Well finally! I knew one of them would eventually have to say it. Now Jack...time to reciprocate!

Kim

ACK! Does anyone else realize that there are only two more days left for this challenge and I still haven't gotten to the gala yet? And the worst problem? I leave Saturday for vacation. We're heading down to Ocean City and I don't know if I'm going to be able to post while I'm down there. There might be a sudden posting flurry from me... but I suppose you're not going to think that's a bad thing, right?

Anyway... minor angst. Very minor.

“What did you say?”

Sue felt very self-conscious at the moment. She caught her lower lip between her teeth and let her arms fall limp. The kitten in her lap tumbled into the grass like a furry ball and landed at Levi’s front paws. Leaning down, he gave her face a light lick and nudged her toward her siblings with his muzzle.

The heat blazing in her cheeks was like an inferno and Jack’s smoldering inquisitive gaze wasn’t helping matters much. She needed to get away. Her head was always too clouded around Jack; enough to make thinking before speaking practically impossible.

Rising to her feet, she walked a little ways down the path. Her arms wrapped securely around her torso as she felt like she just might combust from the embarrassment she felt mixed with his unwavering gaze. It wasn’t that she’d lied or said something she didn’t mean, after all, her affection was so blatantly obvious—as Lucy never hesitated to tell her.

She loved him.

But she was terrified. Not of her feelings or anything else that might go along with the territory of loving Jack. They were what she felt the most secure about. What did frighten her the most was his incomparable affection. The way he looked at her in that special way always got her heart pounding to unnatural degrees. He was so nonjudgmental, like her deafness meant absolutely nothing to him.

That was a doubt she couldn’t bear to live with. After all, all of her other boyfriends had deserted her once they knew how challenging it was to love a deaf woman. It was an inevitable truth that Jack would follow the same path.

She was surprised when she felt hot, salty tears trickle down her cheeks and even more so when she felt a gentle finger wiping them away. She wasn’t surprised to find him standing there but what did surprise her was the caring expression written on his face and the look of worry shadowing his eyes.

“Sue,” he whispered as he gently lifted her chin with a crooked finger. His lips were parted as though he was going to speak, but the words escaped him at the moment. All he could focus on was the pain in her eyes. He could see how her own words had tormented her so, but what he couldn’t understand was why. Surely she would know and understand that he loved her too and he would do anything to make her believe that.

Sue’s face crumpled as she fought to hold her emotions at bay. But the look in his eyes was just too much for her. She collapsed into his shoulder, her entire body shaking with such heart-wrenching sobs that the backs of Jack’s eyes burned with his own tears. He whispered soft reassurances into her hair, hoping that at least the gentle rumbling of his voice echoing through his chest would bring her some form of comfort.

“I’m sorry, Jack,” she apologized as she pulled away from him, leaving the circle of his arms which leave her feeling cold and very alone. She swiped at her tears, but only more fell.

He shook his head, “You have nothing to be sorry for.” She couldn’t help her feelings just like he couldn’t help his own. He cursed to himself. If only he’d told her sooner.

“I know I shouldn’t be having these feelings for you, that they’ll only lead to heartbreak, but I can’t help it. You are the only person outside of my family to ever try to show me that being deaf doesn’t matter.” Her voice broke as she spoke and each time it did, Jack felt a hot searing pain shoot through his heart.

Never mind that her feelings could lead to heartbreak. That he could reassure her of later. What really surprised him was that he honestly was the only one to ever show her that her deafness didn’t matter. “What about David?” He knew the landscaper hadn’t been mentioned in a while, but surely at least he would have shown Sue that she was the most important woman in the world, deaf or not. Now that Sue was his, Jack made a promise to himself to make sure Sue understood that every single day she was in his arms.

Apparently, up until now, he hadn’t been doing as great of a job as he’d thought.

Sue snorted with a roll of her red-rimmed eyes. “I’d rather not talk about that.” It was painful enough to even think about it, which was why she never really explained to the others why she and Dog Park Guy had broken up in the first place. It had started off as an innocent romance. There had been affection in his eyes once, but as time went by, along with the various parties, Sue discovered that he was more interested in her connections than her.

He hadn’t admitted it outright, but deep down she’d known for quite some time. She was just a reason for him to rise to the top, like he’d always wanted. She’d just been a useful tool to him.

Jack nodded as he studied her, wishing that she would allow him to reach out and wipe her tears away. “You do know that it doesn’t matter to me if you’re deaf or not, right sweetheart?”

“Jack,” she tried, but he wouldn’t let her continue. He took a step forward and placed his fingertips upon the silky velvet of her lips to silence her.

“Because it doesn’t. I don’t see you the way you think I do.” His index finger lightly trailed the length of her lower lip, over her cheek and down to her chin which he took lightly into his palm and cupped it. “I understand that it’s a part of you, but that’s not entirely who you are. I can see who you truly are and that is the woman I see standing before me.”

She shook her head as more tears flowed. “You don’t mean that.”

He rolled his eyes at her stubbornness. How could she honestly see what he did everyday? “Sue… if I asked you a question, would you answer it? Truthfully, I mean?” He had very little doubt that she would, but he knew if he asked, she wouldn’t be able to take anything back.

She nodded sadly. What more would it hurt anyway? “Yes.”

He drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Did you mean what you said?” He knew the moment her lips parted that she didn’t want to answer the question, so he held up a hand to silence her. “Just answer the question.”

Again she nodded, her voice a quiet whisper, “Yes. I love you, Jack.”

His lips quirked up on one side as he nodded,” That’s good,” he agreed.

Sue’s half-hearted chuckle sounded more like a snort. “How is that good?” How could anything be good right now?

He took a step closer, not hesitating to pull her back into the circle of his arms. He pulled her as close as he could and she would still be able to read his lips. There wasn’t going to be much she would need to see, though, he thought as he allowed his lips to hover lightly over hers.

He dove in for a slight taste, only to pull away a second later. “Because I love you too.”

He watched as Sue’s eyes went wide with shock, his grin growing even wider. “Wha?”

He chuckled. “I don’t know where you got the crazy idea that I wouldn’t feel the same, but I am hopelessly and unconditionally in love with you, Miss Thomas and nothing, no matter how many doubts might be swimming around in that brain of yours… nothing will ever change that.”

I could feel how mortified Sue was at this point.

I wanted to cheer by the time I got here.

By the end, I also wanted to jump up and down

I ditto the !

Tere

Ugh! Why do I do these things to myself? I honestly must be a glutton for punishment because it seems like every challenge I enter, it's always down to the wire for me. I'll try to post again tonight, but I need to finish packing, so it might be late tonight.

Love you all!

“So, what’s going to happen to them?” Tara asked as she cuddled the runt to her chest. The little girl was content to just rest her head underneath the human’s chin and purr contently as she listened to the steady beat of Tara’s heart.

Lucy had one sitting in her lap that she absentmindedly stroked, not really paying to her two friends as they talked about their new temporary charges.

“I know what Levi would like to happen, but unfortunately we can’t keep them.” She glanced over to the retriever who was lying on the floor, his head resting on his paws as he took careful watch over the three playing on the living room rug. Looking up hopefully at his mistress, he hoped that they would be allowed to at least keep one. “Sorry, buddy. No deal. You’re lucky that we can keep them hear until the gala.”

The three women had gathered in the living room, Tara more anxious than the others to play with the adorable kittens. The tech-whiz couldn’t resist raiding an eyebrow in interest. “The gala?”

Sue nodded with a grin. “I talked to a friend of mine that works at the ASPCA when Jack and I took them to get checked out. I asked her what would happen to them if we agreed to hand them over and she said there was a possibility that they could be adopted.”

Tara didn’t even pretend that she didn’t notice the word “could”. “But there’s no guarantee?”

“They’d have a good chance, but…” she trailed off with a shrug of her shoulders. Tara knew the rest. There was a chance that the kittens would spend the rest of their lives in a cage, which was sad because they still had their entire lives ahead of them and so much love to give and receive.

“There is good news though. Angie, the girl at the ASPCA is also attending the gala on Saturday and we came up with an idea. It’s going to be kind of a silent auction and the top five bidders will each get a kitten… pending they get a good review from the evaluators of course.” They wanted to make sure that each one went to a good home so it would be treated exactly like any other adoption, except that the proceeds would be split. Half would go to the various service dog foundations and the other half would benefit the ASPCA. It was a win-win situation for both establishments.

“I would love to adopt one. I’m sure Bailey could use a friend and this little girl would just be perfect.” Bailey was the name of the cat Tara already owned and since she worked most of the time, he probably didn’t get as much love and affection as he needed. A friend would be good for him.

“Then you should bid.”

Tara looked at Sue like she was crazy. “I’d never win. I have the worst luck in the world.”

“It wouldn’t hurt to try. Besides, I think most of the people who are going to be there are mostly going to be dog lovers. You’d probably have a really good chance.” She giggled and that made Tara join in.

The perky blonde glanced down at the fluffy ball that now slept soundly and—for her tiny size—very heavily upon her chest. Even if she didn’t win, it would at least be worth it to give her a good home. “It’s worth a shot, right?” she shrugged with a chuckle.

Sue noticed, not for the first time that night, how distracted Lucy seemed to be. She’d been quiet for most of the night and that was highly unlike her. “Hey, Luce? You okay?”

Lucy’s head shot up and she braved a smile and a nod for the benefit of her friends. “Yeah. Never been better.” Okay, that was a lie even the most oblivious person would be able to pick up on and judging by the look in Sue’s eyes, she obviously didn’t buy it and thankfully wouldn’t press until she was ready to talk about it.

But, what was she supposed to say? She couldn’t tell them the real reason and that was only because she didn’t know the real reason herself.

Her lunch with Myles had been like a fairy tale. While they’d only gone around the corner to the team’s favorite deli, he’d made it seem like he’d taken her to a four-star restaurant. He’d pulled out her chair… erm… stool, ordered for her from the specialty menu—ham on rye, her favorite—and didn’t mention the gala once, except when he asked who she was going with.

“Oh, I’m going alone.” By the time lunch had rolled around, Jack had already offered to drive Sue and sometime during the morning, Bobby had offered to become Tara’s escort as well. She wasn’t quite sure how she’d missed all that, but when Myles had offered up his services to escort her, she could swear she could feel her heart singing.

“It’ll be fun,” he added as an after thought.

“I couldn’t ask you to do that.” Why did it feel like he was just asking just so he could be a gentleman? She didn’t notice how close he’d become to her until she felt his strong, yet soft hand settle over hers. Her brown flickered up, coming into contact with his caring crystal blue eyes.

His voice was soft as he spoke and it sent the butterflies loose in her stomach. “But I want to.”

Even now the heat still infused her cheeks. There’d been something in those eyes today. Something that she hadn’t seen in a long time and it frightened her. Of course, what frightened her more was the way her friends were staring at her at the moment. She swallowed thickly and braved a smile. “So, Tara, did you finally pick out a dress?”

The perky blonde nodded, her hair bouncing among her shoulders. “Yup. And it’s just perfect.” She’d been struggling all week to look for the perfect outfit, knowing each one she saw just wasn’t good enough because she knew that a certain Aussie hunk wouldn’t like it. Finally, after hours and hours of searching she’d finally found the perfect one. She was sure it would knock Bobby’s socks off.

She then went into detail for her friends, describing the beautiful color scheme that had originally caught her eye and the cute little silver shoes she’d found to match. Lucy took this opportunity to let her mind wander again. She was certain that Tara’s dress would be amazing and she couldn’t wait to see it on her, but there were more pressing matters for her to think about. Like why she actually agreed to go with Myles.

You can do it Tara!!!
Hope Luce realizes soon about her feelings

Tere

Wow! I didn't realize I was THREE POSTS BEHIND! How exciting! I'm still all melty and swoony after Sue's spontaneous declaration of love, and then Jack's reassurance that he feels the same, unconditionally . . . wow.

And Lucy! She's got a lot to think about. I've said it before, and I'll say it again . . . I love Lucy and Myles together. Sure, they have some baggage, but it doesn't all come from their past relationship. It comes from their personalities and their individual pasts, and they've both grown and evolved since then. I still think there's a definite spark there! Can't wait for more!!

Linny, I haven't started reading your story yet; I'm still trying to catch up...but, I just wanted to cheer you on....

Hey girl !!!! Go! Go! Go! I know you can do it !!!!! Go! Go! Go!

You can do it! You can do it! You can do it!

Be back later! Oh, and have a wonderful vacation!!!!! Love ya too!

Lynn

Wow, two posts to catch.
Jack's words grasped my soul and made it quivered.... Really...that Jack,,, he is the man! ;0)

Luce..hun...trust your heart...you can be agreably surprise...

Great story Lynny...and go, you can do it!!!
Josy

Go Lindsy Go! (Sorry to sound so "Speed Racer-ish") I know you can do it! But if vacation gets in the way (and who could blame you if it does?) then we'll follow you over to WIP and you can just extend it indiffinitely!

I'm catching up with a couple of posts, so from two posts ago...

All I can say is I LOVED that!

Poor Luce. Myles, if you hadn't been such a drongo three years ago, you wouldn't have to convince her that you're serious!

Tina

I'm trying. I went out last night for a sort of last hurrah with my friends until I come back and actually have some free time, so I didn't get anything written in those few hours, and there's no guarantee that I'll have internet access down by the beach. Without internet for an entire week? Oh, I can feel the withdrawl comign already.

I'm thinking that there's only one more post after this one though and still some time to go before we have to leave... and I never thought I would say this, but I hope my sister in law ends up getting morning sickness so we have a slight delay. All for the good of the story, you know.

Saturday night arrived in the blank of an eye. The rest of the week shot by like a rocket as the team struggled to finish everything up before both the weekend came and “Gangas Khan” Pitts made his rounds once again. They were all quite smug when he’d entered the bullpen promptly at 5p.m. on Friday to make more of is ludicrous demands. And when he finally did arrive, they each took turns piling their stacks of files into the office manager’s waiting arms.

Even Levi played his part, carrying a folder that Sue had “forgotten” at her desk. Jack had been more than happy to remove it from the retriever’s mouth and place it on the top of the pile.

Randy then left with a huff, muttering a few curses under his breath and when he was at least twenty feet down the hallway, collided with an agent who was hurrying to get home. He was still picking them up by the time the team filed out.

To day Lucy was nervous was an understatement. And even though this wouldn’t quite be considered a date, she couldn’t help but be terrified because that’s what it felt like. The butterflies in her stomach were going crazy just like she was fourteen again and she was going out on her very first date.

She’d been in the bathroom for so long trying to figure out how to wear her hair and whether or not she was wearing too much makeup or not enough that Sue finally had to kick her out so she could take a shower.

And now she did something that was very rare for her. She paced. She’d started by just walking back and forth in the living room, but had discovered that the space was much too small so she’d moved to the hallway where she paced from the front door all the way to her bedroom and back.

She could feel Levi’s eyes upon her as she muttered nonsensical words to herself to try to make herself calm down, but it was like his gaze was boring into her and promptly stopped. Oh, what she wouldn’t give for a distraction right about now.

As if on cue, her salvation came in the way of the doorbell. It would be Jack, seeing as though the guest of honor—Levi—would need to be there before all the guests arrived. The dog jumped to his feet and ran down the hallway to Sue’s bedroom to tell her that her escort had arrived. In his wake, he left behind a strip of black fabric and that made her chuckle. He’d deliberately tried to hide the fact that he’d taken it off again by laying on it and in his excitement of Jack’s arrival had forgotten all about it.

She was going to have to stitch it together or something so he would keep it on.

“Wow, Luce! You look great!” Jack appraised when she finally opened the door and he was allowed to look at the long length of her satin gown. It was a beautiful royal blue color that ran all the way down to the tips of her toes, leaving a tiny bit in the back that would flow like a train as she walked. The bust was pleated and dipped low in the front in the shape of a ‘v’. And the two-inch thick shoulder straps criss-crossed across her back, he noticed as she did an unconscious and very girly twirl. “Myles will love it,” he winked.

She tried to hide the fact that she was blushing by snorting loudly. She’d been constantly teased for the past two days by Jack and Bobby about this being a date and she couldn’t stand it anymore, though she knew their ribbing was all in fun. “It’s not a date, Jackson.”

He shrugged his shoulders as if to say ‘whatever you say’. “Sue ready yet?”

Sue frowned for a second as she considered the little movement he’d made. She knew that gesture and wondered what he’d meant by it. “She… uh… still had to finish up, but Levi already ran in to tell her you were here… You look very handsome by the way.”

He blushed under her scrutiny and pulled at his collar. Why did it always seem like the collar was too tight in these monkey suits. “Thanks. So, are the kittens still here?” There’s nothing worse than awkward small talk, he thought as he wondered how significant it was to Lucy that he was taking Sue to the gala. Luckily, he was too chicken to ask and, truthfully, he wasn’t really looking for an answer.

“No. Angie came by this afternoon to get them ready for tonight.” She was getting them all cleaned up and brushed to look just perfect for their prospective new owners.

“That’s too bad. I was hoping to see them again before they were adopted out.” Truthfully he’d discovered quite an attraction to the one that kept trying to bat at his face and was hoping he’d be able to adopt him.

Catching onto the words he hadn’t said, Lucy crossed her arms over her chest with a sly grin. “I thought you weren’t allowed to have pets in your building?”

“Er… well, technically I’m not.” Hopefully he could work his Hudson charm on his landlady to have her bend the rules just a smidgeon for him, and if that didn’t work he could always keep him here… or very well at least the house he hoped to own quite soon.

“And neither are we,” she said, catching his hidden words again. “Levi’s a special case, remember?”

He shrugged. “Can’t blame a guy for trying, right?”

She eyed him skeptically as Levi entered the living room to greet his second favorite human. Jack bent down and scratched the dog’s ears if only to avoid Lucy’s scrutinizing eye. “Right. Whatever you say. I’m going to go see If Sue is ready yet. Can you do me a favor?” she asked as she followed Jack to the couch where he took a seat and bent down to retrieve the scrap of fabric Levi had removed. Jack didn’t say anything as she handed it over to him. “See if you can stop the wonder dog from pulling this off? I swear if he does it one more time, I’m going to stitch it on.” She didn’t wait for a response before she headed off to check on her roommate.

The scrap of fabric was actually a bowtie. Jack stared at it for a moment and heaved a sigh as his gaze turned toward Levi. The look in his brown eyes was pleading as he silently begged him not to put that itchy thing back on. “Sorry buddy. If I have to wear one, then so do you.” He was wearing it for Sue, he reminded himself. The dog whined and rested his dropping head upon the couch cushion beside the human.

Pursing his lips to the corner of his mouth, Jack thought for a moment as he studied the Velcro backing and then Levi’s collar. An idea suddenly hit him. “How about we compromise?” he asked and when the dog picked his head up in interest, he knew he was game.

Weaving the straps around the service dog collar, he could sense Levi’s disapproval. “Remember, we’re doing this for Sue and we both love her too much to let her down right?” The human held out his hand, palm up and waited for Levi to lift his paw in agreement. They shook in a truce.

Lucy had stopped in the hall when she heard Jack talking to Levi and she’d had to cover her mouth with the palm of her hand to hide her gasp of surprise. Jack loved Sue! It was like a miracle that he would actually say those words aloud. She couldn’t let him know she’d heard, though. She kept her cool as she walked back into the living room. “She’d just about ready.” She was proud of herself. She was acting as though she hadn’t heard a thing but meanwhile she was jumping up and down inside. This was huge!

She was so high-strung that she jumped at the sound of the doorbell ringing again and felt like she was about to scream when she realized the significance of that sound. Jack held Levi at bay as he stood up to answer the door. Lucy refused to move from her spot in front of the couch, mostly because her limbs had frozen in fear.

She heard the commotion in the entryway, but didn’t hurry to find out what it was about. Apparently Levi had tried to jump up on Myles to give him a special greeting and there was just no way that Myles would allow one bit of dog hair on his special tuxedo. Either way though, by the end of the night, he would have a fur coat of his own.

She was finally able to move again when she heard their heavy footsteps coming closer. Taking in a deep breath, she poised herself and turned when Myles first set foot into the living room. All of the air rushed from her lungs as her eyes set on him. He looked so handsome in his tuxedo and the white rose he’d pinned to contrast with the darkness of the suit. He looked very handsome.

“Wow,” she heard him say and she was instantly struck with surprised. Was he talking about her? “Lucy, you look absolutely breathtaking.”

Her cheeks flamed with head and she had to duck her head to get her emotions under control. “Thank you, Myles,” she replied meekly and only looked up when she heard Sue’s heels clicking down the hallway. She heard Jack’s rush of breath and even though there was a good amount of distance between them, she could swear she’d just heard him swallow hard.

“You look beautiful,” he whispered… at least he thought he’d whispered. He couldn’t really tell if his voice was working or not.

Sue blushed under his scrutiny as his gaze traveled from the top of her head all the way down to her crimson-colored toes. “Thank you,” she signed.

I'd say the girls each have a man who is very much in love with them. I enjoyed the scene with Myles and Lucy.

Aw, Lindsy, I could hear Jack swallow, too! And I could see the look on his face! Very sweet! Lucy and Myles have a lot of catching up to do, don't they? I think they're off to a great start. So Jack was wanting to adopt one of the kittens, eh? I suppose he could always buy a HOUSE, since neither of their apartments allow pets . . .

Cute post, Myles and Lucy--->

Have a nice vacation, and don't worry

Tere

Poor Levi he sounds like my dog always trying to take off her lead or collar! can't wait for the gala. It seems that the team has taken a liking to those kittens.

A kitten? A dog? ... A few kids? Did I say that aloud?


Linny, you're doing great. You'll make it

Marlene

Wow Linny...you wrote that scene so well...
Great work!
Josy

I'm not totally caught up yet Linny but so far I'm loving this story.

I'm cheering you on to get it finished on time. I see you on here so that's a good sign.

Have a great vacation too.

I'm all caught up and ready for your next post...Go Linny go!!

- RSL

I tried posting this once already, but the computer ate it. Long story short, we arrived safe and sound despite the traffic and I found a very jumpy wi-fi connection.



Doesn't really matter, though considering this is the LAST POST!

Tara looked like an angel as she twirled about on the dance floor. Her floor-length sweeping gown skimmed lightly around her ankles and her silver-shoed feet seemed like they’d never touched the floor as Bobby held her close and they swayed gently to the music.

In a sea of white, black and a few red dresses spotted throughout the room, Tara stood out. The gown was strapless, the fitted bodice embellished with tonal sequins that just glittered underneath the mood lighting. The flowing chiffon skirt featured an ombre` pattern of gorgeously shifting tones from rich purple to a brilliant aqua which were echoed with a simple sash at her waist.

Lucy had never seen another dress like it and it certainly showed how unique—but still so beautiful—Tara’s style could be. Her jaw had literally dropped to the floor when the tech whiz had first caught her eye. She didn’t recognize her at first and when she finally realized who it was, she couldn’t help but be shocked.

It was obvious that Bobby liked it as well. When the two of them entered the ballroom arm-in-arm, Lucy could clearly see how Bobby’s eyes sparkled in that special way. It was a look he only spared for Tara these days.

She smiled and took a sip from her champagne flute. Love definitely seemed like it was floating throughout the room tonight.

It had been obvious in Jack and Sue’s eyes. Special Agent Hudson had barely been able to peel his eyes off of his date the entire night. It was as if he was afraid to blink to find her—a vision of beauty in crimson red—a dream.

Sue’s dress was absolutely stunning. The silk flowed down to her toes, but did not hide the matching strappy shoes that showed off her crimson toenails. The bodice was an empire waist with a sweetheart neckline, both embellished with glittering beads. The biggest surprise of the dress, though, was the back. It was open with a strap running across the width of her back, revealing the slender yet still tonal muscles.

The rotor felt so proud and so happy she’d talked Sue into buying the dress. It definitely seemed to make a statement; to both the attendees and to her escort.

The evening had been a complete success. Levi was honored for his services as an FBI service dog and as an added bonus from his friends at the ASPCA, a special gift for rescuing the five little kittens. And it was definitely a gift that only a dog could love: the largest dog bone Lucy had ever seen.

Her eyes continued to float around the room. Donna was gorgeous in her simple black evening gown, the two having just come back from a family vacation to help the rest of the team celebrate Levi’s honor. Plus, when Donna had set eyes on the bundle of kittens, she just knew that they had to try to take one home. After all, Tanya had been staying out of trouble lately and that was a definitely improvement to the weekly disaster they’d usually find themselves trying to get her out of. The girl deserved a reward.

“Bobby, I still can’t believe you did this. I don’t know what to say,” Tara was practically in tears as she hugged the little runt close and the little girl cuddled into her while she and Bobby walked back to the table.

He shrugged, “It’s nothing, Tara luv. Besides, you haven’t stopped talking about this little girl for days, so I figured I’d help you out and give you a better chance.”

“I don’t know how to thank you.”

He didn’t say anything for a second as he considered just what a ‘thank you’ might entail. A grin slowly spread across his lips until his dimples became visible. “I can think of something.”

Her eyes lit up. “Anything.”

She was surprised when his cheeks flushed lightly with embarrassment. “Dinner with me? Tomorrow night?”

Her cheeks tinted lightly with color, but she didn’t hesitate to answer. “Okay,” was the only answer she gave and that only made Bobby grin wider.

Lucy’s eyes looked like they were about to pop out of her head. Bobby’s grin wasn’t the only one that got wider. Her smile was so wide that her cheeks started to hurt. Another couple struck by cupid’s arrows. She couldn’t be happier.

Well, okay, that was a lie. She knew she could be happier; much happier and the man she had in mind to make her happy probably didn’t even realize was still in the room. She rolled her eyes at herself. Well, maybe she was being a bit hard on herself, but as soon as Myles discovered who Melinda really was, he hadn’t said much. And now that he was sitting barely three feet away from her, she didn’t know what to say.

“Myles?” she asked. At least it was a start and it seemed to gain his attention from all of the other attendees, pulling his cool blue eyes in her direction. She chewed nervously at her bottom lip. “I’m sorry about the whole Melinda thing. I didn’t think you’d attend if you really knew she was a Labrador.”

His smile surprised her. “It’s okay. I’ve known about it for a while.” His grin grew wider at her look of shock.

“You… you knew? How?”

He chuckled, his shoulders lightly shaking. “Jack let me in on the gag the other night while the three of us were at the pool hall, so I just played along for the fun of it.”

Her jaw dropped for the second time that night. The night they were all at the pool hall? That was the day that the kittens were found… but he’d already started acting… differently around her. “I don’t understand.”

His eyes were soft and his smile grew warm as his hand reached out and set softly upon hers. “I had other motives for wanting to play along. I wanted to get closer to you, Luce.” It was an honest reply and one he felt he could no longer hold back. His feelings for this woman were too strong to ignore any longer. “I know I was a cad in the past, but I feel like we’ve grown much closer than we even were before. And I would be honored if you gave me another chance… after all, you were right. I did fall in love with Melinda.” That was why he was adopting the old girl.

Melinda was actually a retired service dog who was looking for a new home. Some place stable with a good amount to protect and it didn’t hurt that Myles had a backyard that any puppy would drool over. It had been getting kind of lonely in that big empty house anyway. He needed a companion; he just hoped that he would gain a second one.

“I don’t know what to say.” She felt like crying. She wanted to jump into his arms and shout ‘of course I’ll give you another chance, Myles’, but she couldn’t be that eager. If she’d learned anything about interrogational tactics, it helped to make the subject sweat.

“’Yes’ would probably be a good start,” he teased, though he grinned confidently.

“You did all of this for me? Why?”

He leaned in closer, bridging the seemingly gaping gap between them. A shiver ran down his spine as he started into her wide eyes. She was so beautiful. “Because I lost you once for my own foolish actions and I want to make it right.”

She smiled. “I’d like that, Myles.”

He could feel a ‘but’ coming on. “But?”

“But I just have one question.” She didn’t wait for him to ask what kind of question she had to ask. If she didn’t ask now, she would never get it out. “If your ulterior motives were to get closer to me… um… what were your original motives?”

He leaned back in his seat as the question hit him squarely in the chest. “Ah… well… truthfully?” he found himself asking and was only answer by a nod from her. “Blackmail.”

“Huh?”

He rolled his eyes and took in a deep breath. He wasn’t going to waist more than one on this stupid story. “Jack made me promise that if I agreed not to tell you that he blabbed the whole Melinda thing, he would tell me something very important.”

Her brows came together in confusion. “Which would be?”

He cleared his throat as he motioned with the index finger of the hand that still hadn’t left hers toward a pair of double French doors leading out to a beautifully gardened lanai. And just outside those doors, they could both see as Jack got down on one knee before Sue, holding out the most gorgeous diamond solitaire that she’d ever seen. Even from as far away as she was, she could tell how exquisite it was just by the way it glittered in the moonlight.

Lucy couldn’t quite catch what was being said, but from the gestures both of them made and the hug and very passionate kiss that soon followed, she had an idea of how the scene had played out.

“I don’t believe it,” was all she was able to say as he lips slowly curled into a smile.

“Me neither. I thought it was just a ruse to get me to keep my mouth shut, but I suppose I was wrong.” His grin was wide, though. To him he was still getting the better end of the deal.

It was the Dog Days of Summer, but the time of stagnation had officially come to an end.

FIN

Word count= 15,462

What a sublime end Linny!!!!
Bravo you did your last post on time and I really enjoyed that story!!!
Josy

You did it!!!!


Beautiful ending. Thank you!

That was great!

Kim

What a lovely ending to a lovely story!! You made the deadline with time to spare, and I have a really good feeling about Myles and Lucy! LOVED IT!

Thank you for sharing your talent with us.
Terie

All the three pairs ---->

Thanks for share!!

Tere

Whooo Hooooo Lindsy! Knew you could do it - and you even had to track down internet access to pull it off. Now that's committment!

Loved that look at the team all together, and all "getting along" so well. Of course, the sight of Jack getting down on one knee had me all gushy and I make no apologies for it! I love being gushy over Jack!!

Congratulations and a big THANK YOU for sharing with us!

Tina

What a happy ending!!! Even Myles softened which helped him to find what (or rather who) he really wanted to live his happily ever after...

Tara is a colorful little spit fire and I like the way you showed it with her dress.

Jack and Levi's conversation 'for Sue'... cute and touching!!!

I'm glad you did it in time for the end of the challenge... and for our own reading pleasure...

I love happy endings! Jack and Sue are engaged, Myles and Lucy are together, so are Tara and Bobby. The kittens have good homes, and Myles adopted Melinda!

Yay! Great job! I loved this story!

Em

Yeah Linny, you did it!

This story was so many things but what I loved most was how adorable it was.

Even that Myles knew who Melinda was and even adopted her.

By the way, the dresses all sound beautiful, but I'd love to see Tara's. It really caught my mind's eye. Love those colors.

Great ending to a great story. Thank you for sharing and congrats that you were able to finish. I hope you're enjoying your vacation.

Lindsy, I've been away and just caught up on your story!!!

It was wonderful, from Sue declaring her love to Jack, then his declaring his love for her was perfect!! And, Lucy trying to figure out her feelings for Myles was fun to watch!!!

The gala was amazing - the guys were all handsome in their tuxedos, the girls' dresses all sound divine, and Myles and Bobby both had me swooning!! Levi not only being honored as an F.B.I. dog, but also for rescuing the kittens was wonderful!!!

And Jack!! Proposing on the balcony!! And, Sue accepting!! It doesn't get any better than that!!!

I'm glad you were able to finish your story for the challenge!! Thanks for sharing once again!! Enjoy your vacation - you've earned it!!!

Joy

I just caught up on the last few pages and it was definitely worth it - I loved reading this story and the happy ending was wonderful! Thanks so much for sharing your story. It was lovely.

Thank you all so much. Your replies just make me smile.

And Anne, since you asked so nicely, here are all three girls' dresses. I changed the color of Sue's dress, so you'll just have to imagine the color when you look at it, not that the purple color isn't beautiful, I just think she looks so much better in red.

Sue's Dress

Lucy's Dress

Tara's Dress

And Anne, I know what you mean about Tara's dress. It was the color's that first caught my eye. Simply beautiful.

Lindsy

Wow, Lindsy I can't believe you did that. Thank you! Tara would be breathtaking in that gorgeous dress. It is so beautiful, oh those colors. I want one. Well, when I lose a few pounds.

Jack must have come unglued seeing Sue in that dress, WOOHOO. I agree, it's nice in purple, but red is Sue's color and WOW, that is a beautiful dress.

Now this one cracks me up. Lucy's dress. Talk about a small world. My niece just wore that dress (or almost identical) to a wedding at a Castle in NY. Same color and all. I'm sure Lucy looked fabulous in it. I know my niece did.

Thanks again Lindsy!

Thank you Linny to have put those dresses pictures! Since I'm not english it is kind of hard to understand all this 'mode langusge' and imagine what it would look like. Tara's dress is simply delightful!!! NOW I can imagine Bobby's reaction!

With the crazy way things have been lately I just realized that I hadn't commented on your last few posts! First off can I say I'm quite envious of your ability to end a fanfic in a timely manner? I loved the Myles/Lucy storyline and that you leave us hopeful for them. And that Tara got her kitten! (courtesy of Bobby -- blissful sigh...that might need to be a new fanfic on its own). I LOVE that Sue told Jack she loved him first! I guess all those kittens prompted a wealth of irresistable warm fuzzies! Congratulations on finishing on time and enjoy your holiday!

kav

So cute. Poor levi wish he could keep the kittens. Aww bobby bought Tara the kitten she wanted and got a date as reward. Yay jack proposed.

That was great.