Juicy huh? That made me blush and laugh at a the same time. I had thoughts of kissing Jake through my mind. Wyatt I had just kissed on the cheek the other day but not on the mouth. I wondered what it would be like to kiss them. To clear my head, I got up to get the cupcakes. Chase helped me by passing out everyones favorite. When we were done, Preston looked at Brady and had one of those silent conversations.

"Lexine, let's go play for a while." Brady said to her. She readily took his hand and left the dining room. Chase went with them. Preston came over to sit in the chair next to me. Wyatt and Jake cleaned off the table and went into the kitchen to was dishes. I felt a little nervous even though Chase had told me earlier that Preston wanted to talk to me. Preston must have seen the apprehension on my face and took my hand.

"Relax Delphine, there's nothing wrong. I just wanted to talk to you about a preschool for Lexine. It is highly recommended for children that are bright. I know that Lexine has her issues but they are well equipped to deal with that. They are a private school but I don't think that the fees will be an issue. The school board would like to meet the both of you tomorrow afternoon if you agree to it."

"If it's a private school and it's that good, how are fees not going to be an issue?"

"Well, if all goes well, I believe that they will be willing to extend a scholarship to her. If not, I will pay the fees."

I opened my mouth to argue about that but he shook his head no and said, "We agreed to try to become a family. Family always helps each other. Family first."

I sighed. "It's hard for me to depend on you guys. Every time I trust someone I get let down. That last time was almost too much for me. I trusted Rick and he let me down again and again."

"I know it seems like I'm asking for a lot. May I ask what that last thing with your late husband was?"

I lowered my head and looked at the table top. "He had promised that he was going to rehab. That the pills were going to stop. That he was going to make sure that Lexine and I were taken care of. It didn't happen. He overdosed instead, right after he promised me that everything was going to change."

Preston lifted my face back up with a single finger under my chin. I was having a hard time reading the look on his face.

"You don't have to look down or be embarrassed around me. You can tell me anything."

He reached out and pulled me into his lap and held me tight.

"I know that addicts make promises that they can't keep. Their addictions destroy families. I'm asking you to reach deep down and find your inner strength. Trust us and let us make you happy. You deserve to be taken care of."

I wound my arms around his neck and looked into his eyes. They looked sincere and serious. "Yes, I'll try." I said and kissed him.

He kissed me back and I felt the heat of it. Pulling his head back, he gazed at me.

"Awww...." a chorus of male voices rang out. Wyatt and Jake were standing side by side with an arm around each other's shoulders grinning at us. I blushed and tried to move off of Preston's lap but his arms tightened and kept me in place.

"Hey, quit hogging her! You get her all day tomorrow. Let us spend some time with her now." Jake demanded. Preston sighed and let go. Jake swooped down and scooped me up into his arms. I had to laugh as he whirled me in a circle. Then he passed me over to Wyatt who took me out to the living room where Lexine was playing with Brady and Chase. They had the board game Candyland out on the coffee table and Chase was in the lead.

I sat on the couch between Jake and Wyatt while we watched them play the game. Preston came in and sat in an armchair close by. In a surprising turn of events, Chase lost his lead and Brady won. Lexine gave him a high five and giggled. Chase groaned dramatically and fell over backward to the ground. Lexine ran and grabbed her doctors kit from the corner and pulled out the stethoscope to listen to his heart. We all had to laugh at that. I looked around at everyone and smiled. It was a comfortable and cozy scene. I really started to feel like this was a family. My family.