That Little Spark

He looked around the room. "Now I can focus on getting us moved into the house. It should be finished soon. So, I'd better get busy and start packing."

"That'll be nice for Nathan, to have a house with a yard, so he can run outside and play anytime he wants."

"Yeah, we're both looking forward to having more space." He kissed me and flashed me a naughty grin. "But I'm more interested in having a nice big master bedroom, that's big enough for a king size bed."

I laughed and smoothed my hand over his chest, and down over his abs, and smiled as I looked down and noticed something pretty impressive was starting to poke at the sheet.

"Well, before you leave here, I think we should enjoy cuddling in this nice comfy bed, at least a few more times." Then I threw back the sheet, and my eyes popped, surprised that he was already fully erect. "Wow, somebody likes to cuddle."

He laughed, pulled me on top of him and kissed me. With his arms wrapped around me, he said, "Yeah, I do, when I've got this gorgeous, sexy woman in my bed to cuddle up with me."

I parted my thighs and slid myself up and down along the length of him, enjoying the way his eyes rolled back and he started to groan as I teased him.

Deciding to give him a little more to enjoy, I wiggled out of his embrace. Keeping my eyes on his, I slid down till I was circling him in my hand, and slowly began to slide my tongue over him from base to tip.

"Oh man, Kaitlin, that feels so good," he murmured, his eyes dropping to half-mast.

When I drew him between my lips and started to suck him back, he sank his hands into my hair, and looked so blissful as I worked him up and down. I was just happy to give him something even half as sweet as what he'd so generously given to me, every single time we'd made love.

Really getting into it, licking all around him, his hips nearly bouncing off the bed, I could tell he was getting so close.

Then I yelped, shocked, when he pulled me up under the arms, reached for a condom, rolled it on and lifted me back on top of him.

Smirking, as I sat up high and rode him. I loved the way we cuddled, too.

Ooh, he felt so snug this way, I had to take my time and ease myself down. With my hands on his chest, I pulled back up, and then thrust back down, gradually picking up my pace. The heated look in his eyes, as he clutched his hands around my waist and flexed his hips up to meet each of my thrusts, was almost enough to melt me.

Sliding his hand up to my breast, he had me moaning, teasing my nipples between his fingers with arousal little tugs and twists. Till he had me throwing back my head and trying not to squeal too loud as I came in blinding rush, and he let out a deep groan, pushed up inside me one last time and froze.

Clenching my inner muscles around him, I could feel him pulsing, like second heart-beat inside me. Slipping his hand around my neck, he tugged me down and kissed me, both of us smiling into the kiss as we mated with our tongues.

I was just so blissfully happy to be with him like this, I closed my eyes and sighed. David pulled me to his side and curled his body around mine. Completely sated and utterly content, we drifted off to sleep together, warm and safe in each other's arms.

In the morning, blinking my eyes, I looked over at the clock, and noticed he'd let me sleep in again. I still took a quick shower, before I got dressed and joined them in the kitchen.

David in a nice pair of jeans and T-shirt was at the stove, scrambling eggs with Nathan beside him carefully trying to butter toast. I dropped a kiss on the top of Nathan's head and murmured, "Morning, sweetie," and he turned up his face and smiled, before going back to his task.

I pressed a kiss just below David's ear, and whispered, "Thanks for letting me sleep."

He turned his head and kissed me back. "You looked so peaceful I didn't want to wake you." Nathan was grinning as David snagged me around the waist and went in for second kiss.

With Nathan watching, we didn't get too carried away. Though I could tell from the look in his eyes that David would have been happy to turn off the stove and finish what we started, probably on the kitchen floor, or even up against the fridge. He was just such a sensual man. I knew if he ever changed his mind about marriage, the woman he chose to be his wife, would be one lucky woman.

Finishing our coffee after breakfast, I suggested that we could start to go through the boxes of his sister's things, that he had stored in his guest room.

He nodded. "Val always kept a journal from the time she was a kid. But I don't really think I should be looking through all the personal stuff she wrote. If you wouldn't mind taking a look, it might help me to decide what this little guy might be interested to read about his mom, when he's a little older."

Eyes wide, Nathan perked up. "You have things my mom wrote?"

"I do. I've got all of her journals in boxes." Smiling down at him, David touched the end of his nose. "But some of it your mom might have wanted to keep private. Kaitlin can take a look and see what she wrote, and decide what your mother would like you to read."

After we'd cleaned up the kitchen, I got a bottle of water from the fridge and headed for his guest room.

Taking a seat on the floor, I opened a box and started to read the first one I grabbed, and I could tell she was a writer. Even as a girl, everything she wrote was just so interesting, and expressive. I got so engrossed, I didn't realize I'd been reading for hours, till David came and knocked on the open door and laughed when he saw me sitting on the floor. "Wow, you're really buried in there aren't you?"

I shrugged looking around at journals I'd stacked around me, by date. Realized that they did look a little like a fort surrounding me. "I'm putting them in chronological order, so they'll make more sense. When he's old enough to read them, Nathan can start from when she was little to... the last things she wrote."

David nodded. "If it's too much, don't feel like you have to read them all. I'm bringing them all to the new house, so we can finish looking at them later. I really appreciate you going through them and sorting them out, though. I'm not sure I'm ready to read about her life just yet."

I nodded. "I know."

"I just wondered if you wanted to take a break for some lunch? I made some sandwiches, and a fresh pot of coffee."

I put down the journals in my lap, in the current stack. "You know David, after everything I've read, though I've never met her, I feel like I know your sister. These journals really make her come to life." I pointed at the ones I still had to go through. "I was just going to read some of the later ones, where she probably expressed her feelings about being pregnant with Nathan."

"Oh, I'm sure he'd love to see those, at least when he's old enough to understand."

"These are the ones I haven't read yet. I'll finish them later," I said, putting the last few back in a box, so I would know that they weren't read. I got up and dusted myself off. "I'd better call my mother, too, to check on Brayden, to see if she's willing to part with him yet. And before we go, I'll box them up again, and mark the different years on them."

David chuckled. "I told Nathan we're going to pick up Brayden at his Gran's. And he got all excited and said, 'I love going to Gran's!"

Since Nathan never had any grandparents, he was probably happy that my mother had claimed him as one of hers.

When we pulled up at my mother's house, I saw my sister's car parked in the driveway. "Looks like my sister's here. And she is going to be thrilled to meet you."

David looked across the car at me. "Have you told her about the engagement?"

I shook my head. "No. We haven't had a chance to talk. She's been away. She's a flight attendant, and her job takes her all over the world. We usually just text to keep in touch. I'm sure she's heard about us from my mother, though. So, brace yourself, because she is going to have a lot of questions."

I went inside, while David opened the trunk to get the floral arrangement that he'd got for my mom, to thank her for helping out with the boys. Funny, she never let me buy her anything, but she was tickled pink whenever David brought her flowers.

I'd just stepped inside, and my sister came flying out of the kitchen, and pulled me into big body-crushing hug, murmuring in my ear, "Ooh, it's so good to see you!"

David came in behind me, and I laughed at the way her mouth fell open and her eyes popped when she got her first look at him. "Holy shit!" she blurted out loud, her eyes going everyone at once, raking him over.

David laughed and so did I. Gesturing at my sister, I introduced them. "David, this is my potty-mouthed sister, Jessica." I smiled into his eyes as I said, "And Jess, this is my fiancé, David."

He held out his hand, and said, "Pleasure to meet you, Jess."

Jess laughed, and batted his hand away. "Are you kidding? We're family now. I want a hug." After she'd given him a big hard squeeze, she let go and looked back and forth between us. "So how did I not even know you were dating, and now you two are engaged?"

I smirked at David, and told her the truth. "We just clicked."

"I guess you did, if you're already talking marriage. Now let me see this ring mom's been gushing over." She reached for my hand, looked down at the big sparkler on my finger and blurted, "Holy shit! That's some rock!"

"Jess, is that all you know how to say?"

She looked at me, wide-eyed. "Well, I'm a little shocked, I mean, this is a lot to take in."

David looked back and forth between us. "You're not the only one. Kaitlin said she had a sister, but never mentioned you were identical twins."

Jess laughed. "Well, we're not exactly identical." She grinned and flipped her long blonde hair over her shoulder, batting her eyelashes at him. I've always worn my hair longer." She grinned at me. "And I'm the fun sister, and Kaitlin being seven minutes older, has always been a little more serious than I am." I tried not to groan when she rolled down her yoga pants, exposing her bare hip and pointed. "And, I've also got a little heart-shaped birthmark, on my left hip." She wrinkled her nose at me. "So, my sister likes to say that she's unblemished."

"Do you think he really needed to see that, Jess?"

Jess shrugged, pulling her pants back up. "Well, at least he knows now, in case he ever has to tell us apart."

"With our clothes off? I don't think so."

Jess looked at David and said, "I'm not even looking at her, and I can tell she's giving me an eyeroll, am I right?"

David chuckled watching us, playfully bicker, like we always do. "You're right, she is. So, do you two have that telepathic thing some identical twins have?"

Jess looked at me and nodded. "We do. Sometimes I can feel when something's wrong. I phoned her once from Japan. I couldn't get to sleep, because I had this awful feeling that something was going on. And I was right. Kaitlin was in the hospital with pneumonia. Mom didn't want to worry me, so she didn't call. But I knew, because I could feel it."

I nodded. "Yeah, I've felt it, too. From the time we were kids. I'd feel pain sometimes when she'd get hurt, and find out later that she'd hurt herself, right where I'd felt the pain."

Then I noticed Jess was kind of looking at me funny, then she looked at David, who was looking past us into the kitchen. I had a feeling that she sensed something wasn't right. I just hoped she couldn't tell how much I was dreading the day that David told me it was over, and he didn't need me to pretend that we were engaged anymore.

None of us noticed Nathan rush past David into the kitchen, so he could see Brayden. When the three of us walked in, my mom already had the two of them sitting at the kitchen table. The boys were having a mug of soup and some milk, with a little plate of brownies in the middle of the table, the two of them were eyeing, obviously eager to finish their soup.

"Hey, mister," Jess said, to Nathan, "You ran in here so fast, I never even got a chance to meet you. And I'm going to be your Aunt Jess, once these two are married."

Brayden whispered against Nathan's ear, loud enough that we could all hear him, making us looking at each other and laugh. "Aunt Jess is funny, you'll like her. And she always brings something from far away." He dug into his jeans pocket and pulled out a small model of jumbo jet, and said, "See, she just brought me this, isn't it cool?"

"I've got one for you, too, Nathan," Jess said, ruffling his hair. "I couldn't forget about my new nephew, now, could I?"

When she handed him the little plane, his eyes lit up and he said, "Thanks, Aunt Jess."

After she'd said, "You're very welcome." She smirked at us, wrinkling her nose. "'Cause I'm their auntie, I get the fun of spoiling them."

Though we all laughed, I just hoped Nathan wouldn't be too upset, when he wasn't part of our life anymore, once David and I were done.

We all watched my mom's face light up when David handed her the flowers, pressed a kiss to her cheek and said, "Just a little something to thank you for helping out with the guys."

She turned about three shades of pink as she admired the blooms, smiling back at David.

"I'll be back," he said, "I've got to get to the moving store to get some boxes, and packing material."

Jess told him, "I can drive them home later David, so you won't have to rush back."

He thanked her, and dropped a kiss on my cheek before he left. After he'd gone, I noticed my sister was staring at me again. I wondered if it was starting to show on my face, that I knew it was almost over.

"He's moving out of his condo, and into his new house," I explained. "And he's got to start packing."

"But if you're getting married, won't it be your house, too?"

I scrambled trying to think of what to say. "It's just that... he designed it himself, so it's kind of his baby."

Jess nodded, but didn't look too convinced.

I was glad my mom had made tea, and told us to come and try the brownies, so we could talk about something else.

While we were laughing watching the kids gush over the warm, chocolate brownies, Jess got a text from a friend. Her eyes dancing, she showed it to me. Knowing she was excited about having a girls' night out with her old college friends, we didn't stay too long.

When she drove me home, I kissed her goodbye, and she reached for my hand and told me, "If you ever need to talk, just call me, okay?"

I nodded, and said, "Sure," because I couldn't really tell her what was happening, when I didn't know myself.

A week later, David called and told me the house was ready and he had the movers lined up to move him in.

When we pulled into the driveway, I thought it was such a big beautiful house, stone fronted and two stories high. There were still a lot of boxes around, with things to unpack. But once we'd stepped inside his gorgeous new house, and I got my first look, I just loved it. It was beautiful, with soft gray walls and dark floors, and it seemed he'd thought of everything. But amazingly, he'd still managed to make it feel homey.

"So, what do you think?"

"It's beautiful, David, I love it."

He smiled. "I'd hoped you would." I was a little shocked when he handed me a key, till he said, "In case you ever need to get in, if I'm late."

I nodded, and thanked him.

The boys were running around, all excited. David said, "Hey come here, guys," and took them to the sliding glass doors in the kitchen and showed them the huge back yard. He told them he had plans made to build a tree fort as soon as the weather warmed up and said they'd better start thinking about the type of fort they wanted. Like a pirate ship, or even a space ship.

The boys squealed, they looked so happy. And I just hoped that maybe we'd still be together like this come spring.

A few days later, David called to tell me he had to work a few extra hours on a project, but promised to bring home dinner for the four of us.

"Well, I'll pick the boys up from school, and take them to your place, so I can try and read the last few journals."

"Thanks, Kaitlin, you're a lifesaver. So, how does Chinese food sound?"

"Sounds good to me. I'll give the kids a snack when they get home, so it won't matter if they eat a little later."

"And I'll be there as soon as I can." Then he lowered his voice and asked, "Are you staying over tonight?"

I smiled at the tone of his voice. "Would you like me to?"

"Always."

I laughed. "Okay, you twisted my arm, I'll stay. See you soon."

When the boys had finished their cheese and crackers, and veggie sticks, I told I them that I had some reading to do. Luckily, they said they were trying to build a city out of Legos so they were going to busy, too. And if they needed me, I'd be just next door in David's new guest room, finishing off the journals.

Sitting cross legged on the hardwood floor, I was going through the last few entries Val had written before she got sick. I felt sorry for her, she sounded so sad, after the long-term relationship she'd been in, ended badly. Back to being single, she said she could hear her biological clock starting to tick, like a time bomb waiting to go off, ending her chances of motherhood. Since she'd always hoped to have a child, she was considering the idea of doing it on her own.

I sat up straight when I read on, about the party she'd gone to, where she'd drank too much and hooked up with a guy. A guy she would never have dated if she were in her right mind. After they'd shared way too many drinks, Mick Jones, a friend of a friend, talked her into going into one of the bedrooms. When she woke up in the morning, he was gone and she was naked, with a raging hangover.

"Oh my god!" I couldn't believe what I was reading. There was no relationship between them, it was just a drunk hook-up. I knew he must have found out about her child, through their mutual friends.

Then I read on, and what I read next, had my jaw almost hitting the floor.

I was still blinking, trying to absorb what I'd read, when my cell phone rang. I saw it was David, and I answered. Almost in the same breath, we both said, "You're not going to believe this."

"Okay, you go ahead, then I'll tell you," I said, hoping there was nothing wrong.

He sounded upset. "I just got a call from Mick Jones, Nathan's so-called father. He offered to disappear and never bother us again. Providing, I gave him fifty thousand in cash. Can you believe that? I knew it was always about the money, and he never cared about Nathan, but I was still surprised that he was that blunt. I don't even know how he found out where I work. The receptionist put him through to me."

"Oh, that is pretty low. But I have some news, you're are definitely going to want to hear. I'm so glad your sister kept journals, otherwise I would never have found out."

I listened, and the boys were being really quiet, probably concentrating on their building. Knowing they might be able to hear me, I whispered, "I'll show you later, when we're in bed, once the boys are asleep. They're right next door in Nathan's room, so I can't say anything."

"Now you've really got me curious."

"As soon as the kids are asleep, I'll show you what I've found."

We'd just finished dinner, and we smiled at each other when the boys started yawning. "Looks like bed time guys," David said, and went to help them get ready.

I was in bed, my whole body practically humming, holding the two journals I wanted him to see, when he came in, peeled down to his boxers and said, "So, what did you find out?"

"Read this," I said, as soon as he crawled in beside me, showing him the passage about the hookup at the party.

He pulled a face as he read it. "You know I wondered how a woman as intelligent as my sister could ever have hooked with a guy like him. But it makes sense if she'd had that much to drink. I remember the guy she broke up with, too, a professor at one of the universities. I thought they were close, and assumed one day they'd get married, but it never happened. And I knew she was pretty broken up about it."