"There are times when you don't shoot your mouth off?" Hector asked in amazement, coming in, dressed far more
casually and in bare feet, grabbing a brownie and a soda.
There was something wonderful about a man in barefeet, Andi thought. Leaning over to give him a kiss and than
turning back to finish with Josh who had somehow managed to get goo on the back of his neck. He finally surrendered
and stood still for her. Jo just laughed.
"Speaking of people that shouldn't throw stones." She commented and watched Andi grin at her in response. Yeah.
No grudges held there. And - there was a definite difference there now too. Whole lot different from their first talk. And
- she thought Hector might just be different too. And wondered if his sister had noticed it.
Cassie wasn't happy about being deflected even if she'd felt a bit uncomfortable asking in the first place. But she
couldn't exactly return to the subject now. Especially not with her brother in the room and the way he got so protective
over Andi. Jo had too... But it just drove home the point to Cassie that she really didn't know that much about the tall
English woman. Which wouldn't be so bad - except her brother said he was in love with her. And he had enough
problems without inheriting anyone else's.
Andi chuckled and finally freed Josh. Who immediately scampered over to Hector for a bite of his brownie. Marcella
was more interested in being picked up again so Andi obliged.
"I'd say we were going to ruin their dinner but I've heard they get hungry every hour on the hour anyway." She teased.
Hector laughed and split his brownie with Josh, who was thrilled. "You'd be doing them a favor for Cass's grocery bill."
"All this chocolate might stunt their growth..." Cassie said.
"Good. Then they'll be normal size." Hector said.
"Got enough super sized people around here anyway." Jo said as she hopped up to sit on the counter. "So what do I
have to do to get Andi to give me a bath?"
Hector laughed hard at that, because he knew Jo was kidding.
Andi chuckled.
"You've have to be a great deal shorter." She answered giving the other woman a smile before leaning over to 'dip'
Marcella who was swooning. She looked at Hector with laughing eyes. "Or a great deal taller."
"Whoa." Cassie held up her hands. "Delicate ears in the room and I'm talking about mine."
Andi laughed as she straightened both her and Marcella back up and the little girl giggled.
"Pete wanted to know." She offered innocently and Cassie made a face.
"I don't want to know about that either." She stated. Shooting her brother a look because she knew they were teasing
her. Then she added:
"Sara's moving in with him, you know." Knowing full well they didn't know because they'd been busy vanishing into thin
air without a word to anyone in the family for a week. "They cooked it up without telling anyone."
"Good for her." Hector said. "She's an adult, nearly finished with high school," and she wouldn't have to change
schools for the last two months either, "and that house is venomous. At least this way I can see her now."
Cassie bit her lip. "Yeah, the party got boring after you left." She said. "Broke up soon after."
Hector wasn't surprised. Dee was in the process of winding it down anyway when his father and he had had their...
discussion.
"What does Uncle Pete ask about?" Josh asked, brownie all over his face.
"Ah..." Hector asked and looked for help.
"All about Andi and your uncle's complete devotion to everything that comes out of my oven." Jo said, rescuing her
friend. "A devotion you share, from the looks of it."
Josh's face squinched and he thought about that.
"What's de-votion?" He finally asked. Slow on the word but a perfect mimic. Right down to Jo's slightly different accent.
Andi chuckled.
"It's absolute loyalty." She answered. Dipping Marcella again. "When you love something or someone and you
promise to never, every stop." Her eyes met Hector's again, softer and the smile he only ever got softened her lips too
before she was straightening back up with Marcella again. Jo caught the look and thought - oh damn...
Josh nodded and it was possible to actually watch him mentally filing away the new word. And then, with the typical
childlike ability to say the unexpected he said:
"Like I have de-votion to Mommy?"
"Like all kids should have to their parents." Cassie said with a smile, but a pointed look. Which Hector ignored in favor
of drinking his soda. Jo shot Cassie a look, but she had her own problems with Brett. One can only be called 'that
Negro dyke' so many times before some serious feelings of dislike start to form.
Cassie's back straightened up a notch at that and she looked at the clock. "Come on kids, we've got a drive to get to."
She said. "You did replace the gas, right?" She teased her brother.
"Nope. I pushed it home. Have fun." He said with a laugh.
"Time for it then." Andi set Marcella back on her feet with a grin. "Go kiss your uncle goodbye." Watching as both kids
leaned in to - well, Andi would have gone with the word 'attack'. Especially Josh considered he was covered with
chocolate again. She really did wonder if any had managed to make it into his mouth... "Stay put." She chided the
other two with a gesture and the children transferred their attention from Hector to Jolanda with their chirped 'thank
yous'. "I'll walk Cassie out and make sure they've got their seatbelts on" Andi offered the other woman a smile.
Something had just happened past Cassie's cheap shot but she wasn't sure what it was. And, since she'd learned that
letting something sit usually just gave it time to fester, she expected she owed Cassie one last chance to say anything
she needed to as well. So -
"Come along." She herded the children out of the room first. So Cassie could say goodby to her brother 'alone' if she
wanted. And not incidently giving Jolanda time alone with Hector too. Friends were important. Andi didn't mind making
private time for them in case they needed it. Josh caught her hand.
"Are you gonna marry Uncle Hector?" He asked since that was the logical step to him. Love, marriage, babies. After
that he wasn't so sure. Andi laughed as they walked out the front door. Leaning down.
"Should I?" She asked and Josh nodded vigorously. Still high on sugar. Marcella watched with her huge eyes.
"Well, if you think it's a good idea than I suppose I shall." Andi agreed as, once again, the children found out what was
going on before the rest of the family. But that was all right. Even if they mentioned it, everyone would assume it had
been a vague discussion.
"Are you going to have a baby?" Josh asked suspiciously. Well aware that sometimes babies came to mommies and
daddies before the wedding. Andi's eyebrows rose and she laughed.
"Perhaps. But not anytime soon."
Cassie went over to her brother and hugged him. "We all miss you, you know." She said.
"I'm not gone." He pointed out.
"Not yet." Cassie said. "I know Dad feels really badly..."
"No he doesn't." Hector said, interrupting her. "Don't start. I'll consider talking to him again when he apologizes."
"For what?"
"For everything." He said. Jo ignored it all and just went about packing up her treats again. Gave her something to do
rather than stand there. Cassie shook her head. "Hey, I'm still here. I just won't be in the same room with him. Really,
not that much of a difference, since I never went out of my way to do that in the first place."
Cassie sighed. "Everything's all warped. And I hate it."
"You can't fix this, Cas, so stay out of it." Hector said and hugged his sister before she went off to catch up with her
kids.
"And this is why I play for my team. No man problems." Jo laughed and got a paper towel off the roll and wet it, coming
to sit across from Hector at the table, handing it to him to wash the remnants of Josh off himself.
"Though you're really, really not my type, she might get a little upset if I give you a bath." Jo said, her eyes twinkling
with laughter. "So, wow. Nice going there."
"What are you talking about now?" Hector asked as he started to wipe himself down. It wasn't too bad at all, just some
smears here and there.
"Oh please. You know what I'm talking about." Jo said. "Don't pull this whole I don't want to talk about it shit with me. I'll
tickle you. You are barefoot." And she laughed when Hector tucked his feet under his chair.
"I'm going to marry her." Hector said honestly.
"Wow." Jo said again. "Complete wow. Is there going to be an open bar?"
Hector laughed. "Probably." He said. Just because he didn't drink, didn't mean his friends didn't drink. And he
accepted that. "We're going to do it in Africa though, have a party here when we come back."
"So does she have a ring yet?"
"Nope. Off getting sized." Hector said.
"Does she even know?"
"Yup. You don't think I'd go and make all these plans and then go get a ring resized if I thought she'd say no, do
you?" He said with a chuckle.
Cassie looked at Andi after Josh's version of interrogation. And caught the end of it. Well, at least Hector hadn't
knocked her up apparently. Always a good thing. But was Beth right? That Andi was running interference between
them and Hector? That was an unsettling thought to say the least.
"The kids love seeing him." She said. "They don't get to see enough of him."
"I love your children." Andi smiled wide as she leaned in to help them into their seats. Dutifully buckling them in place
and stealing more kisses in the process. "You can come by anytime at all." She blew them a last kiss and then shut
the door. Turned to look at Cassie.
"It will all work out." She told the other woman gently. "Really it will. Just - some things can't be pushed. They have to
take their own time, yeah?"
"One of them is going to die before they talk to each other." Cassie said as she dug her keys out of her purse, having
dropped them in there when she found them where Hector had left them. "Then all the time in the world's not gonna
help."
"That would be a shame" Andi answered non-committally. Not about to make a judgement as it what was better. She
would like the chance for reconciliation. At least the chance. But it wouldn't be coming today. Or likely this year. And
there was always the possibility that it wouldn't be taken when it came. Which would be the shame. But it would be
their choice. That was the deal. People had free will and were allowed to make choices. Good or bad. And they had
live with what they decided. She knew that as a doctor. But she knew it as the daughter of a preacher as well.
She gave the shorter woman a hug.
"Give it time." She whispered. "Let them both cool down for a while."
"Hector doesn't 'cool down.' He freezes up." Cassie said with a shrug. "Dad, he simmers. Until it's time to boil again." It
was amazing how two men so closely related could turn out so different. Oh she knew the environmental causes for
that, oh she definitely knew them. But didn't genetics count for something?
Andi nodded. Not about to argue with the woman over a family she'd been a part of much longer than Andi had. It was
- the pushing that wasn't needed. They'd find their own way, or already had. And Cassie was only going to hurt
herself trying to 'fix' what just might be in the process of fixing itself. It just might not be fixing itself in the way Cassie
would have liked. Andi wasn't sure but she knew when time and patience were wise steps. Something had changed
and it needed time to set before it proved itself straighter or more crooked than what had been.
But she couldn't say anything. She'd already given her advice. It wasn't her job to meddle and try to force Cassie to
stop holding the reins so tightly. The other woman wouldn't appreciate it and that was the kind of thing you had to
learn for yourself anyway. So she simply suggested:
"Come back anytime. It looks as though we may be here a little while longer."
Jo cocked her head and looked at her friend. Getting married. Hector. There were some people that would have
stakes their entire homestead against that. Jo wasn't one of them. She'd had hope. Mostly that he'd find someone that
made him happy, marriage being more of a side effect of that. But God - she'd so hoped it wouldn’t be to anyone from
around these parts -
"You sure know how to pick 'em." She chuckled. "Was it at least a romantic proposal? Cause you've been slacking
with the flowers and dinners and movies and all."
Cassie's face took on a stricken look. She knew what that meant, she knew where her brother had gone that he
needed her car for. "Oh no." She said. "Is he okay?"
Hector chuckled. "Well, I haven't actually done it yet. Why? Got any ideas? I just told her it was coming, you know, to
make sure I'd get a yes out of it."
Andi's eyebrows wrinkled and she looked at the other woman surprised.
"Did he not seem all right?" She asked. Then she touched Cassie's cheek and smiled. "Apparently Hector has run into
a psychologist that wants to talk about issues that have nothing to do with Hector's readiness for duty and I'm under
the impression that he doesn't talk about himself much with his friends, much less to a total stranger. It’s a simple
matter of asking for someone else to review him but in the meantime we get to keep him a bit longer."
Goodness. What had Cassie expected it to be?
"You told her it was coming?" Jo threw up her hands as if asking present deities to be aware of what she had been
given to work with. Not that she should be surprised. Hector didn't like making assumptions about relationships.
Imagine. Jo gave it some thought.
"Well, I'm not going to suggest over a romantic dinner at a restaurant." She teased with a grin. "And don't go pulling
any of that over the ballpark screen crap either!" She warned. Not that Hector seemed likely but men did the weirdest
things sometimes. She tapped her chin and eyed her friend as if he were an insect under the microscope. Because it
was fun to watch the way he got when she looked at him that way. Finally she grinned: "Well, you kinda put your foot
in it already. I mean, she's expecting it now. So you can't do this whole long build up to it and still surprise her. You'd
better stick with just finding or making the perfect moment." Especially since, knowing Hector, she didn't think he'd be
able to stretch something like this out into a dinner and dancing and a long walk and - and - and. "Hey," she
determined, "extra points if you can make her cry!"
"Hector can 'look' fine and 'seem' fine, but come on, you're trying to kid the wrong person here." Cassie said. "He
doesn't like being told he can't do something, probably one of the big issues with him and Dad come to think of it."
Hector squirmed a bit under her gaze, his expression a bit uncomfortable. But before he could ask 'what?' she spoke.
"I get extra points if I make her cry? I didn't know that was the object. And you are absolutely no help." He said,
shaking his head. "I don't know, I'll probably just ask her. Seems the easiest way, right?"
Andi had a different opinion with what most of the 'big' issues with Hector and his father were but once again, didn't
offer it. She also wanted to point out that Hector did dozens of small things differently when he wasn't 'fine'. But she
didn't mention that either. Suspecting, that maybe, for other people, he didn't. Or they weren't paying close enough
attention. But she was getting tired of everyone waiting for Hector to go off like a bomb with a broken timer.
Truthfully, she was sick of his family NEEDING him to be broken.
"Hector is fine." She answered gently. "You heard the way he laughed in there. Not a laugh but a real, hurt his side
laugh. And you must see the difference in his eyes. In his shoulders. In how easily and quickly and often he smiles
now. He's even talking more." Andi could see the difference from the way he'd been when they first arrived and the
way he was now. It wasn't that nothing was wrong, because there were still things inside him that weren't whole. That
was part of being human. It was that he was relaxing. Finally relaxing. "He's happy, Cassie. He deserves to be allowed
to be happy."
Jo tipped back her head and laughed.
"You are so hopeless!" She laughed. "Why am I suddenly having visions of you grunting your question to her over a
can of beans and flipping the ring at her when she says 'yes'? It’s the way you ask her, doofus!" Her smile softened.
She was a romantic at heart and she loved Hector like a brother and a best friend. His girl was nice too. And fiercely
protective of him. "Hey, look. She deserves something special. Not because she expects it but because she just does.
Most of it’s going to wrap around what you say to her anyway when you ask. Just wouldn't hurt if you made where you
asked her whether it’s the town hall or the bedroom." She winked. "Someplace nice for that moment. That's all. It'll
probably happen on its own. Nothing wrong with a spur of the moment proposal. Just - remember she's going to
always think of that one moment whenever she catches sight of that ring on her finger. She's special to you so spoil
her a bit and make the moment special too." She rolled her eyes. "And don't do it while you're on drugs this time."
Cassie bristled. "You know, you come off with this attitude that we store all sorts of ways to ensure he's unhappy and
miserable until he comes home. If that was the case, he wouldn't come home. He's not a stupid man." She said, barely
refraining from snapping. The car was running, the windows up, the air conditioning on, so little ears couldn't hear
her. "You love my brother, fine, but don't go thinking he's some angel. He's not completely innocent of any of the....
the turmoil that surrounds this family and don't go thinking he is just because you're sleeping with him."
"Why does everyone make me out to be some kind of drug fiend?" Hector said, laughing. "I don't know, I'll think of
something. Got some time to kill anyway, no sense doing it until I get the ring, right?"
Andi's face shifted. Something moved across it just under the skin and she was suddenly very distant, the warmth and
conversational friendliness of a second ago gone as if they were absolute strangers meeting for the first time. And her
voice was very soft as she met Cassie's eyes with her own and calmly stated:
"I believe that's called 'hitting below the belt' and I don't believe I deserved that last line."
Jo shrugged.
"Your girl's the one spreading the rumors." She chuckled. Then cocked her head again. "What do you mean - 'time to
kill'?"
Cassie folded her arms over herself, as if protecting herself from a chill. "No it's not." She said. "It's your attitude, at
least the way it's coming off. You treat him like some delicate piece of china that needs protecting from the rest of us.
If he's happy with that, not much I can say about that. Except it's not appreciated."
Hector shrugged and his face went neutral. Old habit. "I failed my psych eval." He said and played with the cap of his
Pepsi. "Which means, until I pass it, I'm deactivated. Makes me sound like...I don't even know...but that's the term."
Andi nodded but the friendliness that had always been there was gone and the distance didn't leave.
"I'm sorry if that's the way it comes across. It’s not what I intend." If anything her accent was more clipped and 'proper'.
"I don't know Hector in relation to your family. I know him in relation to his job. And on his job he stands alone when he
needs to. Quite well. I simply always expect him to be capable of standing on his own feet and making his own
decisions because that's all I've ever seen from him. I know he doesn't always make the decisions I would but I have to
trust that he makes what he thinks are the right decisions at the time and when it’s important enough and he realizes
they're wrong, I have to expect him to be who he is and make things right. I trust that. I will support and hold and
shelter him when he needs it. I will tell him when I disagree and I will do what I think needs to be done. But I will also
always trust his judgment. That's part of the deal. I won't disagree with Hector over the decisions he makes about his
family because I don't know everything that's going on. And I trust that if he makes a wrong decision he'll come to
realize it and make things right. I have been friendly, I have been more open than anyone has a right to expect of me
considering the way I have been approached and I have endured criticism about both me and the man I love as well
as questions most people would be ashamed to ask. I have had what amounted to complete strangers yell insults at
me and question both my right to be with Hector and my ability to stay there if they should decide otherwise. I have
been treated like an intruder, a usurper, and some evil succubus here to destroy an entire family. All before I opened
my mouth. And I have not been judged on my words or actions. So yes, I sleep with your brother." Her voice didn't
change, still calm and almost gentle. But there was a brief softening on the bones of her face. "But despite the
implications I've had thrown at my character that is not why he fell in love with me or the reason he loves me now. It’s
not how I 'control' him or how I'm trying to drive a wedge between him and his family. Hector is Hector. He will do what
he wants to do. And he will try to do what's right. So I won't call him 'broken' just because if I don't I'm being blind or
stubborn. And I won't stand by and nod when someone says he has problems. He does. We all do. But he will deal
with them when the time is right for him. I trust that and I trust him. I have tried to be soft and as edgeless as possible
for your family because he loves you and it is important to me that I cause him no pain. But I would not be true to him
if I did not disagree when I disagree. He is the one I'm in love with and he is the one I need to be true to first of all. I
apologize if that has caused your family to judge me inappropriate and as an obstacle."
And that was that. She was done putting herself out to be judged by people that had already prejudged her. Calm,
face and movements still calm and distant, she turned and let herself back into the house, shutting the door behind
her. And then she tipped her head back against it and closed her eyes.
"Oh. Cause they finally figured out you're psycho." Jo stated. Rolling her eyes as she stood up. "Well when you get
down shooting up the town hall or whatever you're planning on trashing, stop by the bakery. I'll treat you to brownies."
She scruffed the top of his hair as she walked by toward the fridge. "Screw them. What'd you do anyway? Tell that
joke about killing puppies for fun?"
Cassie stood there straight as a board. "You wanted us to be honest, so we were, and we get chewed on and spit out.
How nice." She said, shaking her head. "I'm not Beth. I can't do this." She said, putting up her hands as she went to
her car door. She wasn't as chicken shit as Dee, but she still tried to avoid confrontations. "I'm not stupid enough to
march back in there and demand my brother choose between you and us. Because the one making the ultimatum
always loses."
Hector had to laugh at that. "Apparently, because I didn't lie down on the couch and play when he asked 'tell me
about your mother,'" he said, affecting a German accent like Freud for the last bit before going back to his normal
voice, "and cry about my shitty relationship with my father, I'm obviously unbalanced and gonna shoot something up
soon. But damn, if I'm that dangerous out in the field, how is everyone safer with me thrown back into the civilian world
for a while? Can't figure that part out. And I was thinking more of a clock tower or something. Plays better on the
eleven o'clock news...."
Andi heard Cassie talking behind her just before she closed the door but there really wasn't any point to it. It was just
more of the same and she didn't really listening anymore. Which meant she'd just caught up with the other half of the
party in that area. Finally. But while she rested the back of her head against the door, she did exhale a silent prayer.
She could be civil without a problem. It was what her family did. She'd hoped for more but civil would do. What she
really wanted was that Hector not find out about this. So that was the prayer. That this incident not cause him any
problems. That and that the children would still be allowed to come over.
"Clock towers are so done." Jo protested, getting herself a soda as the front door shut. "You need to pick something
new. Get yourself national coverage." She chuckled as she strolled back over to sit down. "Eh - everyone knows
shrinks are shrinks because college was the only way they could get free treatment for all their own head problems."
She understood this was serious to him. It was damn serious. But he already knew that. And he'd figure something
out. He always did. "You need me to hold the head shrinker down while you knock him around though, you just let me
know. Rachel's been watching the Sopranos a lot lately so I know the moves."
"I'll keep that in mind. No, really I will. I already threatened him with physical violence, might as well carry out because
I'm so completely nuts." Hector said, finishing his brownie. "Otherwise, it's false advertising. Anyway, I got this thing
with Andi's family. I have a feeling how this is going to go, she tried telling me I wasn't going. Maybe that would be a
good time to go postal. Then after I've shot the place up, you can swoop in and get some discount equipment."
Wow. Again. Things just kept getting more interesting.
"Them's the ones Cassie was snooping about? Andi's got a bad family?" She cut herself off just before the 'too'
slipped out. Because, hell, if Hector thought a family was 'bad' that was really saying something.
"I don't know. They're weird. One kept looking at me like she was going to strip my clothes off right there in the
driveway, the other was babbling, kinda reminds me of Dee actually. The guy, formal. And they brought who I think
they hope will be a rival for Andi's affections or something." Hector said. "She described them as cold and
manipulative, so we'll see. Just a bad bad day to deal with all of this." He looked at the door. "Think Cassie's done
laying on the guilt trip yet?"