neighbor's claim wrong.

She squeaked as his palms cupped her backside, giggling as her lips drew away from his. "No trapped doggies?" she asked playfully, brushing the tip of her nose to his.

"Not as far as I can tell," he assured her with a smile as she brushed her nose against his. Nothing ever seemed to get her down. Maybe that was what it was he liked best about her - and what he needed a little more of in himself. "Shall we eat breakfast before Solo beats us to it?" he teased.

"That's probably a good idea," she agreed, nipping a last kiss from his lips before easing back to her heels, almost embarrassed to admit even to herself that she was already missing the heat of his hands on her bottom. "I have to have a shower and decide what sort of impression I want to make on your family."

"Hmm, want a hint?" he asked, with a teasing smirk as she eased herself away from his embrace. He even went so far as to pull out a chair for her, like a perfect gentleman. His mother had raised him well, after all.

"That might actually help," she admitted with a faint laugh, sliding into the seat he held for her. She grunted as Solo planted his head on her lap, apparently wanting to help her deal with her fluttering nerves. "And you had better be on your best behavior," she added to the dog, stroking his ears fondly. "No obnoxious farts during dinner."

"Hmm, I'd go for the girl-next-door look," he suggested, as he hobbled over to claim a chair for himself. He seemed to be getting around pretty well without the cane today, albeit a bit slowly. He laughed at the warning she gave the dog. "Don't worry. My parents aren't strangers to pets."

"Girl-next-door ....I should be able to do that," she laughed, laying her napkin over Solo's face. The dog didn't even twitch, his breath blowing it up occasionally as she cut into her omelette. "And you're sure I won't be intruding" I'd hate to make a family occasion awkward just by being present."

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:08 EST
"Are you kidding?" he asked with a chuckle. "My mother is always pestering my brother and me to bring a nice girl home with us," he assured her, taking up his cup of coffee to take a sip.

Tia laughed softly around her mouthful, ingrained manners holding her hand in front of her mouths until she could swallow. "Specifically a nice girl, hmm?" she teased, taking a sip of her own coffee. "This is delicious, by the way. What happens if you bring a bad girl home to meet your parents" And how do they know" Come to think of it, how do you know I'm not bad" I could be a demon in the sheets."

"I don't think I'd mind so much if you were a demon in the sheets," he told her, with a grin. Though they hadn't been to bed together yet, that event was presumably looming somewhere in their future, as soon as he was feeling confident enough to let her see him completely as he was. "Anyway, they're probably going to be so charmed by your accent, they won't even care if you're a nice girl or not."

"Yes, explain to me the preoccupation with my accent," she challenged him as they breakfasted together. "I don't sound like the Queen, Mary Poppins, or Eliza Doolittle, and yet everyone I've met so far has asked me if I know the one English person they've met, or told me that my accent is either adorable or sexy. According to that persistent idiot yesterday, even swearing at him was sexy. Thank you for that, by the way - I really don't usually need rescuing from people who try to follow me home."

"Yeah, well, last time I checked you're ..." He trailed off, unsure if he should finish that thought. "I've never commented on your accent, I don't think," he said, though he had obviously noticed it, even going back to when they'd only been texting.

"I'm ...?" She wasn't going to let him off that easily, her smile more inviting than teasing as he trailed off. "You have, you know," she corrected him. "In text, I'm very English, and in life, according to you, I'm adorable."

"Would you rather be something other than adorable?" he asked, unable to wipe that smirk from his face, even as he took up a forkful of omelette. He didn't deny that breakfast was delicious - he knew he was a good cook when he put his mind to it. There were a lot of things he was good at, for that matter, but he wasn't the type to brag about them.

"Well, adorable does rather bring to mind the image of a two year old with ringlets, wearing a frilly dress and knickerbockers," she pointed out in amusement, pausing as she chewed and swallowed once again. "I'm really not the Shirley Temple type, I don't think. Am I?"

"Mmm, not when you put it that way," he admitted, chewing and swallowing his omelette. "Let's see ....How are these for adjectives" Smart, gorgeous, compassionate, and sexy."

"Oh ..." She stilled, blinking as she stared at him, wide-eyed in the face of compliments she really hadn't been expecting. A soft flush spread over her cheeks as she smiled at him, biting her lips together before she could giggle insanely. "All of those apply to you, you know," she countered softly.

He blinked back at her, just as surprised by her estimations of him as she was of him. Smart, maybe. Gorgeous, compassionate, and sexy' He wasn't sure about those. "I don't know about that," he replied, washing that mouthful of omelette down with a swallow of coffee.

"Are you going to argue with me?" she asked impishly. "Because we have already established that I cheat to win arguments, and your brain stops working when I get handsy."

"There's not much point in that," he admitted. It was the compassionate part that was confusing him most. He'd heard the other three words in reference to himself before, even if he didn't put much belief in them. "You're good for my ego, you know."

"Everyone needs a boost now and then," she shrugged, wiping her mouth clean as she set her cutlery down on her empty plate. "Besides, it's not flattery if it's true, and I try not to lie. As you may have discovered from the deluge of embarrassing stories about my checkered past that keep dropping from my mouth."

"There's still a lot you don't know about me, Tia," he told her, though he hoped none of it would tarnish her estimation of him at all. It said a lot that he was taking her to meet his family, who were likely to share all his carefully-kept secrets before the evening was done.

"I'm enjoying learning about you," she assured him warmly. She didn't mind that he wasn't as forthcoming with all his secrets as she was; it meant everything he told her was precious, worth remembering. A snore reverberated from her lap, making her glance down at Solo with a snort of laughter.

"He really is an old man, isn't he?" Aaron remarked with a chuckle at the snore coming from her lap. It made him a little bit sad in a way, knowing Solo wasn't going to live forever and they'd only just met.

She smiled fondly, stroking her fingers over the old Mastiff's head. "He really is," she mused affectionately. "He'll enjoy the outing, but he's going to be asleep as soon as we get back in the car. Getting him out should be a challenge and a half."

"Seems you've got yourself stuck with a couple of cripples," he said, not the first time he'd said it, though both he and Solo got around well enough, all things considered.

"Aaron ..." Just his name was a warning that she didn't like to hear him refer to himself that way, never mind her dog. "You know how I feel about that word."

"I know, sorry," he said, apologizing for what seemed like the hundredth time since they'd met. How many times had he been told that he wasn't a cripple" He wasn't even disabled, not really. Men just like him were going back to active duty; some even claimed to be fitter than they'd been before they'd been wounded, but he wasn't one of them.

"And you say I apologize too much," she countered with a smile, gently shifting Solo off her leg. The big dog yawned, sloping off to find his bed and finish his nap. She rose from her seat, gathering the plates together, and leaned down to kiss Aaron fondly. "Any requests while I'm in the shower?" Because her most annoying habit thus far had been revealed to be singing loudly in the shower - usually several Disney hits.

"So long as it isn't anything from Frozen again," he replied with a faint smile as he pushed to his feet to help her clear the table. "Go on. I'll take care of the mess," he told her, reaching to take the plates away from her.

She giggled, gently bumping her shoulder to his arm as he got up. "All right, no Elsa or Anna this morning," she promised. "I won't be long, I hope." Nervous or not, she wasn't the sort to drag out getting ready for anything.

If he was bolder and more confident in himself, he might have joined her in the shower, but he wasn't quite that comfortable yet. Maybe once she got used to the sight of him without his prosthesis, but not yet. "Take your time," he told her, smiling at the arm bump before turning to fill the sink so he could scrub the dishes clean. So far, it seemed there was little he couldn't do, despite his supposed disability.

She might not have taken her time, as such, but she was certainly in there long enough to regale him with enthusiastic renditions of A Whole New World, Beauty and the Beast, and an extended version of Gaston, involving lyrics not even the composers could have come up with. Ten minutes with a hair dryer ended the whole thing, and a few minutes later, she wandered out, sliding earrings into place.

He'd suggested the girl-next-door look, and she'd done her best with a white shirt and pink skirt, hunting for flats in her bag by the couch. "Will I do?"

He'd finished the dishes before she'd finished with the shower, adding a lightweight jacket to his 49ers t-shirt and jeans. She found him gathering up the paraphernalia most women carried in their purses - wallet, keys, cellphone - and shoving them into various pockets in his jacket. He turned at the sound of her voice, a smile curling his lips as he looked her over. "Wow, nice. You clean up good, Yoga Girl," he teased.

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:09 EST
One hand on the couch as she pulled her flat shoes onto her bare feet, she flipped her hair out of her face at his comment, flashing him a slightly nervous smile. "Well, the last thing I want is for them to decide I'm not good enough for you because I'm wearing something offensive," she pointed out, straightening up to tuck a small bag of treats and her cell phone into her pocket. "Solo! Wakey, wakey!"

"Do you even own anything offensive?" he asked, doubting that. He felt a little silly having suggested what she wear, but she seemed to have needed that suggestion. And just what could she wear that might turn his parents off" So long as she wasn't dressed like a tramp or a slob, he doubted she'd have any trouble making a good impression.

"Well, teeny shorts," she suggested. "I have a couple of t-shirts with naughty words on them, too." She grinned, bending to hook the leash onto Solo's collar as he heaved himself onto his feet, refreshed after his nap. "I'm not sure having the word bitches across my chest and half my arse showing would make the best impression on your mother."

"No, that would probably not be a good idea," he agreed with a chuckle. "All ready to go?" he asked, patting his pockets to make sure he had everything he needed - all except his cane, which he'd left in the bedroom. He frowned thoughtfully a moment, privately debating whether or not he should bring it.

"I am; are you?" She had noticed the lack of a cane, but she wasn't sure why he was choosing to go without it today. Surely his own family knew he needed it on occasion"

"As ready as I'll ever be," he replied. There wasn't nothing to fear from a visit with his family. Hell, he'd done a lot scarier things than that and had survived. He didn't mention the cane or seem inclined to want to fetch it, nor did he explain why he was choosing to leave it behind, today of all days.

"All right, then." Leash in one hand, she claimed his fingers with the other. "Let's go and be nervous together in your car for a little while. You're sure it's okay not to bring a bottle or something?"

"It's just dinner with my family, Tia!" he reminded her, as his fingers found hers. He had to pause a moment at the door to lock up, and he was moving slower than usual without the cane to help with his balance, but he seemed to be managing well enough.

There was nothing wrong with a measured pace, in Tia's opinion, and besides, who was she to comment' He probably had a good reason for not wanting his family to see him depending on the cane. "You can't stop me from being nervous," she pointed out with a giggle. "Meeting the family is a big stepping stone. If they don't like me, you might change your mind about me."

If she'd asked, the change had nothing to do with his family, and a lot more to do with her, but he didn't want to make a big deal of it. "First of all, they aren't going to dislike you, and secondly, whatever they think isn't going to change my feelings for you, so stop worrying," he told her as he led the way out of the building and toward his car.

"Yes, master," she teased, squeezing his hand as she followed along easily. "You hear that, Solo' Stop worrying." The big dog wuffled against her bare knee affectionately in response.

"Yeah, I'm sure Solo is worried about it," he teased back, chuckling a little at her remark. He'd noticed how she'd squeezed his hand, but said nothing about it, though he found some comfort in that simple touch. "Okay, Solo ....Time to go for a ride again," he told the dog, as he unlocked the car and the back door open.

Solo licked Aaron's hand, hoisting his bulk up and onto the blanket laid out on the back seat, letting Tia attach his leash to the back of the passenger seat as he settled down comfortably. Car rides were one of his favourite things, but not for any reason other than the fact that it was going somewhere without needing to move himself.

It was too bad he hadn't known Solo - or Tia, for that matter - years ago, but then, years ago, he'd been a different person with different priorities in his life. He rewarded the dog with a ruffle of fur before going to open Tia's door, and then on to his own. Climbing into the driver's seat was sometimes a challenge, but somehow he managed. "Here we go!"

"To infinity and beyond!" Tia declared, mustering the enthusiasm that seemed to mark her out from everyone else he knew as she buckled herself in. "Well, to your parents' house!" She laughed. "I've just realized I have no idea where we're going."

He laughed at her outburst, recognizing the quote. "Not quite that far," he said, regarding the quote, but not really telling her much more than that. He pulled the car out of the parking lot and into the road, heading south out of the city proper.

It was Tia's first venture outside the city itself - her first good look at the Golden Gate Bridge and the bay where she'd decided to make her home. She was more excited than nervous on the journey, filled with questions about the places they passed and the activities he enjoyed, passing the time easily with her usual babble of warm chatter.

He hadn't lived all his life in the city by the bay, but he had always felt like this place, more than any other, was his home. There was no more amazing sight than the Golden Gate Bridge; or the city all lit up at night, like stars in the sky; or the water shimmering brightly in the bay. What Aaron loved most of all was the vast body of water that was the ocean to the west of the city, and the beaches that dotted the coast, but they weren't visiting any of that today. The closer they got to their destination, the nicer the houses and the more obvious the fact that his parents lived in a more affluent area than did their son.

"Goodness," Tia commented as they passed along the wider roads. "I had no idea everything was so spaced out here. Even in the suburbs in England, the houses are usually all scrunched up together."

"Well, it can get pretty congested in the city. Sometimes I feel a little claustrophobic there, but when Dad retired from the Navy, Mom insisted they were going to buy a nice house in a nice neighborhood away from the chaos of the city," Aaron explained.

She chuckled softly. "So your mum runs the roost, does she?" she asked in amusement. It was funny to her that a woman whose husband and younger son both had military experience was the one who called the shots in her home.

"As much as Dad would like to think not, yeah," he replied with a chuckle as he pulled the car down a little cul de sac lined with newer builds.

Tia giggled, feeling the butterflies rise up in her stomach as the car slowed. She swallowed, glancing back to Solo, who had lifted his head to peer out through the windows as they passed under trees and by open yards. "I'm guessing we're here, then."

"That's a pretty good guess," Aaron replied, as he pulled into the driveway of one of the houses on the circle at the end of the street. "Don't worry. They're gonna love you both," he assured her with a warm smile.

Her nervous smile widened at his reassurance. As he drew the car to a halt, she leaned over, touching a kiss to the corner of his mouth. "If I start babbling too much, stop me," she warned. It had been a long time since she'd been this genuinely eager to impress anyone. She wasn't sure how she should behave - America seemed very different to the elite circles in England.

If she'd asked him, he'd have told her to just be herself. At least, she wouldn't have to wait long before she met his mother. As soon as the car was in the driveway, a couple who were presumably his parents were emerging from the house and making their way toward the car, both of them wearing big grins. "Here goes nothing," he said, under his breath, as if he was a little nervous, too.

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:09 EST
"Oh, wonderful," she drawled, rolling her eyes as she unbuckled her belt. "You're nervous, too. That's perfect, that is." Grinning sheepishly, she slithered out of the car, turning to open up the back seat and coax Solo out, feeding him a treat in exchange for his not barking excitedly at the older couple moving toward them.

He was nervous for an entirely different reason than Tia was, but he wasn't about to share what that reason was. The woman seemed especially excited to see them, squeeing joyously at the sight of her son, and perhaps even more so because he had brought a female friend home with him.

"Welcome home, sweetheart!" she told him, practically tackling him with a hug as he climbed out of the car.

"Mom, I only live a few miles away!" he reminded her with a chuckle.

"I know, darling, but you can't blame a mother for missing her baby, can you?" she said, affectionately pinching his cheek, not expecting an answer. "Are you going to introduce us to your friend?" she asked, smiling over at Tia and laughing to see Solo. "Sorry, friends!" she said, emphasizing the plural form of the word.

"Lieutenant," his father greeted Aaron fondly, unable to keep from teasing him a little with his rank before offering his son a hand and a hug. "Is that a giant dog or a midget woman?" he murmured against his son's ear.

Behind them, Tia was clinging to Solo's leash, watching with envious eyes as Aaron's parents welcomed him home.

"Hey, Dad," Aaron greeted his father, returning both the handshake and the man-hug, before turning to regard the woman and the dog beside him. "Both, I guess," he replied with a chuckle. "This is Tia and Solo," he introduced them both with the wave of a hand. "Tia, my parents, Mike and Sandra."

"Hello, Tia! It's a pleasure to meet you," his mother said, not wasting any time in greeting her with a hug before turning that same affection on Solo.

"Hello, Mrs - oh! Okay, we're hugging ..." Tia's grin flickered into view over Sandra's shoulder as she answered that hug one-handed, laughing when the same hug was bestowed on her dog. And Solo, of course, lapped up the attention, laying his head on the woman's shoulder in answer.

"Welcome to Frisco, Tia," Mike nodded to her warmly, not quite as effusive in his greeting. "Sandy, let the dog alone. You can spoil him inside the house."

"Oh, can't you see how he loves the attention?" Sandra pointed out, giving the dog another hug, giggling like a girl at the dog's trusting show of affection. "He's adorable," she said, before straightening and smiling at both her son and his "friend" with a sigh. "Aaron, why don't you show Tia around, while your father and I get some refreshments. We'll meet you on the patio."

"Is it all right to let Solo off the leash in your yard, Mrs Murphy?" Tia asked quickly. She didn't think this display of good behavior would last long if her elderly dog had to stay inside all the time - he'd missed having grass to roll in.

"Please, dear ....Call me Sandy," Mrs. Murphy told her, with a smile and a pat of Tia's hand. "And yes, of course, you can let him off the leash. Just make sure he stays out of the roses or he might hurt himself," she warned, due to the thorns.

"Thank you." Relieved that Solo wasn't going to be a bother, Tia stepped closer to Aaron, wondering why his parents were so ready to abandon them as soon as they arrived. Her own parents would have sent her to get drinks and immediately cornered Aaron to find out all about him in his own words. Another difference, it seemed.

Mike chuckled at his wife's enthusiasm, nodding to the younger couple. "She started on the wine early," he informed his son with teasing good humor, patting Sandy's shoulder.

Just for that, "Mike" got a whack in the arm from his good-natured wife and a look that wordlessly warned him to behave himself before she was dragging him away to help with "refreshments".

In the meantime, Aaron couldn't help but chuckle a little at his parents' obvious attempt to give Tia a little more time to get acclimated before they deluged her with questions. "Sorry, they're a little weird," he apologized, but then weren't all parents a little weird as far as their children were concerned"

"They're lovely," Tia hastened to assure him, her shy smile warming as they were left to their own devices a little longer. "Truly. It's wonderful to see what a loving family you have." She squeezed his hand, hoping her envy didn't show too badly.

"You haven't met my brother yet," Aaron warned her quietly, before leading her toward the gate that led to the backyard patio.

"I'm sure he isn't as bad as you're warning me," she countered in a soft tone, letting him lead her and Solo out of the street. "Do I need to make that point again? It's your hands I like on my arse, you know."

"You may need to keep reminding me of that," he replied, only half joking. While some might consider a white picket fence to be a cliche, Aaron's parents apparently found them charming as the backyard was fenced in by exactly that. The perimeter of the yard was lined with various bushes and flower beds, a few trees scattered here and there. A table and chairs took center stage on the patio, which was covered by an awning to provide shade.

As soon as the gate was shut, Tia bent to let Solo off the leash, laughing at the sight of her elderly dog bounding out onto the lawn to roll around in the green grass with every sign of deep and poignant delight. Shaking her head, she turned back to Aaron, crooking a finger. "You need to bend down, or we're both going to fall over," she pointed out with a teasing smile.

"Bend down?" he echoed, unsure what she meant by that. Did she want him to roll around on the grass like the dog was doing, or did she just want a kiss? Either way, it made him smile to see Solo having so much fun.

"Mmhmm ....I have no heels, that means you're further away than usual," she clarified. "Either you bend down, or I stand on the steps where your family will be able to see me snogging you into insensibility. Your choice."

"Oh, I see," he replied with a grin, sliding his arms around her waist and dipping his head enough to just about meet her lips. He wasn't overly concerned about his parents catching them "snogging", so long as his brother didn't walk in on them.

Giggling, she curled her arms about his shoulders, lifting up onto her toes to close that distance more comfortably and follow through on her promise of a proper "snog". She was certainly thorough about it, needing that moment of contact to balance herself out for the afternoon to come.

The sound of someone clearing their throat interrupted that kiss from somewhere behind them, and Aaron looked up to find a familiar face standing there with a big grin on his face. The man was close enough in looks to almost be his double, and obviously must be the often spoken of brother.

Tia countered the big grin with a raised brow above her own smile, tucking her arm about Aaron's waist. "You know, if you managed to bring a nice girl home, you wouldn't be reduced to watching your brother enjoying his nice girl," she said in a sweet tone, offering her free hand to shake. "I'm Tia."

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:10 EST
"She's feisty," Aaron's as-yet-nameless brother remarked with a grin. "I like that." He moved closer to take her hand, instincts telling him to accept the gesture for what it was and not push his luck with a kiss or a hug. "Ben," he told her, returning the introduction with one of his own.

"A pleasure to meet you, Ben," Tia smiled back, glad she'd established that line right from the off. Hopefully Aaron would be able to relax now.

"I see a jug of iced tea that's supposed to be outside," Mike's voice called from inside the house. "How many hands does the elder spawn of my loins think I have?"

Ben rolled his eyes at his father's scolding. "Dad runs a tight ship," he remarked quietly. "Don't go away. I'll be right back!" he promised them both before hurrying off to help his father with whatever it was he was supposed to be helping with.

Thankfully, Aaron was smiling, albeit a little nervously. "Well, that didn't go too badly so far."

"Where does he think we're going to go?" Tia asked in amusement, hugging both arms about Aaron's waist as she leaned into him. "Feeling a little less on edge about having a girlfriend around your brother now?"

"He can get his own. You belong to me," Aaron told her, claiming her lips once again and boldly claiming her for his own, whether his family was watching or not.

Possessive or not, it struck the right chord with Tia. She badly needed to belong somewhere, with someone, and Aaron was everything she could have wished for. He was also singularly effective at somehow managing to make her utterly unaware of anything but him, entirely focused on the man in her arms.

"Were we ever that handsy?" she heard a voice asked curiously, drawing back with a blush to find Mike watching them this time, with Sandy close beside him.

"How do you think we made him and his brother?" Sandy reminded her husband with a smirk. "Sorry to interrupt, but I thought we might have some iced tea and sandwiches," she said. It wasn't dinner time yet, but this was her way of being a good hostess.

"It's been so long, I can hardly remember," Mike sighed exaggeratedly, grinning as he patted his wife's backside with familiar fondness. "Yes, put the girl down and bring her over here so we can embarrass you properly."

Tia bit her lip, trying not to laugh at the affectionate silliness that brimmed over with these people.

"Your memory must finally be going, or wasn't that you in my bed last night?" Sandy Murphy teased her husband in return, flashing him a grin before stepping closer to set the tray of sandwiches on the table.

"Too much information, Mom," Aaron pointed out with a chuckle as he took Tia's hand to draw her over to the table.

"You have your own bed now?" Mike teased his wife cheerfully, dropping down into a seat at the table. "Now then, little woman ....name, rank, and number."

Tia blinked, glancing at Aaron a little uncertainly. "Um ....Christiana Coslan, bookstore employee as of tomorrow, and I don't give out my number to random men?" she answered, not entirely sure this was what was being asked.

"No number, Dad," Aaron told his father, chuckling. "She's not military."

"No, she's English," his brother interjected as he joined the group, taking a swig from a bottle of beer. Well, that much was obvious already from Tia's accent.

"Are you suggesting the English don't allow women into the military?" Tia asked as Benjamin sat down, raising her brows above an amused smile.

Mike chuckled, leaning back to swig his own beer. Aaron might have been concerned he'd ask too many questions, but he'd managed to start a conversation without even asking one.

"No, but if you were in the military, you probably wouldn't be here. Besides, you said yourself that you're a bookstore employee, as of tomorrow, which tells me you're probably new in town," Ben deduced, claiming a chair for himself opposite the happy couple. "Ben, let the girl speak for herself, for goodness sake," his mother scolded.

"Ah, but if I were in deep cover special ops, I wouldn't admit to being in the military, and my cover-story would be so well drilled into me that your Sherlock impression wouldn't hold water," Tia heard herself countered with a low laugh, a little astonished at herself for talking back at all. At least she wasn't babbling.

"And if you were in deep cover special ops, what would you be doing in San Francisco?" Ben countered, grinning as he took another swig of his beer.

Sandy sighed as she poured each of them - except Ben - a glass of tea and handed them around. "Must the conversation always circle back to the military?" she asked quietly, not really expecting an answer.

"Why would I tell you the truth?" Tia pointed out to Ben, flushing at the quiet resignation from Sandra. "Sorry, Mrs. Murphy." Embarrassed that she'd somehow made a mistake already, she took her glass gratefully, taking a long gulp.

It wasn't Tia whose conversation had brought up the subject of the military so much as Aaron's father. No one was going to fault her, especially not Aaron's mother, who'd spent a good part of her life as a military wife and now mother. "No need to apologize, dear. It's these two who should apologize," she said, giving both husband and son a pointed glare.

Mike met his wife's glare with an innocent smile. "I apologize profusely, oh, light of my twilight years," he responded, leaning over to kiss her cheek. "How long have you and Aaron been together, Christiana?"

"Um ..." Tia glanced at Aaron with an infectious giggle, not entirely sure she should answer that.

"That's better," Sandy said with a smile, apparently satisfied by her husband's apology. Her son was another matter, but she let it go for now. She held out a plate of small, wedge-shaped sandwiches first to Tia and Aaron, without interrupting the conversation further, just as curious as her husband.

"It's only been a few days, Dad," Aaron answered for them. He'd learned a long time ago that honesty was the best policy in this household.

"You must be pretty confident in each other to bring her home so soon," Mike commented, watching as Tia selected the first sandwich to hand and proceeded to nibble nervously on it. "Love at first sight, huh?"

"Give them some time, Dad," Ben interjected, raising his bottle with a wink to his brother.

Aaron would have given Tia's hand a squeeze if she hadn't reached for a sandwich. "It didn't take you and Mom long. Maybe it runs in the family," Aaron pointed out, reaching for a sandwich of his own.

"Our side and hers?" Mike chuckled, shaking his head. "That's written in the stars." He eased comfortably back in his seat, one arm wrapped about Sandra's shoulders. "So what brings you to California, Christiana" Looking for somewhere a little more dynamic than London?"

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:11 EST
Swallowing hastily, Tia took a sip of her tea. "Well, I'm not from London," she told them. "I'm from the south coast, near Portsmouth. And please, I'd really rather be called Tia."

"Relax, Tia," Sandy reassured her. "This isn't the Spanish Inquisition. We're just curious about the woman who seems to have captured our son's heart," she said, with a glance at Aaron. Whether Tia and Aaron had admitted it to themselves or each other yet, Sandy could see how much they already meant to each other.

"No pressure there, Mom!" Ben said with a chuckle.

"You couldn't be the Spanish Inquisition," Tia heard herself blurt, nerves overriding her attempt to keep the babbling under control. "Because no one expects the Spanish Inquisition, and I was expecting you to be curious about me. Who wouldn't be curious about the strange woman and her elderly dog who showed up in the middle of the week and moved in with their son three days later" I certainly would be, and I don't have a son ..."

As the young woman continued on, her eyes exhibiting a certain amount of panic as she failed to stop her mouth from running, Mike glanced at his wife and sons in vague concern. "I think we broke her."

Aaron reached over to give Tia's hand a reassuring squeeze, while Ben chuckled at the talkative and obviously nervous girl, and Sandy only smiled. "I just remembered, I left something in the kitchen. I wonder, Tia, if you could come help me with it?" she asked, obviously hoping to rescue the girl from her husband and eldest son until she was able to gather her wits and relax.

Stuttering into silence at the squeeze to her hand, Tia blushed to the tips of her ears, mortified with herself. She murmured an apology for letting her mouth run away with her, deeply grateful when Sandy offered her an out. "Of course, Mrs. Murphy," she agreed, squeezing Aaron's hand once again as she rose to her feet, leaving the poo bags and treats for Solo on the table, just in case he needed them.

Sandy led Tia inside the house, to the kitchen, far enough away from the men that they weren't likely to overhear. "I'm sorry about that, Tia. I'm afraid the men in the family can be a little overwhelming. I've been outnumbered by them for years!" she added with a chuckle as she drew a bag of chips from the cupboard - a poor excuse for their retreat.

"No, it's fine, Mrs. Murphy, honestly," Tia tried to insist. "I-I talk too much anyway, and when I'm nervous, I can't stop. It just keeps coming out of my mouth like word vomit." She winced at her own words. "That didn't sound right. I do apologize."

Sandy frowned a little as she regarded the young woman, deciding something on a whim and reaching into the cupboard for a bottle of something that looked suspiciously like brandy. "What you need is something to help you relax," she told her, taking down a couple of glasses from the cupboard before unscrewing the cap and pouring them each a small portion.

"If I relax too much, I might really embarrass myself," Tia admitted, "although I'm doing pretty good job of that without any ....Okay, 'll stop." She physically put a hand over her own mouth, taking a deep breath.

"We're not going to have enough to get drunk," Sandy assured her. "Just enough to calm your nerves a little," she said, handing the young woman one of the two glasses. "You should have seen me the first time I met Michael's parents," she said, touching her glass to Tia's before declaring, "Bottom's up!" and taking a long swallow of the brandy.

Tia couldn't help giggling a little at this display of feminine solidarity, her throat just a little thick as she considered how much her own mother would have liked Aaron's. "Mud in your eye," she answered the toast, raising her own glass and swallowing half in one gulp. "Oh ....goodness, that's good stuff."

"Mother's little helper," Sandy said, patting the bottle affectionately. Despite how that sounded, she wasn't an alcoholic by any means, but she knew when a little extra help was needed to calm a case of nervous jitters. "Now, there's nothing to be afraid of. We really aren't as scary as we seem."

Smiling in appreciation of this reassurance, Tia felt the truth well up before she could stop it. "It's been a long time since I've been around a family," she admitted quietly. "It's a little ....bittersweet. But I like it."

Sandy frowned, sensing something sad in Tia's admission, but she wasn't sure quite it was. There was obviously some lack of family in the girl's life, but whether it was because of death or distance, she couldn't say. It seemed obvious enough that the young woman had come here on her own, for whatever reason, and she sympathized with that loneliness. "I'm going to be honest with you, Tia. My Aaron has been through a lot. You probably know that already. We just don't want to see him get hurt, but I have a feeling you don't want that either."

The younger woman bit her lip, understanding that she was being warned in the gentlest way possible. "If you want to know the truth, Mrs. Murphy, I ....I misdialed a number. That's how we met. I bombarded what I thought was my cousin with a number of text messages, and Aaron answered. And we shared texts for two days before we met up on Thursday. I've only been in the country since Tuesday, and I count myself incredibly fortunate to have met your son. He's ..." A shy smile lit up her face. "He's wonderful. The last thing I want to do is hurt him."

Sandy smiled. It wasn't so much a warning as it was an explanation of why her family felt so protective toward their youngest member. She reached over to pat Tia's hand. "I know my son, and I'm pretty sure he thinks you're wonderful, too." How she knew that from the small interaction she'd witnessed so far was a mystery, but mothers were notorious for knowing things about their children that no one else did.

"Thank you." Swallowing what was left in her glass, Tia automatically turned to rinse it out in the sink. "Actually, I never intended to impose on his hospitality, but the longer we're in the same apartment, the less I want to leave. It sounds so strange to say it out loud." She laughed, shaking her head. "It is a little small for the three of us, though."

"Hmm," Sandy murmured thoughtfully. "I don't mean to shock you, Tia, but it sounds like you might be falling in love with my son," she told her, as gently as she could. But was Aaron feeling the same"

"I think you're right, Mrs. Murphy," Tia agreed softly, wiping her hands dry. "I feel ....safe, with Aaron." She tilted her head, considering Sandy with worried eyes. "You don't think it's too fast to have a future, do you?" she asked in concern.

Sandy finished off her brandy and set the glass aside, a soft smile for the woman whose heart had been captured by her son. "I think maybe you didn't dial my son's number by accident," she told her, echoing something Aaron had said himself.

Tia felt herself laugh just a little. "You think it's Fate, too?" she asked, not really surprised to hear his mother say it. "He hasn't told me how he lost his leg, and I'd really rather only hear it from him. But ....he seems comfortable with me. And Solo." She shook her head with a faint chuckle for the relationship Aaron was building with her dog.

"I might use a different word for it than Fate, but yes," she said, not putting a name on whatever higher power it was that had guided this woman to finding her son and vice versa. Sandy smiled, a little bit sadly, and laid a hand against Tia's arm. It wasn't hard to see how much this woman loved her son and how it hurt her to have seen him in pain, but she was confident he would survive even the loss of a limb. "I agree it's his story to tell, if and when he's ready to tell it, but let me show you something," she said, drawing her away from the kitchen into another room that seemed to serve as a study.

Tia wasn't sure why she'd brought it up at all. She was just a little worried that perhaps the story would come up this afternoon, and if Aaron wasn't ready for her to know, it would hurt him and make the gathering awkward for everyone. At least Sandy could keep her boys under control. Drawn out of the kitchen, she looked around curiously as she was lead into what seemed to be a study. "I really do hope I'm not intruding."

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:11 EST
"Don't be silly. So long as you are with my son, you are part of this family," Sandy assured her, as she led the way to a cabinet where she pulled open a drawer and carefully took out a small box. "He doesn't like to talk about what happened, and he doesn't think he's anything special, but this is his." She opened the box and handed it to Tia, not because she wanted to brag about her son's courage, but because she wanted her to understand what made him who he was. Nestled inside the box was a medal in the shape of a gold star with a silver star at its center, hanging from a ribbon of red, white, and blue stripes.

Taking the box into her hands, Tia looked down at the Silver Star, feeling something indescribable shift into place in her heart. Her fingertips touched the shining medal as a tiny, sad smile touched her lips. "He never said anything about being in the military," she told Sandy softly. "But his reluctance ....it makes sense now. He doesn't think he deserves this, does he?"

"No, I don't think so. He only thinks he was doing his duty. He gave it to me for safe keeping. He said it only reminds him of everyone he lost over there. Not everything, Tia. Everyone. My boy lost his leg, and he can only think of his friends who lost their lives." Sandy sighed, a small frown on her face. "I can only imagine what he went through there, but I'm glad he's home."

Home. It was an odd word for the apartment where he lived. Tia had only been there for a few days, true, but it didn't feel lived in. It felt more like a box, or a cage - somewhere Aaron kept the rest of the world at bay. And she remembered what he'd said about a beach house, and the way his face had lit up as he described the places to her. "Sandra ..." she said thoughtfully, as her hands respectfully closed the box to hand it back to the woman. "Can you think of anywhere along the beach that might be up for sale" A house?"

"The beach?" Sandy echoed, as she took the box, as gingerly as if it was the most precious thing she owned. Her eyes were shining suspiciously as she met the young woman's gaze, a puzzled expression on her face.

"Aaron, he ....well, we were talking about finding me somewhere to live, before he moved me into his apartment, and when he talked about the beach houses, his face lit up," Tia told her with a shy smile. "And that apartment really is too small to fit all three of us comfortably for too much longer, so I really should repay his kindness somehow. I ....I think he might thrive near the sea. Do you?"

"Why didn't he tell me this himself?" Sandy murmured out loud, but then, she already knew the answer to that. He didn't want to worry her, as always. The apartment he'd chosen to live in was conveniently located, and there had been a time when he'd needed that, but maybe that time was past. "Michael and I ....We offered him the beach house, but he declined." She sighed again as she returned the Silver Star to the safety of the cabinet. "Aaron used to love the water. He used to swim and surf. It was a big part of his life at one time. It was his dream to be in the Olympics someday." She moved over to a shelf, which was lined with a row of trophies. "He and his brother used to compete. Ben was good, but Aaron was better."

"You have a beach house?" This was news to Tia, though it made a little more sense of Aaron's attachment to the sea. "I wonder ....would it be awful of me to rent it from you both' I am good for the money, I promise you. I-I think I could convince him to move there with me. Solo is a good excuse for having a little more room. He takes up enough of it himself."

"Tia, if you can manage to convince Aaron to move there, you can live there rent-free!" Sandy replied with a smile, her expression brightening. "And if you can get him back into the water, I would be even more grateful," she added, feeling, perhaps like Tia, that the beach house might be good for her son. Perhaps some greater being really had brought this woman into her son's life for a purpose.

"One thing at a time, I think," Tia said, but she was smiling. Despite the newness of this relationship, she was fairly sure she could convince Aaron to move into the beach house. "I think I should persuade him to treat me to a weekend there first, just to be sure before I bring it up." Yes, it was a little devious, but sometimes, devious was necessary.

"Agreed," Sandy replied with a smile. "Do you think you'll need help convincing him?" she asked, though what she was really asking was if Tia needed her to do anything to help.

Tia considered this for a moment. "Well, he hasn't actually mentioned your beach house to me at all," she said thoughtfully. "Perhaps it could come up in conversation at some point today, otherwise he'll know we've been scheming."

Sandy nodded agreeably and touched the other woman's arm reassuringly. "Leave it to me. I'll think of something," she assured her, already thinking how best to broach the subject. "We should probably rejoin them before they come looking for us."

"With one bag of crisps," Tia added, a teasing sparkle in her eyes as she pointed out the flimsy pretext for having been drawn away from the men in the first place.

"Yes, exactly!" Sandy said with a laugh. She linked her arm with Tia's to lead her back into the kitchen so that they could fetch the bag of chips as proof of her feigned need for help in the kitchen.

Giggling, Tia let herself be pulled along, feeling a lot more at ease as the two women stepped out onto the patio once again. Solo had finally come off the grass and had apparently been inducted into the boys' club briefly, but given the fact that he had seemingly stolen Ben's shoe and was refusing to give it back, he might have been about to be barred from the club entirely.

For the first time in months, Aaron was actually doubled over with laughter as his brother was trying his damnedest to tempt the dog with treats in exchange for his shoe.

Mike was laughing, too, not bothering to help his elder son. He was too pleased to see Aaron laughing so hard with such ease to want the moment over too soon, and besides, it was ridiculous to see how very little the big dog cared about treats when he had a trophy all of his own.

Tia bit her lips around a snort of laughter, glancing at Sandy with a faint grin. "Should I intervene, or let him struggle a little longer?" she asked, knowing full well that Ben would likely be a little stunned by the authority she had over her gentle giant of a canine.

"Oh, I think he's probably suffered enough, don't you?" Sandy replied, obviously amused at what had taken place while the two of them had been in the kitchen. As much as her eldest son might sometimes deserve what he got in return for his teasing, she loved both her sons equally and only wanted them to be happy, but not at one or the other's expense.

"If you say so." Smiling, Tia moved over to where Ben was trying to cajole her dog, tapping him on the shoulder. "Move over, let the expert work," she suggested with a cheeky flicker to her smile. Then she turned her attention to her dog, bending just a little to hold her open hand out, palm up. "Drop." And that was that - one word, no need for treats or bribery, and Solo dropped the shoe into her hand, thumping down onto his backside to be praised for his obedience.

Mike choked on his beer laughing as Tia handed the shoe back to Ben and crouched down to hug her dog fondly.

The only problem now was that the shoe was a bit soggy, as was obvious from the look on Ben's face as he was handed his shoe. "Thanks, I think," he muttered. Thankfully, even he saw the humor in the situation and didn't blame Tia or Solo. "I'm gonna get another beer. Any other takers?" he asked, holding the shoe very gingerly in one hand.

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:12 EST
"I'll come in and dress the chicken," Mike said, pushing him to stand with a kiss to Sandy's hair. "Let's see if we can dry out your poor little slipper, shall we?" He chuckled, clapping his eldest son on his shoulder fondly as he passed out of sight.

That only left Sandy to decide whether to remain where she was, with Aaron and Tia, or join her husband and eldest son inside, leaving the couple alone for a little while. She looked from one to the other, as if debating what to do before deciding to duck back inside, if only briefly. "You're not going to touch the chicken without my supervision, Michael!" she warned her husband, leaving the bag of chips on the table. "I'll be right back," she said before turning to follow the other two back inside.

Aaron's brows arched upwards as he watched his family retreat back inside the house, leaving him alone with Tia again. "Why do I get the feeling they keep doing that on purpose?"

Rising from her crouch beside Solo, Tia laughed a little. "Because they lack subtlety?" she suggested, sliding into her seat beside Aaron once again. "I'm sorry I lost it a little there. I will try and keep the babbling under control - I suppose I'm just not very good at being in the spotlight."

"There's nothing wrong with your babbling, Tia. It's better than saying nothing at all," he assured her. He had always been too quiet for his own good, he supposed. Maybe that was because he'd always felt a little over-shadowed by his eldest brother.

"I compared your family to the Spanish Inquisition," she pointed out in mild amusement, curling her fingers through his. "Although your mum did dose me with brandy, which seems to have helped. How did Solo get hold of Ben's shoe, anyway?"

It had actually been Sandy who'd made that comparison, but Aaron didn't mention that. He only lifted his brows higher, wondering what had been said between his mother and Tia. Her question distracted him from those thoughts and he glanced at Solo with a smile. "Oh, Ben had his shoes off and Solo stole one, and it became a game of tug of war," Aaron replied with a grin.

Tia laughed, glancing over at her dog, who was padding over to them to lay his head adoringly in Aaron's lap. "See" He's on your side, too," she pointed out with a smile. She understood sibling rivalry entirely too well herself. "Does your dad always ask such blunt questions?"

Aaron's hand strayed to the dog's head, fingers affectionately smoothing the fur between his ears. "My father doesn't believe in beating around the bush," Aaron replied. Michael Murphy was honest to a flaw and demanded that same honesty from his sons, but he wasn't sure if that included Tia. "I'm sorry if he upset you, but he means well," he apologized for his father, though he doubted that apology meant much coming from him.

"He didn't upset me," she assured him gently. "I just wasn't expecting to be asked my background as soon as I arrived. I should have, I suppose." She drew her hand gently against his cheek. "I'll try not to evade any more of the questions."

He frowned, worried his parents had made a bad first impression on her, especially that of his father and brother. "I know this sounds crazy, but you should probably be more worried if they don't ask you any questions," he told her, though that seemed to be precisely what she might prefer.

His frown made her own brow furrow worriedly. "I'm not trying to avoid answering the questions," she promised. "I just ....I don't think it's appropriate to mention just why I'm here - my parents, my brother, you know" It seems terribly self-centered to draw that kind of attention, and I know they want to see you. I'm not making much sense, am I?"

Aaron frowned, understanding what she was trying to say. He didn't think his family was trying to be nosy, but she was the first woman he'd brought home to meet them in years. "You don't have to tell them anything you don't want to, Tia," he assured her, and he'd support her in that.

"I'm not hiding from them," she said, hoping that was clear enough. "Honestly, I'm not. Stop worrying so much, love." She leaned close, brushing her lips to his. "Or I'll make Solo run away with your shoe this time."

"I just want you to like them," he told her with a frown. He didn't seem quite so worried about the other way around, confident his family would like her, once they got to know her, just as he did.

"I do like them," she promised him fondly. "It's only been half an hour, Aaron, but I think if I was going to dislike your family, I would have made it very clear by now." She pinched the end of his nose softly. "Please stop worrying so much, love. I'm enjoying myself."

"My mom likes you anyway," Aaron pointed out, batting her hand away from his nose with a chuckle. That much was obvious, but it didn't really surprise him.

"I'm glad she does," Tia smiled her bright smile in answer. "She's lovely." She wanted to mention the medal, or at least that she now knew he'd been in the military, but she wasn't sure how. Perhaps it would be better served leaving that subject until later, when they were alone.

If asked, he would have admitted that he'd assumed she already knew that, though he hadn't come right out and said so, in so many words. He'd told her he'd been wounded in Afghanistan and figured she'd sort the rest out for herself, but until she asked, it was a subject he was reluctant to discuss. "How much did she tell you about me?" he asked, knowing his mother well enough to know she hadn't dragged Tia inside to help fetch a bag of chips.

"Not that much, really," Tia assured him. "The usual warning not to hurt you, which I was expecting." She flashed him a warmer smile, and took the opportunity he'd offered her. "She, um ....she showed me your medal, too."

He frowned at that, but he didn't look too surprised. He'd been half expecting it, knowing his mother the way he did. "I don't deserve it," he told her quietly, bitterly even. He didn't think he'd done anything anyone wouldn't have done in his place.

Tia's expression softened as she looked at him, curling her fingers through his own. "Perhaps you don't," she agreed softly. "I don't know what happened, and even if you told me, I'd never be able to truly understand. But medals aren't given because you deserve them. Sometimes they're given for exceptional bravery, yes, but most of time" They're given because the people in charge know that what they asked you to do was brutal and bloody, and even if you're victorious, it's not a win." She inched closer. "How's that for a bleak view of the system?"

Ever since he'd come home, everyone had called him a hero, even those who'd known him for years, but he didn't feel like a hero. It was survivor's guilt - he'd had enough therapy to know that - but she was the first person he'd met who hadn't called him a hero. And how could she when she didn't even know what had happened there" "Bleak but probably pretty accurate," he replied. "I lost a leg and got a medal in return," he murmured bitterly, but he didn't really want to talk about that. He didn't want to be bitter, and he didn't want her to see him that way.

"You came back," she said softly. "And it's going to take a long time for you to recognize that it isn't your fault that others didn't. So the medal means nothing to you, right now." Her hands left his, cupping his face to make him meet her eyes. "But that doesn't mean you're less of man. It's harder to survive, and believe me, I do know how it feels. But that doesn't mean that you don't deserve to live your life and find some happiness. It just means it's more precious, because you know how quickly it could all be taken away."

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:13 EST
Forced to meet her gaze, his eyes burned with unshed tears at her words - at her insistence that it wasn't his fault his comrades, his friends, hadn't made it. Though he knew that already, though he'd been told that countless times, what was it about this woman that her words seemed to reach him more than anyone else ever had" "I don't want to lose anyone else," he told her, almost afraid to say the words that included her.

Perhaps the reason her words reached him was because she had a healthy dose of her own survivor's guilt. She did know what she was talking about, because she had experienced it herself. Her fingertips stroked gently against his cheek. "Hiding from the world does mean you won't lose anyone," she accepted softly. "But it also means you're not living, and isn't that an awful disservice to do to the people who you've already lost' They wouldn't want you to just stop."

His fingers found hers, his eyes searching hers with an almost pleading expression on his face. "Help me," he whispered. Help me learn how to live again. There had been so many people who'd tried to help, from doctors to therapists to family and friends. What was so special about this one woman that he was asking her, of all people, to help him find meaning in his life again when no one else could"

She leaned close, touching her brow to his with a gentle smile curving her lips. "It would be a privilege," she whispered back to him. "I'll help you, and you can help me. I don't want to run away again, not from you."

"And I don't want to lose you," he replied in return, his voice quiet, his words meant for her ears alone. He was dimly aware they might be being watched, but he didn't care. If his family truly cared for him, then they would understand how much he needed her, how much he needed a reason to go on.

"So talk to me," she whispered gently. "Don't try to hide things from me. I-I care about you, Aaron, an awful lot. I'm really not going to change the way I feel if you share some of your darker side with me. I promise."

It hadn't been so much about protecting himself, he thought, as it was about protecting her - about not letting her know about the pain and the horrors he'd endured, knowing she'd endured her own share of troubles. Was it more cowardly to hide his darker side or to let her bear witness to it' He wasn't sure, but he knew that if they were going to stay together, he wasn't going to be able to hide it forever. "There are some things I can't talk about yet, Tia," he explained with a frown. "But I'll try not to shut you out."

"I know," she promised gently. "And I won't ever push you. But just ....just remember that I can listen as well as talk. I will always listen to you." Her thumb stroked over his lips tenderly, her other hand falling to gently lay her palm against the leg he was so self-conscious of. "And this is not a weakness."

He smiled, despite his troubles, unable to stop himself from smiling at her promise. "Now you sound like my therapist," he told her, trying to lighten the mood a little, though unlike his therapist, Tia had not yet seen the wounded limb that was at the heart of his troubles.

"Hmm ....should I dress the part, do you think?" she teased in answer, glad to see him smile. "Glasses, pencil skirt, stockings ....Or would that be a little too distracting?" Her eyes sparkled impishly, daring him to express a preference either way.

"Well, my therapist happens to be a man, but sure," he replied with a chuckle. It felt good to be laughing again, but more than that, it felt good to be with Tia and to know she didn't see him as any less of a man for the loss of a limb.

She snorted with laughter, leaning back to grab her glass and take a slow sip. "Well, you're not into the fellas, so I was assuming you'd rather I was dressed up as a woman therapist," she giggled. "Rather than cross-dressing."

"I'd rather you just be yourself," he told her, considering kissing her until she thwarted him by taking a sip of her tea. He had a smirk on his face now as he gave her an appraising look.

She eyed that smirk a little suspiciously. "What?" she asked, that suspicion in her voice along with the affectionate smile that lit her own face as she set her drink down.

"Nothing," he replied, leaning close to whisper into her ear. "I was just wondering if you'd like to share my bed tonight," he whispered. It wasn't only because he felt bad about her insistence on the couch that he was offering either.

There was no way he didn't feel the heat from her cheeks on his own face as she blushed hopefully in answer to that whisper. Her lips brushed his ear as she answered. "I'd love to." Hopefully his parents weren't watching them, or they were going to think something far more lewd was being shared in whispers here.

Or maybe his parents would think they were whispering "sweet nothings", whatever that meant.

"Oh, he's got it bad!" a masculine voice declared with a snicker from somewhere inside the house, where Tia and Aaron were being secretly spied on.

"Wouldn't do you any harm to find a good girl or boy to blush at," Mike commented, tossing a napkin at Ben. "Stop spying, that's your mother's prerogative." He grinned at his wife cheerfully. "She's probably already worked out what they're talking about with her mad lip reading skills."

"Boy?" Ben echoed with a snort. It was no secret that he preferred women.

"Hush, both of you!" Sandra scolded both husband and son. "It's about time he deserved a little happiness, don't you think?" she asked, though it was not a question for which she expected an answer.

Mike chuckled, looping an arm about his wife's shoulders fondly. "About time he admitted that what he wants is what?s right in front of him," he agreed easily enough. "Wasn't expecting the next Mrs. Murphy to come with a dog that big, though."

"Rushing things a bit, aren't you, Dad?" Ben asked, drawing away from the window to fetch the beer he'd been meaning to get when he came inside.

"I offered her the beach house," Sandra blurted, hoping neither her husband or eldest would get angry with her over it.

"Take a good look at your brother and his girl there, and tell me I'm wrong," Mike told his son with a knowing smile, glancing down at Sandra in vague surprise. "Well, we don't use it," he shrugged. "Better than renting it out to strangers."

"It was her suggestion, actually. She thinks it would be good for him to be near the beach," Sandra replied, smiling up at her husband, glad to know he wasn't fighting her on this.

Ben made his way back to the window to take another peek at his brother, feeling just a little jealous that he'd found someone who so clearly meant the world to him and vice versa. "Like I said ....He's got it bad," he repeated, but in a softer tone of voice this time, alluding to the fact that he really did have a heart inside him that cared for his little brother.

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:13 EST
"She could be right," Mike mused thoughtfully, glancing through the window to take a look at the younger couple smiling together in the shade. His eyes flickered to his eldest with gentle understanding. "Look at it this way, Ben ....new woman in his life means a new social circle opening up for you," he suggested with a fond smile. "One of her friends might be the right girl for you, you never know."

"Not a chance, Dad!" Ben replied with grin. "Better pin your hopes on Aaron because I don't plan on settling down for a while." If ever, he thought, though in reality, he probably just hadn't met the right girl yet.

"I'm sure Aaron wasn't expecting it either, Ben," his mother pointed out.

"Planning on being the cool uncle forever more, huh?" Mike chuckled. He could understand not wanting to force it, but he was, frankly, baffled as to how both his sons had made it to their mid-thirties without having a relationship become truly serious yet.

"Uncle?" Ben echoed. "Counting your chickens before they're hatched a bit, aren't you?" Yes, he'd admitted his brother looked like he was in love, but that didn't mean he was getting married and having kids just yet. "How long do you give them?" he asked curiously, before taking a swig of his beer.

Mike considered this for a moment. "Couple of months, maybe," he suggested, tilting his head down to meet Sandy's eyes. She probably had a better idea of how long it might take Aaron to pop the question to a young woman he was clearly deeply enamored of. It all depended on how they got over the initial bumps in the road, after all.

Sandy smiled up at her husband, eyes shining with happiness for her youngest son. "She's a nice girl. I like her," she told him, reaching up to touch a kiss to her husband's lips, just because. "Which one of you wants to interrupt their romantic interlude?" she teased.

Snorting with laughter, Mike patted her backside. "I'll make that sacrifice," he accepted the challenge. "What am I doing, inviting them in, or just sitting down and generally being intrusive?"

"Aaron brought her here so we can meet her and get to know her," Sandy explained, though she thought her husband should know this already. "Just be friendly, and don't ask too many questions," she instructed him. "And you ..." she said, pointing at their eldest. "Be nice."

Laughing at the instructions laid down by his wife, Mike gave her a swift squeeze, moving to lay a hand on Ben's shoulder. "C'mon, kid, let's play nice with your new sister."

"Yes, sir," Ben replied obediently. Grown or not, he knew better than to disobey his father in his own house.

"Yes, ma'am!" Sandy called, correcting her son with a grin, as the two of them marched back toward the patio. "Just make her feel welcome!"

"I thought we were," Mike muttered to his eldest as they headed out onto the patio, raising his voice as they came into proper view of the younger couple. "So, Tia, a bookstore?" he asked curiously, taking his seat once again. "What sort of books do you enjoy?"

Surprised out of her soft little interlude with Aaron, Tia looked up with a smile. "I like reading just about anything, sir," she admitted easily enough. "But I am very fond of sci-fi and fantasy."

"Star Trek or Star Wars?" Ben inquired, straddling a chair to face Aaron and Tia.

"Are we talking movies or books, Ben?" Aaron replied with a grin, knowing his brother preferred one over the other.

Ben shrugged. "Either or," he replied, knowing his question could apply to either form of media.

"Well, Trek is sci-fi, and Wars is fantasy, so both," Tia answered easily. "Although Trek is a harder question. For future reference, original series but Captain Picard or Janeway over Kirk."

Mike grinned, tilting his head toward Ben curiously. "Sounds like the ball's in your court, kid."

"You consider Star Wars to be fantasy?" Ben asked. "Lord of the Rings is fantasy. Harry Potter is fantasy. Star Wars is sci-fi," he argued, though he didn't bother to offer any proof to back up his argument. "And what?s the matter with Kirk anyway?"

Aaron rolled his eyes with a sigh at the way the conversation was going.

"Science fiction, by its definition, is set in the future," Tia pointed out with a smile. "And as the opening crawl in Star Wars states, the events of the story take place a long time ago. Ergo, not sci-fi. And there's nothing wrong with Kirk, he's just nowhere near as good a captain as Picard or Janeway." She leaned comfortably against Aaron's side, waiting to find out what Ben's response to this was going to be.

"Have you ever read 2001" The book starts out at the beginning of time, and it's clearly sci-fi. Ergo, your argument is flawed," Ben pointed out. It didn't much matter that he'd never read 2001 himself; he'd seen the movie it was based on, and that was good enough for him. But it was her estimation of Kirk as a competent starship captain that really got him going. "Are you kidding me" Kirk is the only Starfleet Academy cadet to have beaten the Kobayashi Maru!"

"Because he cheated!" Tia countered laughingly. She wasn't so wedded to either franchise that she was going to get het up about this conversation, but at least she knew enough to hold her own.

"It doesn't matter if he cheated or not!" Ben said, about to argue further when Aaron raised his hand to stop him.

"Must we?" he asked, looking a little exasperated, albeit amused, too. "Can you just agree to disagree before this goes on all night?"

Giggling, Tia reached down to stroke Solo's head. "I can agree to disagree," she assured her boyfriend. "He's wrong, but I can tolerate it."

Mike snorted into his beer. "I like her," he declared. "She can keep both you boys under control."

"I like her, too," Sandy added her two cents with a smile - not because she could keep her sons under control, but because she could see how much Aaron meant to Tia and vice versa. It was a long time since she'd seen a smile on his face, and she was glad he was starting to find his way again.

The easy-going discussion seemed to set the tone for the rest of the afternoon. With her confidence reinstated, Tia was happy to field questions from Mike, Sandy, and Ben, sharing more information about her home, her childhood, and even touching on her family briefly. In turn, they shared a few choice anecdotes about Aaron's childhood, and in the course of that conversation, the beach house came up.

"I'll never forget it," Mike laughed over dessert. "Crack of dawn, and these two come skidding up the beach, hands over their privates, all because they got caught in a rip tide - tide took their shorts, not them!"

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:14 EST
Aaron rolled his eyes, wishing his father hadn't brought that particular incident up, but his brother didn't seem embarrassed in the slightest, laughing uproariously at the memory of it. "Might have taken Aaron if I hadn't grabbed him in time," he interjected, to which Aaron snorted in derision.

"I don't recall you ever being that modest," he pointed out.

"Anecdotal genitalia isn't fit for mixed company," Mike responded to Aaron's comment with a grin.

Tia was giggling helplessly, truly enjoying the affectionate banter between the family. "So why don't you live at the beach?" she asked curiously. "It sounds like you loved it there."

Aaron assumed she was addressing his parents, as it was their property, but he had a response for her, nevertheless. "Mom and Dad were going to rent it out for extra income, which reminds me ....I was going to ask if you've rented it yet."

Mike raised a brow. He was very good at keeping a straight face; only Sandy might be able to spot him holding back the tells that would betray that he already knew what his wife and Aaron's girlfriend had cooked up between them. "Thought it was too big and too out of the way for you?" he asked his son with a quirk of a smile.

"Not for me," Aaron was quick to point out. "For Tia."

Thankfully, Ben knew better than to comment on that or to tease his brother about moving in with his new "girlfriend".

"For both of you," Sandy corrected her son.

Tia glanced at Aaron. "You didn't really think I would just move out and leave you on your own again, did you?" she asked, just a little hurt that he might have entertained that idea. Her fingers curled into his. "You're stuck with me now, you realize."

Ben turned a glance at his parents and offered a wink, remembering what had been said just a little while earlier inside the house and wondering if they should place bets on how long it would take before his brother asked Tia to marry him.

"I wouldn't call it stuck," Aaron replied, linking his fingers with hers and meeting her gaze, despite the trio of onlookers. "So, I assume you two already decided?" he asked, looking between his mother and Tia.

"I wouldn't say decided," Tia caged a little guiltily, glancing at Sandy with a faint grin. "More, sort of ....laid a very tentative plan and hoped you'd agree?"

Aaron looked from one to the other, seeing the hope in Tia's eyes, along with the guilt, but there was really no reason for her to feel guilty when she'd been trying to do something nice for him and herself. "I have one condition," he started, letting them wonder for a moment before continuing. "All of you have to help us move."

So much for devious, but it was working out. Mike's smile was answer enough, but the man couldn't resist actually saying it aloud. "Pick a date," he suggested cheerfully enough. "I don't have anything planned for the next week or two. Ben?"

"Nope, I'm free, too," Ben replied, a little too cheerfully.

"It's all settled, then! How's next week" Does that give you enough time to pack?" Sandy said, refusing to take no for an answer.

"I'm working Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday," Tia offered. "We could make the move on Saturday, maybe?" She tilted her head to look at Aaron - after all, she had two bags of belongings. He had an apartment's worth.

It was a small apartment, though, so Aaron didn't think it would take all that long to pack, so long as he had help. He looked between the trio, knowing he was outnumbered, though he didn't really have any reason to decline his parents' offer. "Saturday works for me," he said, eyeing Tia and wondering if she was sure about this.

"Gives me time to get a car, or something," Tia murmured to him. Transport was her only real concern; being somewhere with grass, sand, sea, Solo, and Aaron was pretty much perfect as far as she was concerned.

Mike glanced between them, wondering if they realized they were communicating without words. He leaned over to his wife. "How quickly do you think you can throw together an engagement party?" he teased under his breath.

"You can use my car, until we can get you one of your own," Aaron replied, not really noticing how he had used the plural pronouns, rather than singular, as if they hadn't only met a few days ago. Luckily, he didn't overhear what his father was whispering to his mother.

Sandy turned to her husband and pressed a fingers against his lips to silence him. "Shh," she whispered. "Don't jinx it."

"You've never seen me drive," Tia pointed out with a faint grin. "I think you should hold that thought, myself." She leaned over to touch her cheek to his shoulder, lifting her drink to her lips as her eyes fell on the whispering parents. "I sense scheming."

"Smart girl," remarked Ben with a grin, for which he was rewarded with a kick in the shin from mother. "Ouch! What was that for?" he asked, rubbing his shin with a glare at his mother.

"Don't you have a date tonight?" she asked innocently.

"Not that I ....Ouch!" he repeated as she kicked him again. "Okay, okay! I get the hint!" he said, moving from his slouch.

Mike snorted with laughter. "You know, I'm beginning to think you enjoy being beaten up by your mother," he commented to his eldest fondly.

"You could have just asked me," Ben complained, scowling as he got to his feet. "I can tell when I'm not wanted."

Aaron glanced between his parents and brother. "You don't have to leave on our account," he pointed out.

"It's okay," his brother replied. "I'll catch up with you later."

Rising, aware that the evening was being called to an unsubtle end, Tia offered Ben a smile and her hand. "It's been lovely to meet you, Ben," she assured him. "Even if you are woefully wrong about Kirk."

Ben chuckled, taking Tia's hand and giving it a light squeeze. He was tempted to kiss her hand, but even Ben seemed to know that was going too far. "We'll continue that debate another time," he promised with a wink.

"I'm sure we will," she laughed, letting him squeeze her hand before she retrieved it, stepping back to let his actual family say goodnight to him.

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:15 EST
Mike caught his eldest in a rough hug, squeezing manfully before releasing him. "You, me, painting your woodwork tomorrow."

"Yes, sir," Ben replied obediently as he returned the hug. He might tease his younger brother, but he knew better than to disrespect his mother or father. He hugged his mother next, and then it was time for his brother.

Aaron pushed himself to his feet, the eldest gracing the younger with a brotherly embrace. "Hang onto that one, Ron. She's a keeper," Ben told his brother.

"I suppose we should probably be going, too," Tia said a little reluctantly. She knew enough about meeting the parents that outstaying her welcome the first time around was a bad idea. "Did anyone see where Solo went?"

"Over here!" Ben called from the living room, where the Mastiff was sprawled on the couch snoring.

"Oh, dear," Sandy murmured as she followed her son inside to find Solo asleep on the couch.

Following the two of them, Tia cringed at the sight of her dog making himself very comfortable on their furniture. "Oh, Solo," she sighed, leaning over the back of the couch to rub his belly. The big Mastiff twitched out of his sleep almost instantly, took one look at Tia's expression, and slithered off the couch, pulling out his most innocent look.

It was a good thing the Murphys liked dogs, or Solo and his owner might be in big trouble. Aaron chuckled, mostly at the expression on the big dog's face. "He's such a big baby," he said, ruffling the dog's ears.

"I'm so sorry, Mrs - Sandy," Tia apologized, embarrassed by her dog's ability to make himself at home anywhere. "Next time, I'll remember to bring a blanket he can curl up on somewhere." Under Aaron's hand, Solo was wuffling happily, leaning against the man's leg affectionately.

Sandy only chuckled. "Don't worry about it! He was enjoying himself," she assured Tia. "Should we come by on Saturday to help you pack and move then?"

Tia looked up at Aaron curiously. She didn't have any problem with that as a plan, but they had rather just rearranged Aaron's life for him, and he'd had only the barest of input into the whole thing. "What do you think, when will we be fit for company on Saturday?"

Whether Tia was worried or not, for some reason, Aaron didn't seem to mind the idea of moving out of his apartment and into the beach house. "Um, after breakfast, I guess. Ten o'clock?" he asked, looking to Tia for her opinion.

"I can be fit for company by then, yes," she agreed with a smile. He knew perfectly well that she'd be up with the dawn, but that didn't necessarily mean she'd be capable of being sociable until later.

"We'll see you at ten, then," Sandy replied, moving in to hug them both, one at a time. "It was so nice to meet you, Tia. I'm looking forward to getting to know you better."

"It's been a pleasure to meet you, Mrs - Sandy," Tia answered, hugging the woman in return. She held on just a little bit too long, hastily pulling back before she could give into the lurking urge to cry. It had been a long time since she'd been hugged by her own mother, after all. "Mr. Murphy, thank you for the dissertation on how to gut fish," she said then, offering Mike her hand.

Aaron's father laughed and pulled her into a hug of his own. "Wait until he catches some, then you can put it into practice."

"I haven't been fishing in ages!" Aaron remarked, echoing his father's laughter. That didn't mean he wasn't willing to try again. If only he could still surf. He hugged his parents before reaching for Tia's hand, with a glance to Solo. "All ready, Solo?"

The big dog barked happily, nudging his way past Mike to rub his head against Sandy's hip before limping over to Aaron and Tia.

"That dog knows which side his bread is buttered," Mike muttered in amusement, looping his arm about his own wife's shoulders.

There was some irony in the fact that both Solo and Aaron had issues walking, but where Solo was visibly limping, Aaron seemed to be getting around better than his parents had seen in months. It did his mother's heart good to see her son in good spirits and to know he had finally found a nice girl to settle down with. "We'll see you on Saturday!" she assured them again, blowing them both a kiss once they'd walked them to the door.

It wasn't until they were back in the car that Tia visibly relaxed, however. "Well ....that went better than I thought it would," she offered with a perky smile, waving to his parents as they pulled away. "I'm very sorry I called your brother a crabwise-thinking idiot-possum, though."

Aaron chuckled as he pulled out of the driveway to head for home - or at least, the apartment they were calling home for now. "If the shoe fits," he said. "I hope my parents weren't too pushy. I told you they've been pestering me to settle down for a while now."

"I've had a lovely time," she promised him fondly, relaxing properly as the house faded into the distance behind them. "Are you sure you want to move to the beach' I wasn't expecting the idea to, well, not so much run as compete in the Olympics."

He smiled at her question, knowing there must have been some secret scheming going on between her and his mother while he'd been outside with his father and brother. "Would you believe it if I told you I was going to ask them the same thing?"

"Well, given how fast you picked up on the plan - you skipped over a step, by the way - it wouldn't surprise me if it was your idea, too," she admitted with a faint smile. "There I was, trying to be devious and bring you around to it in your own time, and you were already miles ahead of me. You were probably already in the water when I was still pulling my swimsuit out of my back crack."

"Well, I was going to ask my parents if you could rent the beach house, but since you and my mother decided we should both live there rent-free, how can I pass up an offer like that?" he asked, a teasing smirk on his face.

"Seriously?" Tia stared at him with an incredulous quirk to her smile. "You really thought I would happily move out and leave you behind" You're an idiot. I've let you see me in my pajamas - you caught me shaving my armpits. Solo let you wash his balls. You're in far too deep already to get rid of me with grace, Mr. Murphy."

"Oh, I see!" he said with a laugh. "Well, if washing your dog's private parts isn't love, I don't know what is!" Yes, though it had only been a few days, he'd said the word "love", though he was mostly teasing her.

She giggled brightly, reaching back to pat said dog's side as he lounged on the back seat. "So you're really okay with pretty much everyone deciding that you're moving out of the city?" she asked, needing to be sure.

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:16 EST
"It's not that far from the city, Tia. We'll be fine. I can drive you to work, until you get a car of your own," he volunteered. And until he got a job or his own, though if he didn't work far from her, they could probably work out an arrangement.

"You know, you're still not answering the question," she pointed out, her hand shifting from the back seat to gently stroke her fingertips through his hair. "Are you, Aaron Murphy, happy to do this?"

"Yes, Tia Coslan, I am happy to do this, but what about you? Are you sure you don't mind us living together?" he asked, unsure if he'd only get in her way.

"I'm very happy living with you," she promised him warmly. "And the house sounds rather amazing, really. A beach house in England is just a drafty little shed you hire in the summer so you have somewhere to put your belongings on the one day of the year it might possibly be sunny."

"The beach house is really nice. I think you'll like it. We used to spend summers there when we were kids," he explained. The place held a lot of good memories for him, most of them good memories, but maybe with luck, he and Tia could make some new ones.

"So there's plenty of room if your parents, or Ben, decide to spend a weekend with us, hmm?" She pegged pretty quickly that his family was close, and the last thing she wanted to do was create distance between them.

"Yeah, there's room," he confirmed, though he wasn't sure they'd be interested in spending any weekends with them anytime soon.

"But, um ..." She bit her lip, blushing a little as she glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "We won't be in separate rooms, right?" Please don't say we will. It wasn't usual for Tia to be so obviously hopeful and nervous, but his soft request for her to share his bed was still ringing in her ears. She was desperately hoping that he didn't mean just for one night.

"That depends on you, Tia," he replied, glancing her way momentarily before looking back at the road. "Do you want to share a room?" he asked, tossing the ball into her court.

"I already said yes, didn't I?" she pointed out sweetly, unable to resist continuing. "I distinctly remember you whispering in my ear in your sex god voice asking me to share your bed, and somewhere between the back-flips my heart was doing and the altogether indecent things happening between my legs, I'm fairly sure I was quite enthusiastic about the idea."

Aaron couldn't help but chuckle at her statement, grateful he wasn't much of a blusher. "I'm flattered, but a little too much information there, Tia! I just want to be sure you're ready." Because sharing a bed was a little more complicated for him than for other men.

She laughed softly, reaching over to touch his arm with a gentle hand. "There's no rush," she promised him in her warm way. "But we're never going to get there if we keep worrying about it so much. Let's just take it one night at a time, okay?"

"It's just ..." He trailed off. Did he really have to explain" The more he got to know her, the less self-conscious he felt, but he hadn't been with a woman since before he'd lost his leg, and despite all her reassurances, it still worried him a little.

She sighed softly. "I don't know what to tell you," she admitted. "I want to say it's no big deal, but it is, to you. I want to say I'm not going to react badly, but I don't know I won't. What I can promise you is that it won't change the way I feel about you. I just don't want to build it too high or act as though it doesn't mean anything. Because it means a lot, that you'd trust me enough to let me see you so vulnerable."

"I'm not quite sure how ..." He trailed off again, biting his lip nervously. It wasn't just a matter of her seeing what he'd been trying so hard to hide, but the fact that he wasn't quite sure how to go about having sex without a leg. And what was she going to think when she saw it' But how to put all this into words without scaring her off"

"With wit, ingenuity, and perseverance," she suggested, offering him a smile she was pretty sure he could only hear in her voice, since he was driving, and all. "We'll work it out, love."

"I've got plenty of perseverance," he assured her, though he wasn't too sure about the wit and ingenuity. What was it his mother had always said" Where there's a will, there's a way. Well, it seemed he was certainly about to put that to the test.

"You're fairly witty, too," she pointed out warmly. "Actually, I've yet to come across something you're not good at, so I'd have to go with ingenious, as well. You have the hat-trick. And a motivated girlfriend."

"Are you trying to make me laugh?" Aaron asked, trying to hide the smirk from his face. He couldn't help but admit she was good for him. Not only did she make him laugh, but she made him feel better about himself, too.

"That depends, is it working?" she countered impishly, glad to see him smiling, even if he was attempting to hide it. "What was the funny part - the girlfriend bit, or the motivated bit?"

"All of it," he replied, as he pulled the car to a stop at the last intersection before they arrived back at his apartment. "You have an awful lot of faith in me. I hope it's not misplaced."

"You seem to have a lot of faith in me," she reminded him. "I'm very sure of you, Aaron. I don't think my faith is misplaced at all. I think trusting you, being with you, is the first good decision I've made all my life."

"I'm sure that's not true, but thanks, Tia," he told her, pulling the car through the intersection and turning onto the street where his apartment building was located. "I'm gonna have to call and let them know I'm moving," he added, though he didn't explain who "they" were.

"Will that be awkward?" she asked, not really understanding how his lease worked. It didn't really seem to be a lease at all, but she wasn't sure she wanted to ask how it all worked.

"No, it was only temporary, so I was gonna have to move out sooner or later anyway," he told her, but that wasn't why he'd wanted to suggest the beach house. He'd been planning on moving out as soon as he found a job.

"Oh, I see." Relieved, she smiled again. "It's a relief to know I haven't disrupted your plans too much. I mean, how do you explain to the powers that be that you're moving to the beach with the strange English woman and her big dog who accidentally texted you the night she arrived in the city and hasn't left you alone since?"

"Put like that it does sound a little crazy, but we know better, don't we?" he asked, with a smile her way before pulling into the parking lot and his assigned space. As far as he was concerned, he'd already decided it had been some higher power that had put them together.

Tia Coslan

Date: 2017-09-10 21:16 EST
"Oh, I certainly do," she promised, at ease enough with his car and the parking lot to unbuckle her belt and be out of the car almost before it came to a full stop. She was very aware that Aaron didn't have his cane, and out of the direct view of his parents, he might have a little more difficulty getting out than usual. She didn't make it obvious, though, simply going around to his side to open up and cajole Solo out of the back seat - there, in case he needed her to be.

Driving wasn't much of a problem; getting in and out of the car was the hardest part. A little too proud to ask her for help, he was nevertheless relieved she was right there in case he needed it. He struggled a little, but he was too stubborn to give up. "What a pair we are, huh, Solo?" he asked the dog as the two of them hobbled along toward the building with Tia between them.

The big dog yawned up at him, padding along at their side as he was lead into the building. Tia glanced between her two men with a tender smile. "You both have exceptional taste," she pointed out. "You decided on me, after all."

"I have a feeling it was you who decided on us," Aaron pointed out. It was, after all, Tia who'd texted him and had kept texting him, even after she'd known she had the wrong number.

"I'm just stubborn," she shrugged innocently, unlocking the door to the apartment. "You guys are the ones who put up with me. Look at the flaws - I'm short, I talk too much, I'm way too impulsive, I sing badly in the shower, I can't make coffee ..." The list went on and on.

He frowned as she listed what she considered to be her flaws. "Why do you do that, Tia?" he asked. "You have so many good qualities. Why do you only see what you perceive to be flaws" Have you ever considered that those very flaws are what we love about you?"

She looked up at him with a faint smile. "Love?" she asked softly, leaning back against the door as it opened very slightly at her touch. "I thought I was the only one falling fast."

"Don't you think it would be better if we fell together?" he asked, touching his fingers to her cheek and tilting his head down to capture her lips.

"I'll always catch you," she promised, her voice barely more than a whisper as she rose onto her toes, answering his kiss with her own as her arms wrapped about his waist, holding him close. Was love at first sight real? It certainly seemed so for them.

Or maybe in their case, it was text at first sight. Either way, what had started as a simple wrong number was quickly turning into a sweet romance.