Chapter 34

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Olivia

"Sooo," I started, taking a seat gently next to Cassie on the sofa. She was cradling a sleeping baby Gray in her arms. He puckered his little pink lips as he slept peacefully. "How was your first night with Gray home?"

Cassie smiled as she gently stroked the top of his head with her pointer finger. He'd grown a head full of wavey, dark brown hair just like Russ's.

"I slept for a total of two hours." She laughed, glancing up at me with a sarcastic grin. "He wanted to eat every hour last night...but I'd take that over having him being in that damn hospital." Cassie scoffed, shaking her head. "I couldn't sleep the entire month he had to stay there anyway."

Grayson let out a tiny yawn before relaxing back into his mother's arms and continuing his slumber. Both Cassie and I giggled softly at his cuteness.

"I'm happy everything ended well Cass, he's the most perfect little boy, and you're doing so great. It's like you were made to be his mom."

"Thank you, babes." She smiled. Do you want to hold him? She asked, laughing as my eyes widened.

Yesterday when Grayson came home, I was way too nervous about holding him. He was so tiny, tinier than most newborns, and I felt like the slightest wrong move would hurt him. Even Jason couldn't convince me after holding Grayson himself. Jason was good with babies. He had experience caring for his little sister. I, on the other hand, couldn't remember the last time I held a baby.

"Olivia, seriously, he's your godson! You're going to have to get over yourself sooner or later. You won't break him, I promise." She smiled, bouncing him in her arms. "Jason did fantastic with him, and I'm sure you will too."

Cassie gently shifted Grayson into my arms, giggled as I tensed up when he squirmed around. "Just relax. You've got him, babes."

"I'm so scared." I giggled nervously, adjusting him carefully in my arms. He let out a soft cry, startling me, but Cassie just popped his pacifier into his mouth, silencing him instantly.

"See, he's fine. You're doing so good."

Grayson stared up at me, sucking gently on his pacifier as he seemed to take in the face of the person who was holding him.

"Hi." I cooed, bouncing him in my arms. "I'm your God momma." I smiled, tracing my finger against his tiny hand.

"He's so comfortable with you." Cassie cheesed, resting her head on my shoulder.

"You think so?"

Cassie nodded, pressing a kiss to Grayson's head. "I do. He's so alert with you too. He really loves your face." She laughed, watching how he stared up at me in awe.

"Well, I mean, I am pretty good-looking." I teased.

Cassie fanned me off, taking Grayson back into her arms and resting him against her chest.

"So what time are you and Jason leaving today? Are you nervous?" She asked, shooting me a small smile.

Jason and I were traveling back to my hometown in the evening to celebrate my dad's birthday. This will be the first time Jason is meeting them in person, although they've seen each other over facetime various times. It was kind of nerve-wracking because the last time I brought a man home, my parents despised him, and for good reason. I had to keep telling myself that Jason was different and things would go much better this time.

"Not too long after he gets off shift...I'm a little nervous." I admitted, folding my arms across my chest. "I know my parents already like him, but having everyone meet in person is a whole different thing."

"I'm sure everything will be fine, babes. Try not to stress too much, okay?"

"I know. I just really want them to have a good relationship. I think it's so cool that I get along well with Jason's family, and I want the same for him. I just want us to all be happy at the end of the day."

Cassie grabbed onto my hand, supporting Grayson with the other as she looked into my eyes. "You're so good at overthinking babes, don't worry."

"You're right." I nodded, squeezing her hand. "My parents already like him, and he likes them too. It's going to work out."

"Now that's more like it." She smiled, breaking out into a yawn shortly after.

"Maybe you should sleep while he's sleeping." I suggested, glancing down at Grayson. "Isn't that what people recommend that you do when you have a newborn."

Cassie shrugged. "Yeah, but I'm too anxious to sleep when it's just him and I. I'd rather wait until Russ comes home so he can just take over. The boys should be back in a few anyway. It's almost eight."

"Oh yeah, it is." I sighed, looking down at my phone.

"I can't believe you're up this early anyway."

"Well, I wanted to come and check on you and Gray since it's your first morning with him, and Russ isn't here."

Cassie smiled small, adjusting Gray in her arms and patting his back softly. "We appreciate you for that. I needed company."

"Anytime Cass, I'm footsteps away from you guys. Jason and I both are here for you guys."

"Speaking of Jason, he was so good with Grayson yesterday." She smiled, shooting a wink my way.

Rolling my eyes at her, I held up my hand, signaling her to stop where she was headed.

"What?!" Cassie exclaimed with a laugh. "I know you saw how adorable he looked with his godson."

"Fine, it was so cute. He's a natural." I admitted, feeling my cheeks flush.

I'd be lying if watching Jason; this big, strong fireman soften into puddy as he held tiny Grayson in his arms didn't give me baby fever. It was so precious to watch him interact with him with ease.

"He's going to be a great dad one day, one day." I emphasized, lifting my brows.

Cassie rolled her eyes at me but then nodded her head in response. "I love teasing you, but in all seriousness, get your degree and become a nurse first babes. I know that's your dream. Babies are only going to make it that much harder to achieve."

I knew at that moment that Cassie was talking to herself more than she was talking to me. I could see it written all over her face.

"I love my son." She continued, "I love him more than anything in this world, but dammit, I know it's going to be an uphill battle with college and starting a career."

"Uphill battle or not, you're going to do it Cass. Everyone here is rooting for you to succeed. You're not alone. All of us are here to help."

"It's just-"

"Nope." I stopped her, brushing her fiery red hair back from her face. "I'm not going to let you sit here and beat yourself up because you don't deserve it. You wouldn't let me do it to myself either."

"You're right."

"Oh I know I am, I know you," I assured her with a laugh. "And because I know you, I know that you're going to be everything you've ever wanted to be, and now you have this little person here to cheer you on for the rest of your life."

Cassie blinked rapidly, willing herself not to cry before looking over at me with a smile, "What would I do without you?"

"We'll never find out." I shrugged, scooting closer to her and playing with Grayson's tiny little toes.


The day seemed to fly by, and Jason and I were just finishing up the last of our packing before we got on the road to Oswego. He grimaced as he watched me stuff shoes into my suitcase.

"Sweetheart, do you really need a bag full of shoes for the weekend?" He asked with a chuckle.

I looked up at him, watching as he leaned against the door frame of the bedroom with an amused look plastered on his face as he watched me struggle to zip the bag.

"Um, yes. You never know what kind of shoes you'll need."

"Okay...so maybe bring one pair of casual shoes and one pair of dress-up shoes?" He suggested, walking toward me.

"You really don't get it, Jase." I laughed, finally getting the zipper to close.

I stood up from the floor and sat on the bed, wrapping my arms around Jason's waist as he stood before me.

"You're right, sweetheart. I don't. But I guess, take all the shoes you want if it makes you happy...even though you only wear the same two pairs all the time."

"I might switch it up! Don't judge." I laughed, poking him in his ticklish side and laughing as he flinched away from me.

"I hate when you do that." He chuckled, holding my hands in his as I tried to get him again.

"Then don't talk shit about my shoes." I retorted, trying to go for him again, but he was much stronger than I was.

"You done now?" He asked, pinning me against the bed with my arms above my head.

My breath hitched in my throat as the weight of his body pressed against mine. I could feel my heartbeat throbbing in more than just my chest as I gazed into his eyes.

Without being able to control myself any longer, my hands locked themselves on either side of Jason's face, pulling him down and crashing my lips into his hungrily. My legs wrapped themselves around his waist, pulling him even closer as I longed for our bodies to be together.

Jason pulled back from me, my hands still tangled in his hair as he licked his moist lips seductively.

"We don't have time Liv. We need to leave soon."

"But if we don't now, we won't be able to until we get back on Sunday."

"Oh wow, two whole days." Jason laughed, tracing my lips with his finger.

"Yeah..." I trailed off, taking his hand from my mouth and placing it beneath my shirt, directly over my breast. "Please." I begged, arching my back up off the bed as he squeezed.

Before I could say another word, our clothes had been sprawled across the floor, our lips dancing together as our bodies joined like they were perfect pieces to a puzzle.


Jason collapsed on the bed beside me when it was over, drawing me into his arms and kissing my forehead sweetly.

"I guess two days without that is kind of going to suck." He teased, attempting to catch his breath.

"Mhmm." I murmured, leaning over and peppering kisses down the warm skin of his neck. "I guess we should get going now..." I trailed off, not wanting to move.

If I could lay in Jason's arms like this forever, I would.

"I guess we should." Jason stretched, sitting up and running his fingers through his hair.

My eyes scanned over the muscles of his toned back, admiring his god-like appearance.

"Where'd my phone go?" He muttered beneath his breath, looking to either side of himself.

"Did you leave it in the kitchen when you were packing snacks baby?"

"Maybe." He huffed, standing up and shuffling back into his navy boxers. "Let me go see."

I sighed as Jason left the room, forcing myself off the bed and sliding into my shorts and cropped hoodie once more.

"Did you find it babe?" I yelled out but received no answer.

"Babe?" I asked, strolling into the kitchen to see Jason stood there, staring at his phone in his hand.

His face was drained of its usual color, and his jaw clenched tightly in place. I couldn't tell if he was irritated or scared. I was almost too startled by his sudden change in demeanor to approach him.

"I-is everything okay?"

Jason sucked in a deep breath, unclenching and then clenching his jaw once more.

"Yeah." He nodded, locking his phone and walking past me. "Let's get all of the stuff in the truck so we can go."

I stood there bewildered as he vanished out of sight and into the bedroom. He came back about a minute later, fully clothed and with the bags in his hands. His face remained stone cold as he walked toward the front door.

"Jase, hold on a minute. What happened?" I asked, concerned, walking toward him as he dropped the bags on the floor.

"Nothing happened Liv. We need to leave. I don't want to be late and leave a bad impression on your parents."

My arms folded across my chest as he lied directly to my face. I knew he was lying. There was no way that everything was fine when he'd gone from being lovey-dovey to stone cold in less than five minutes.

"Something happened, and you're not telling me." I pushed.

"Olivia." Jason asserted harshly, looking me dead in the eyes. The darkness in his sent a deadly chill down my spine. "This is my last time telling you that everything is fine...now, do you have everything you need packed?"

Swallowing hard, I nodded my head, dropping my gaze from his as my eyes began to water. I was upset but also growing angry that he had just spoken to me in that way.

"You don't have to talk to me like that." I spat, my voice shaking as I did so.

Jason let out a deep sigh before picking up the bags that he had dropped. "I'm sorry..." He trailed off, pausing as if he was going to say something else. Instead, he walked out the door.

Feeling my anger boil over inside me, I followed after him to the parking garage and to his truck. I watched as he tossed the bags in the back seat before turning to face me with a look of irritation on his face.

"Why are you out here? You don't even have shoes on."

"Because I don't understand why you're so upset with me. I'm so confused." I admitted, letting my hands slap down against my thighs. "You're throwing me for a loophole here."

"I'm not upset with you, sweetheart, I just-I don't know..."

"Who texted you? I saw the way you were looking at your phone."

Jason tensed up as the words left my mouth. "No one."

"Seriously? No one?" I asked incredulously.

"No one important to me anyway."

I let out a defeated sigh, walking back into the building with Jason beside me. At this point, I knew I wasn't going to get anywhere with him, and the last thing I wanted was for us to be in a massive fight on our way to my parent's house.

"Fine." I surrendered as we entered the apartment. "I'll let it go for now."

"Thank god." Jason grumbled.

"I said for now." I repeated, shooting him a look. "We promised we weren't going to fight like we did last time...remember?" I asked, walking up to him.

His demeanor softened as my arms snaked around his waist as I peered up into his eyes. The longer I stared into them, the easier it was for me to see past the anger and glimpse at the hurt he was hiding.

My brows pulled down as he frowned, brushing his thumb across my cheek.

"I'm sorry." He whispered. This time his apology was more genuine.

"We promised to communicate. So at least tell me what you're thinking. You don't have to tell me everything right now."

Jason nodded his head before speaking, "I know, but I just...I can't talk about it at all right now, okay?"

"Okay baby." I nodded, growing concerned as his eyes watered. "Are you going to be okay for this trip?"

Jason bowed his head, twirling a piece of my hair between his fingers. "As long as we don't bring this up, I'll be fine."

I had finally gotten him to calm down, and that's exactly how I wanted to keep him. Although desperately wanting to know what had him so on edge, I knew prying would quickly backfire on me. So instead of questioning him further, I nodded my head in compliance to his request.

"Let's get the rest of the stuff loaded so we can get going. We're running late now." He sighed, pulling out of my embrace and rushing to grab the last of the bags.





A/N: Thank y'all for reading! I appreciate all of you for voting and giving feedback! Any idea's about what's up with Jason? ๐Ÿ‘€

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