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Gabe giggled in delight Bill picked hi him in the air Gabe squealed

When Bill set Gabe down, he launched into an explanation of everything he’d done since arriving in Seattle

"Iat Bill happily "And Grando to the park everyand there are puppies sometimes"

Bill crouched down so he was eye-level with the boy and listened attentively

"I’ ood at math, just like my daddy" He beamed with pride

"I knew you were special," Bill told hied hi hard "I missed you, too"

Gabe took Bill off to see his room Paula and Jesse went into the kitchen

"I wondered how you made it by yourself in Spokane," Paula said as she started a pot of coffee "Now I know You had friends"

"Bill was great," Jesse admitted "Father, boss and someone to talk to all in one I was so lucky to find hi heart "You know, he’s a er Has been for a while now"

Paula flushed slightly "I don’t see why that would be of interest to me He’s obviously crazy about you"

If Jesse had been drinking, she would have choked "He’s about forty years older than me"

"So?"

"I do love Bill, but like faotten interested in soet over Matt? "Besides, e met, he made it clear I wasn’t his type, so even if I’d had any ideas, nothing would have happened"

"It doesn’t really s and set them on the counter

But Jesse wasn’t so sure Maybe it mattered a little

An hour later she and Bill sat outside on the porch

"I’ve been worried about you," Bill said "Missing you, too Both of you That little boy grows on aof you, as well"

"But you’re doing okay?"

She sht to kick me out when you did That’s all you care about, but you’re too polite to ask"

"You’ll tell hed "Yes, I will and you were right"

"You were only living half a life, Jess Hanging out with me and my friends Not that we didn’t appreciate your pretty face or the joy that boy brought to us, but you were hiding"

"I know" She rested her forearood to be back, but hard My sister hasn’t accepted that I’ve changed I think she believes ry"

She didn’t have to explain about her past Bill knew all her secrets

"You’ve had five years to watch yourself change and grow and plenty of ti on her She has to adjust"

"I know that inthe rest ofsome time Besides, I think she secretly wants to be mad at me"

"She had a certain place in your fa to fight that"

Jesse had never considered that Were family dynamics the real problem?

"If I’ changes?" she asked,Bill, didn’t answer

She was going to have to think about that some more

"So Gabe’s o?"

"Not well Matt’s co into his oith Gabe now, but the first couple of s were difficult He didn’t kno to relate to a four-year-old Not that he’s had a lot of experience" She hesitated "We were fighting when you drove up"

"I noticed"

"He bla Gabe" She stared at the steps "He says that telling hih That I kneouldn’t believe me That I should have told hiiven hi about it She felt awful inside, like she was a bad person Like she’d been deliberately evil

"It wasn’t like that," she whispered "I wanted hih to believe me I wanted him to come after me"

"Did you know he didn’t believe you about the baby?"

She nodded "What he said was so horrible" Once a slut, always a slut Those words were burned into her brain

"Hoould you feel if he’d kept Gabe froh her body and had her answer "Oh, God" To not have held hirow His first smile, his first step, the love in his eyes The absolute trust Thousands of perfect ive me," she whispered "Why would he?"

Bill put his aret over it"

"You don’t know that"