Disclaimer, etc., in Installment 1

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A New Beginning
by Christine

Chapter 17

The "club" Chuck took them to was in a seedy part of town. When they walked up to the
door, Gary said, "What kind of a club is this?"

"Gar, it's an after hours place. A friend of mine told me about it." Chuck smiled. "We can
stay here till the wee hours of the morning."

After they got into the club, to Gary's dismay it was in fact a strip club. The other guys
wanted to stay so they all sat down at the table that had been reserved for them up front.
After Gary had a few beers, he started to loosen up a bit. This wasn't so bad, he thought.

"What do you think Gar?" Chuck asked as he waived some money at the girl dancing in
front of them.

"It's not so bad, Chuck. I'm sorry that I misjudged your intentions." Gary said with a smile.

"Hey guys, I think we should pitch in and get Gary a lap dance." Chuck said as the guys
started to laugh.

"No thanks." Gary said quickly.

"Okay Gar, you can just sit here and enjoy the view with some friends." Chuck smiled.
"Here, at least give the girl some money." Chuck said as he handed Gary a five-dollar bill.

Gary reluctantly placed the money into the girl's g-string. She leaned down and kissed him
on the cheek.

"You're cute." She smiled. Gary blushed.

Before he knew it someone grabbed him from behind and said, "Hey! That's my
girlfriend."

Gary turned around to find a very large burly man, dressed in biker attire, standing behind
him.

"He's so jealous." The girl said.

"Hey, buddy, I didn't do anything, she kissed me." Gary said honestly. "What'll you say I
buy you a beer?" Gary said.

"She kissed you, huh?" The guy said as he looked at his girlfriend. "Not likely." Then he
punched Gary in the stomach.

Gary doubled over in pain. Chuck jumped onto the guys' back and cracked him over the
head with a beer bottle. A fight ensued and everyone in Gary's party got involved.

The next thing Gary knew he was sitting in a holding cell at the 23rd precinct. He watched
as Greg sat outside of the cell and signed autographs for all of the police officers. Emmitt
and Mike sat on the bench across from him with the biker from the strip club. Chuck sat
next to Gary.

"I can't believe I trusted you, again." Gary said loudly. "Not only am I sitting in a jail cell
the night before my wedding, but if I do get out and am able to get married, it's going to
be with a black eye."

"Gar I had no idea this would happen." Chuck said innocently. "Why don't you pass some
blame on to gigantor over there."

"You better shut that little fella up." The biker said as he stood up.

"Calm down guys." Emmitt said as he stood. "Gary we're all sorry this happened."

"Are you seriously getting married tomorrow, man?" The biker asked.

"Hopefully." Gary groaned as he touched his eye.

"Listen man, I'm sorry I jumped to the wrong conclusion. It's just she drives me crazy."
The biker said. "You know, if you don't press any charges and I don't press any charges all
they got on us is disorderly conduct. That's probably a fine."

"Gary Hobson! You're out of here."

Gary turned to see a police officer coming towards the holding cell. He reached down and
unlocked the door.

"Bail's been posted." The officer said as he directed Gary out of the cell.

"What about us?" Chuck asked.

"Hobson only." The officer said as Gary shrugged and followed the police officer.

"Gar! Garrrry!" He heard Chuck scream.

When Gary got out into the hallway, he saw Kaitlyn standing at the front desk writing
something. Gary walked up to her as he saw her rip a check out of her checkbook and
hand it to the officer.

"Kaitlyn." Gary said sheepishly. She turned and looked at him sympathetically.

"Gary, what did he get you in to?" She said as she touched his eye.

"Ouch." Gary flinched.

"Sorry. I posted your bail." She said.

"What about the guys?" Gary asked.

"Their wives want them to sit for a little while longer." Kaitlyn said. "Come on let's go
home."
 

Chapter 18

On the way to Kaitlyn's Gary explained to her what had happened at the club.

"Why wouldn't the paper warn me about this?" He asked. "You know the fact that Greg
was arrested is going to be front page news on the sports page tomorrow."

"I doubt it." Kaitlyn said as she glanced over at him and then back at the road. "His agent
is in town. I saw him when I got to the station. He'll pay somebody off and the press won't
find out about it. That's why it wasn't in the paper." She said.

It was quiet when they walked into the house.

"Were are the girls?" He asked.

"Our folks took them out to dinner and a movie. Go on in and sit down. I'll get you some
ice for that eye." Kaitlyn said as she took off her coat and headed into the kitchen.

Gary went into the living room, took off his coat, and sat down on the couch. Kaitlyn
came in and handed him a bag of frozen peas.

"Sorry that's all I have. Jessica never lets me know she is taking the last of the ice, so I can
fill the tray." She said as she sat down next to him. He gingerly placed it on his eye.

"I am going to kill Chuck when I get my hands on him." She said angrily. "That's if Jade
doesn't do it first."

"It really wasn't his fault." Gary said quietly.

Gary sat with the bag of frozen vegetables on his eye, until it started to melt. He handed it
to Kaitlyn and she took it into the kitchen. When she came back in the living room, she sat
back down on the couch next to him.

"We haven't had very much time to spend alone together. What with my mother hovering
over me since the accident. I'm sorry about tonight." Gary said and he put his arm around
her and pulled her close.

"It's okay. I'm just glad you're all right." Kaitlyn said. She reached up and kissed him. "Did
you finish your wedding vows?"

"Yes, I know exactly what I am going to say to you." Gary smiled; he was obviously
pleased with himself.

"Hey, I picked up our rings today." Kaitlyn said.

"Where are they?" Gary asked.

"They're in my room." Kaitlyn got up, grabbed Gary's hand, and pulled him to his feet.
"Come on." She said as she headed upstairs.

When they got to the bedroom Gary noticed the pile of clothes thrown over the chair.
There were some dresser drawers open, but empty. Kaitlyn walked over to the nightstand
and picked up two boxes.

"What are you doing in here?" Gary asked.

"What do you mean?" Kaitlyn asked.

"What are you cleaning house?" Gary asked jokingly.

"No, I'm making room for my future husband." Kaitlyn smiled.

"Oh." Gary smiled. Kaitlyn opened the first box. She and Gary had chosen plain platinum
bands with their names and wedding date inscribed on the inside.

"Here this one is mine." She said as she handed it to Gary. "This one is yours."

"Should we see if they fit?" Gary asked as he pulled her ring from the box. He gently
picked up her hand and placed the ring on her finger. "With this ring, I thee wed." Gary
said.

They smiled. She took his ring from the box and placed it on his finger.

"With this ring, I thee wed." Kaitlyn said. They sealed their commitment with a kiss.

"I can't wait to be your wife." Kaitlyn whispered against his lips.

"I can't wait for you to be my wife." Gary smiled as he kissed her again.

As the kiss grew more passionate, Gary backed Kaitlyn up to the bed. Before they knew
it, they were both lying on the bed. He began to unbutton her blouse. She suddenly pulled
away and sat up.

"Gary, we shouldn't do this." She said as she began to re-button her blouse.

"What?" Why not?" Gary asked.

"Well, you just got out of the hospital a few days ago. We need to find out from the
doctor if it is okay to, you know." Kaitlyn said.

"I'm fine. My doctor knows that we're getting married tomorrow. He didn't say anything
about us not making love." Gary whispered.

"Don't you think that is something we need ask him?" Kaitlyn asked.

"If we're getting married, what do you think he thinks we're going to be doing?" Gary
asked. Kaitlyn blushed.

"Well, you'll just have to save it for tomorrow night." Kaitlyn said looking at Gary
seductively. "Besides, for what I have planned, you're going to need all the strength you
can get." She whispered in his ear. Gary looked at her and swallowed hard.

"Tomorrow night can't come soon enough for me. I think we need to go downstairs where
things are slightly less tempting." Gary said as he got up off the bed and headed for the
door.

"Hey, give me your ring." Kaitlyn said. Gary took the ring off his finger as he walked back
over to her. As he put the ring in her hand, he leaned in and kissed her.

"I love you." He whispered. Kaitlyn smiled and returned the rings to their boxes.

"I love you." She said giving him a quick kiss before they headed downstairs.
 

Chapter 19

When Gary awoke the next morning, it was with a smile on his face. It was his wedding
day. This was the first day of the rest of his life. Gary sat up on the couch and noticed his
mother was already awake and in the kitchen pouring herself some coffee.

"Morning honey." She said when she noticed him.

"Morning." He said. "Where's Dad?" Gary asked.

"He's in the shower. Gary what happened to your eye?" Lois asked.

"It's a long story Mom. I'm okay." Gary said.

"Want some coffee?" She asked.

Meow. Thump. Gary got up. "Coffee sounds good." He said and headed for the door.

When he opened the door, the cat came into the loft. Gary reached down and picked up
the paper. He looked through it thoroughly. Nothing, he thought. He checked again. A
huge smile spread across his face.

"I can't believe this." Gary said as Bernie came out of the bathroom.

"What wrong son? Nice shiner." Bernie said. Lois walked over and handed Gary his
coffee.

"I have absolutely nothing to take care of today." Gary said.

"You know since you have some time off, maybe we can get together with Kaitlyn and her
mother and finalize some wedding plans." Gary looked at his mother and swallowed hard.

"Mom, Dad, you both need to sit down, I need to tell you something." Gary said as he
guided them to the couch. Lois and Bernie sat down.

"What is it Gary? Something didn't happen between you and Kaitlyn, did it?" Lois asked
concerned.

"No. No, Mom, Kaitlyn, and I are fine. In fact, we're better than fine." Gary smiled. "You
see, well, we're getting married, today." Gary stuttered as he said the words.

"Oh Gary, don't joke around like that." Lois said as she smiled at him.

"Mom, I'm not joking around. Kaitlyn and I are getting married today. We've made all the
arrangements." Gary said.

"Today? You're getting married today?" Lois said as she stood up.

"Way to go Gar!" Bernie said as he stood up next to his wife.

"Gary, why didn't you tell us before now?" Lois asked.

"Well, Mom we wanted it this way. Listen I know that you and Mrs. Kelly were looking
forward to a big wedding, but that is not what Kaitlyn and I want. We want something
simple and that is what we are going to have today." Gary said.

"But, June was going to be such a nice time for a wedding, Gary." Lois said disappointed.

"Mom, look at it this way. The sooner Kaitlyn and I get married the sooner we can start
working on those grandchildren of yours." Gary said flashing her a smile.

"Ha, ha. Like I said Lo, he's a chip off the old block." Bernie beamed as he slapped Gary
on the back. Lois smiled and grabbed her son and hugged him.

"I love you Gary. I love Kaitlyn. I just want you to be happy." She said with a tear in her
eye.

"Mom, I'm happier than I ever thought I could be." Gary smiled and kissed her on the
cheek.

"Oh, my God. What am I going to wear?" Lois asked frantically.

"Mom, Kaitlyn helped Jade and Marissa pick something out for you to wear. She and
Chuck are going to bring it by this morning along with Dad's suit." Gary said trying to
calm her down. "I've seen what they picked out and I happen to think it's perfect. This is
not going to be real formal."

"Well what time is the wedding?" Lois asked.

"It's at 11:00." Gary said.

"11:00. Oh my. That's only four hours away." Lois said as she headed for the bathroom.
Gary rolled his eyes.

"Women." Bernie mumbled then turned to Gary.

"I'm going to go down to the office and give Kaitlyn a call." Gary said as he put on his
jeans and headed out the door. He went downstairs and sat down at the office desk. He
picked up the telephone and dialed.

"Hello." Kaitlyn said.

"Good morning, beautiful." Gary smiled.

"It is a good morning. I think it could be the best morning of my life." Kaitlyn said. "How's
your eye?"

"Black and blue." Gary said. "What are you doing?" Gary asked.

"Lying here in bed. Thinking about the man I'm going to marry, today." Kaitlyn smiled.
"Did you tell your parents?"

"Yeah, I just did. My mother has already locked herself in the bathroom and started to get
ready. Hopefully, I'll be able to get a shower sometime this morning." Gary said. "How did
your folks take the news?"

"Well, my mom reacted the same way. I just got off the telephone with her. She's on her
way over." Kaitlyn said.

"I better let you go then. I just wanted to say that I love you." Gary smiled.

"Gary?" Kaitlyn said.

"What's wrong?" Gary asked.

"Did you look at the paper? Are you going to make the wedding?" Kaitlyn asked
concerned.

"There is nothing in the paper today. I have the entire day off. I'll be at the church on time.
I promise." Gary said softly.

"You do?" Kaitlyn smiled. "Okay. I guess I'll see you at the church. I'll be the one wearing
white."

"I'll be waiting." Gary said. "I love you."

"I love you too." Kaitlyn said as she hung up the telephone.
 

Chapter 20

The next few hours went by quickly. Before Gary knew it, he was standing on the front
steps of the church in his navy blue suit and light blue shirt and matching tie. Everyone
else had arrived. He was waiting for Kaitlyn and her sisters. It was a crisp, beautiful
autumn day as he stood on those steps and soaked in the warmth of the sunshine.

"Sorry about last night." Chuck said as he came up behind him.

"It's okay. Kaitlyn wasn't upset with me." Gary smiled. "What about your wife?"

"Let's just say, I had everybody's wife after me last night." Chuck said as Gary laughed.

"Nervous buddy." Chuck said as he put his hand on his shoulder.

"A little." Gary said.

"Listen, I'm not going to give you any advice, because I know you're not going to need it."
Chuck said.

"When have I ever taken advice from you anyway?" Gary asked as he smiled.

"That's very funny Gar. You're a real comedian." Chuck said. "I was just going to tell you
to be happy."

"Thanks, Chuck." Gary said as he shook his hand. Chuck pulled him in for a hug. Marissa
and Emmitt walked up the stairs to join them.

"Well, this is it." Marissa said to Gary.

"I'm going to go into the church and leave you three alone to talk." Emmitt said. "Gary,
good luck to you." Emmitt said as he shook Gary's hand.

"Thank you." Gary said.

"Who would have ever thought a few years ago that the three of us would be married?"
Chuck asked.

"Well, we definitely didn't think you were going to be married." Marissa said sarcastically.
Gary laughed.

"Hey, I was the first one of us to bite the dust." Chuck said. "We're still going strong. In
fact." Chuck hesitated. "I'll tell you guys later."

"Tell us what?" Gary asked.

"No this is your day, Gar. We'll talk later." Chuck said.

"Oh no, Chuck, you brought it up. Spill it will ya." Gary said.

"Yeah, Chuck what is it?" Marissa asked.

"What?" Chuck asked. "I happen to have some news of my own."

"What kind of news?" Gary asked.

"Well, Jade and I have decided to move back to Chicago." Chuck said.

"You have? Since when?" Gary asked.

"We've been talking about it for awhile now." Chuck said. "And with the baby coming."
Chuck stopped.

"Baby?" Gary and Marissa said it at the same time.

"All right. We're having a baby. Jade just found out." Chuck said.

"Chuck that's terrific." Gary smiled.

"Congratulations, Chuck." Marissa said.

"Who would have ever thought that you of all people, a father." Gary said as he laughed
and shook his head.

"Hey, knock it off wise-guy, will ya. It happens to be a very sensitive issue with me."
Chuck said.

"I'll say." Gary said as he laughed.

"What is so funny?"

Gary turned around and saw Kaitlyn with a smile on her face. She took his breath away.
She was wearing a straight strapless dress of ivory taffeta with an embroidered bodice
with multi-colored shades of green and fuschia beaded flowers. A matching wrap adorned
her shoulders. Her hair was pulled up on top of her head with tiny white flowers and she
was carrying a bouquet of white roses.

"Shut your mouth Gar, the flies are going to get in." Chuck said jokingly. Gary shot him a
look and then turned his attentions back to Kaitlyn.

"You look beautiful." He said to her.

"Thank you." She said. "You look pretty handsome yourself. The black eye goes good
with the suit. You ready to get married?"

"You bet." Gary said as he took her hand and led her into the church.
 

Chapter 21

Since it was an informal ceremony, everyone took their seats and Gary and Kaitlyn stood
at the altar. Megan and Emily stood behind Kaitlyn along with Jessica and Casey. Chuck
stood behind Gary. Unknown to anyone in the church, the cat sat on the open windowsill.

"Are we ready to begin?" Reverend Manning asked.

"Yes." Gary said.

"We are here today to witness the joining of Kaitlyn and Gary in holy matrimony. Take her
hand." Gary reached down and took Kaitlyn's hands in his. "Gary, do you take Kaitlyn to
be your lawfully wedded wife?"

"I do." Gary smiled.

"Kaitlyn do you take Gary to be your lawfully wedded husband?" Reverend Manning
asked.

"I do." Kaitlyn smiled.

"I understand that the two of you have written and would like to recite your own vows.
So, Gary would you like to start?" He asked.

"Yes, thank you Reverend." Gary said as he looked into Kaitlyn's eyes. "Kaitlyn, I have
never been one who has been big on words, but today I'm going to speak to you from my
heart." He swallowed hard. "God has given us a second chance at happiness and I praise
Him for that. I come here today to give you my love, to give you my heart and my hope
for our future together. I promise to bring you joy, to be at home with your spirit and to
learn to love you more each day, through all the days of our lives. I promise to be your
faithful husband; my love for you is seamless, endless and eternal." Gary reached up and
wiped a tear from Kaitlyn's cheek.

"That was beautiful." She said.

"Kaitlyn." Reverend Manning said.

"Gary, I take you to be my husband, secure in the knowledge that you will be my constant
friend, my faithful partner in life, and my one true love. On this special day, I give to you
in the presence of God and our families my sacred promise to stay by your side as your
wife in sickness and in health, in joy and in sorrow, as well as through the good times and
the bad. I promise to love you without reservation, comfort you in times of distress, laugh
with you and cry with you, grow with you in mind and spirit, always be open and honest
with you, and cherish you for as long as we both shall live." Gary smiled.

"Can we have the rings?" Reverend Manning looked at Chuck.

Chuck started to fumble with his pocket like he was looking for them. Gary gave him a
slightly irritated look as Chuck pulled the rings from his pocket.

"Don't worry Gar, I wouldn't let you down." Chuck said as he smiled. "Not today
anyway." Gary took the rings and handed them to the Reverend.

"Gary place this ring on Kailtyn's finger and repeat after me. With this ring, I thee wed."
He said.

Gary picked up Kaitlyn's hand and as he put the ring on her finger said, "With this ring, I
thee wed."

He handed Kaitlyn Gary's ring. "Kaitlyn, repeat after me, with this ring, I thee wed."

"With this ring, I thee wed." Kaitlyn said as she put the ring on Gary's finger.

"Congratulations. Gary you can kiss your bride." Reverend Manning said.

Gary and Kaitlyn smiled at each other. He put his hand on the side of her face and kissed
his wife passionately as their family and friends applauded.

"I love you." He whispered when he pulled away from her.

"I love you." Kaitlyn smiled.
 

Chapter 22

After the wedding, everyone headed to the Kaitlyn's for brunch. Gary had insisted that the
girls ride with Megan back to the house.

"Why can't they come with us?" She asked as Gary helped her into the car.

"Because, we have to make a quick stop on the way." Gary said giving her a sly smile as
he closed the car door.

"What kind of stop? What are you planning?" Kaitlyn asked suspiciously when he got into
his seat.

"You'll see." Gary smiled and he started the car.

During the ride, though she kept quiet, Gary could tell that her mind was racing. He knew
that he had sparked her curiosity. When he stopped the car, the look on Kaitlyn's face was
of complete bewilderment.

"We're here." Gary said as he got out of the car and walked around and opened her door.

"We're at the park." She said as he took her hand and helped her out of the car.

"See, that's where you're wrong. It's not just any park." Gary smiled and led her to the
exact spot where they had met four months ago. "You see this was the exact spot where I
fell in love with you."

"I didn't realize you were such a romantic." She smiled.

"Well, then I guess I better work on that." He smiled then kissed her softly.

"I like it when you surprise me." She said.

"Good, because I have something for you." He said, as he reached into his suit coat
pocket and pulled out a tiny satin bag. He looked into her eyes. "My mother gave this to
me a few days ago after I told her that we were getting married. She said that she waited
her whole life to give it to me. You see she told me that this is something that has been
passed down in the Hobson family for generations. The first son of the family is to give it
to his bride on their wedding day as a wedding present. Only, when I married Marcia, she
didn't give to me. I guess she knew what I didn't know at the time. Anyway, she wants you
to have it, so that someday our first son can pass it onto his bride."

Gary opened the snap on the bag and pulled out an antique sapphire and diamond ring. He
picked up her right hand and slid it on her ring finger.

"How about that. Perfect fit." He smiled.

"Gary, it's beautiful and I would be honored to wear it." She said as she started to cry.

"I love you Mrs. Hobson." He whispered as he wiped the tears from her cheeks.

"I love you." She said as Gary leaned in and kissed her.
 

Chapter 23

When they got back to the house, everyone was already there. As they walked up onto the
front porch Gary suddenly picked her up.

"Gary! What are you doing?" Kaitlyn asked surprised.

"I'm going to carry my bride over the threshold." He said with a smile.

When they got inside the door, Gary gently set her down and gave his bride a passionate
kiss. Chuck walked into the foyer and saw them.

"Will you two get a room already." He joked.

"Shut up Chuck." Gary said with a smile and went back to kissing his wife.

Marissa had taken care of everything for the brunch. McGinty's had done the catering and
there was a huge buffet set out in the dining room. Everyone ate, talked, and enjoyed
themselves.

Gary smiled when he caught a glimpse of his wife and mother embracing. Kaitlyn then
turned to show Jade, Emily, and Megan the ring he had given her. He headed into the
kitchen, where he found his father and Chuck deep in conversation. Marissa was standing
in between them.

"What are you two in a huddle about?" Gary asked suspiciously. "Marissa, I know you
have enough sense not to get suckered into any of their schemes."

"Gar!" Bernie said quickly.

"You know what? I think I will leave you gentlemen alone." Marissa said with a smile and
headed back into the living room.

"Hey buddy. How's it feel to be a married man again?" Chuck asked as he slapped Gary on
the back.

"I'd have to say it feels pretty good." Gary smiled as he walked to the counter to get
something to drink.

"So, where's the honeymoon?" Bernie asked.

"What?" Gary said.

"The honeymoon. Gar, you are taking Kaitlyn away on a honeymoon, right?" Bernie said.

"And leave the paper to you two?" Gary asked. "I don't think so."

"Come on Gar." Bernie said.

"Dad, Kaitlyn and I have already talked about this. She understands." Gary said.

"Bern, didn't I tell you he was going to say that." Chuck said as Bernie nodded in
agreement. He then turned to Gary. "Okay Romeo, where are you two going to spend the
night?" Chuck asked.

"Here." Gary said quickly. Bernie and Chuck just looked at him. "Megan is going to keep
the girls for the night."

"Some wedding night." Chuck said as he and Bernie snickered. Gary gave them both an
irritated look. "It's a good thing he has me." Chuck said to Bernie. "I booked you the
honeymoon suite at the Chicago Hilton for three nights." He handed Gary the key. "That
way you're here in town and you can take care of the paper. Megan is going to watch the
girls. She packed Kaitlyn a bag. Yours is out in my car." Chuck said.

"I don't know what to say." Gary said. "Thank you."

"It's the least I can do for your buddy." Chuck said as he patted Gary on the back.
 

Chapter 24

Later, when Gary and Kaitlyn arrived at the honeymoon suite, they found a chilled bottle
of champagne.

"Should I open this?" Gary asked as he took off his jacket and tie.

"Okay. I'll be right back." Kaitlyn said as she grabbed her bag. Gary grabbed her around
the waist and pulled her close.

"Don't take too long, because you know I spoke to my doctor this morning and he gave
me the green light on all wedding activities." Gary said alluringly. Then gave his wife a
passionate kiss that when it ended, left her legs feeling weak.

"Hmm good. You're going to need a lot of stamina for what I have planned for tonight."
Kaitlyn whispered in his ear. "I think I'll leave you with that thought." She smiled and then
turned and headed for the bathroom.

When Kaitlyn emerged from the bathroom, she saw Gary struggling with the cork on the
champagne bottle.

"Need some help with that?" She asked.

When Gary heard her, he turned. "No, I think I." He swallowed hard. He was speechless
when he saw his wife standing in front of him wearing an ivory satin negligee with
spaghetti straps. She had taken her hair down and it cascaded to her shoulders.

"I didn't think that it was possible for you to look any more beautiful than you did today
during our wedding, but you surprise me again." He said with a smile.

Kaitlyn walked over, took the champagne bottle from his hands, and returned it to the ice
bucket. "I think maybe we should save this for later."

She smiled as she then reached up and started to unbutton his shirt and then removed it.
She then pulled his t-shirt over his head. She placed her hands on his chest, then began to
plant soft kisses across his collarbone. She could feel Gary's heartbeat accelerate and his
breathing became heavy. When she pulled away, she looked up at him, and smiled.

"I like the way you think, Mrs. Hobson." Gary whispered as he leaned in and kissed her.
He then made his way down to kiss her neck.

He kissed his way down to her shoulder, gently moving the straps of the negligee,
allowing it to fall to the floor in a puddle of fabric at her feet. After a loving kiss, he
picked her up and carried her to the bed where they spent their first night as husband and
wife.
 

Chapter 25

They newlyweds spent the next three days and nights in marital paradise. Gary was able
spend the much needed time alone with his bride. A few times, he relied on his parents and
Chuck for assistance with the paper, but for the most part the paper went easy on him.
Gary and Kaitlyn were able to start their new life together in serenity.

After the short honeymoon, Gary got busy with the paper. He joked to Kaitlyn that it was
probably payback for their three glorious days together.

Since the wedding was so quick, Gary had little time before the wedding to pack up any of
his belongings and move them into the house. After Gary's parents headed back to
Hickory, Kaitlyn decided she would go over to the loft and pack up some of Gary's things.

She was there for about an hour, when Gary found her. When he opened the door, she
was folding some of his shirts that she had pulled out of the armoire and placing them into
a suitcase.

"Marissa told me I'd find my you up here." He said as he walked over to her.

"I thought you were going to be busy all day." Kaitlyn smiled. "I figured you were getting
pretty tired of living out of a suitcase."

"I have a few hours, I stopped by to get something to eat. It's a good thing I didn't go
home to spend time with my wife, though." Gary joked as he kissed her. "You know, as
long as I'm here and you're here, alone, and there is that big comfortable bed, we could
fulfill another appetite of mine." Gary said as he continued to kiss her.

"As tempting as that is.," She said as she pulled away. "I came here for a reason, and
unfortunately that wasn't it. But, maybe I could fill that appetite for you later." She said
with a smile as she turned and headed towards the armoire.

"I'm going to hold you to that." He said. "You don't have to do this."

"I don't mind." Kaitlyn said as she opened the drawer and scooped up Gary's socks. She
started to walk over to the suitcase when she heard something like metal hit the hardwood
floor. "What was that?" She asked as she tried to look at the floor. She dropped the socks
onto the bed.

"I don't know." Gary said as he started to look around.

He saw Kaitlyn bend down and pick something up. She looked at it then handed it to him.
It was a gold wedding band, his wedding band from his marriage to Marcia. He looked up
at his wife, who had turned her attentions to putting his socks into the suitcase.

"I forgot I had this." He said tentatively. Kaitlyn shrugged, not looking in his direction.
"I'm sorry."

"For what?" Kaitlyn turned and looked at him.

"I probably should have gotten rid of this a long time ago." Gary conceded as he walked
over and dropped the ring into the trashcan.

"It's not the end of the world." Kaitlyn smiled. "Although, is there anything else around
here you might want to throw away before I get my hands on it?" She joked.

Gary looked around the loft and spotted what he was looking for. He walked over to the
shelf and picked up the model boat, Meridian. Kaitlyn watched as he made a face when the
mast fell, then walked over, and dropped it into the trash.

"I don't want that anymore either." Gary said with a sigh. Kaitlyn looked at him like he
was a lunatic.

"Whatever." She said as she rolled her eyes and turned her attentions back to packing his
clothes.

Over the next hour, Gary and Kaitlyn packed up the belongings he wanted to take with
him. They had decided they would leave all of his furniture in the loft. His parents could
stay there when they visited.

When Gary came across an old shoebox filled with pictures, he and Kaitlyn sat down and
went through them. They were mostly pictures of him as a child and young adult. As Gary
looked through the pictures of him and Chuck, Kaitlyn found a stray picture at the bottom
of the box. She picked it up. It was Gary and a woman and it looked like they were sitting
on a boat.

"She's pretty. Who's this?" Kaitlyn asked as she turned the picture in Gary's direction.

"That's Marcia." Gary said cautiously as he cleared his throat.

Kaitlyn started to put it all together and said, "Hence the throwing away of the boat."

Gary shrugged, taking the picture from her hand and ripping it in half. He then got up,
walked over, and threw it into the trashcan. Kaitlyn in the meantime got up and began to
pick up the other pictures and return them to the shoebox. Gary walked up behind her and
put his arms around her waist.

"I love you." He whispered into her ear then kissed her cheek. She turned in his arms.

"I love you too." She said and then kissed him. "Don't you ever forget that." She joked.

"I won't. I promise." Gary smiled and continued their kiss.
 

Chapter 26

The next few months went by quickly. Gary very easily settled into his new life. Chuck
and Jade had completed their relocation back to Chicago. Jade had taken a job as a
production assistant for a local production company. When Chuck first moved back, he
had no idea what line of business he was going to explore. Gary spoke with Marissa and
they both decided to give him back a one-third share in McGinty's. That way, Marissa
would have more time to spend with Emmitt and Gary with Kaitlyn and the girls.

On the first day in December the City of Chicago came to standstill when it received it's
first major winter storm. Old man winter dumped 10 inches of snow on the Windy City.

Due to the snow, Gary had a full day with the paper. It was late afternoon as he made his
way up the steps onto the front porch of his home. His thoughts were on hot chocolate
and snuggling up on the couch in front of the fireplace with his wife and watching
television with his family.

When he entered the house, he found Kaitlyn helping Casey put on her boots. Jessica had
her coat on and was putting on her mittens. Kaitlyn turned and smiled when she saw him.

"Where are you going?" He asked as he took off his hat and started to remove his gloves.

"To get a Christmas tree." Casey said. Kaitlyn smiled.

"What?" Gary asked surprised. "There is 10 inches of snow out there." Gary said as he
pointed towards the door.

"I have 4-wheel drive." Kaitlyn said as she helped Casey on with her coat.

"We are not going to get a Christmas tree tonight." Gary said as he unzipped his coat and
took it off.

"Well you don't have to go if you don't want too, but I'm going. The girls are going to stay
with my mother until I come back." Kaitlyn said.

"This is crazy." Gary argued.

"Gary it's December 1st. That's when we get our tree. It's a tradition that I'm not breaking
because of a little snow." Kaitlyn said defensively. Gary stared at her in disbelief.

"Mommy are we not getting the tree?" Jessica asked disappointed.

"Jess, I'm going to go and get the tree. If Daddy doesn't want to come, he doesn't have
to." Kaitlyn said as she put Jessica's hat on her head.

"I want Daddy to help you pick it out." Casey said with a pout as she walked over and
grabbed Gary's leg. He saw the look of disappointment on her face. He looked at Kaitlyn
who was busy putting on her boots.

"This is screwy." He said looking at her. "Where exactly are you going?"

"It's a place outside of town where you cut your own tree down." Kaitlyn said.

"It's almost dark out." Gary said.

"There is enough light left. It's not that far. Besides, I was waiting for you. Obviously, that
was a mistake. I should have just left." Kaitlyn said angrily.

"So what you're going to walk, alone out into the woods, cut down a tree and drag it back
to the jeep? Oh wait, and I have to add in almost a foot of snow!" Gary said sarcastically.

"It's a tree farm, I won't be out in the woods! Gary Hobson, for your information, for the
past three years I have done just fine, thank you very much. I don't need your help with
this and I definitely don't need your permission." Kaitlyn said angrily as she put on her
coat.

"What are you sore at me for? I didn't make it snow." Gary said irritated. Kaitlyn looked
at Gary. He could tell that she was more than annoyed at his last remark.

She grabbed her gloves off the step and then Casey's hand and said, "Come on girls." Then
she stormed out of the house. Jessica followed close behind.

Gary groaned as he grabbed his coat and threw it on. He picked up his hat and gloves and
headed out the door to follow.

They dropped the girls off at her mothers and headed out. Neither spoke during the ride to
the tree farm. The roads weren't as bad as Gary anticipated they would be, so he felt bad
that he had made such a fuss.

As they walked through the snow looking for a tree, Gary became more irritated. He
quickly began to suggest trees, just so she would settle on one and they could head home.

"How about this one?" He pointed.

"That's too big." Kaitlyn said with her arms crossed.

"What about this one?" He said.

"Too small." She said quickly. He cleared his throat.

"What's wrong with this one?" He said.

"It's too bushy." She said irritated.

"Kaitlyn, I'm cold, I'm tired and I'm hungry. Will you just pick a tree!" Gary said angrily.

"Fine!" She said in a huff as she stormed over to the closest tree and said, "This one!"

Gary walked over and began to cut the tree down. When it fell to the ground, he dragged
it to the wrapping machine. Kaitlyn walked over, got into the Jeep, and waited. After the
attendant helped him tie it to the roof rack, Gary got into the Jeep.

"You could have started the car." He said annoyed as he started the car and blasted the
heat. "Are you happy now!" He said as he pulled out onto the road. Kaitlyn didn't even
look at him; she just stared out the window.

After they were on the road for about 10 minutes, Gary looked over and saw her wipe a
tear from her cheek. He swallowed hard and then pulled over onto the side of the road.

"What are you doing?" She asked surprised.

"Stopping the car." He said softly. They sat in silence until Gary said, "What's wrong? Will
you just talk to me, please." He pleaded. She looked over at him with her tear stained face.

"I'm sorry." She whispered.

"I know this obviously means something to you. I don't know what and I can't figure it out
on my own. You have to tell me." He said sympathetically as he placed his arm around her
shoulders.

"When I first moved here, I wasn't in the best of conditions, mentally. I was a basket case
with my marriage ending and having to two babies to support. For the first few months of
Casey's life, I was really depressed. The doctors told me it was normal for a new mother
to go through what they called post pardom depression. But, it was so much more than
that." She cried. Gary didn't know what to say. She quickly regained her composure and
continued.

"On December 1st of that year, I dragged myself out of bed and came and picked out a
Christmas Tree. I brought it home and I spent the rest of the night decorating it. Then I
just sat on the couch and looked at it. Getting that tree was an accomplishment that I
made on my own. That was when I knew I was going to be okay and that there was no
where to go but up. So every year since then, I come on December 1st and get a tree."
Kaitlyn shrugged. Gary wiped her cheek with the back of his hand.

"I'm sorry I made such a fuss." He whispered as he kissed her temple.

"It was me." She said looking up at him.

"I'm going to make you a promise. I don't care if we have 20 feet of snow on the ground,
every year, for the rest of our lives I'll cut that Christmas tree down for you on December
1st." Gary said then kissed her softly.

"Thank you." She smiled.

"Come on, let's go home. We have a tree to decorate and I'm hungry." He joked as he
started the car.
 

Chapter 27

It was Christmas Eve and Gary was finished with the paper for the day. He was looking
forward to spending a first Christmas with his family. He had stopped to pick up another
gift for Kaitlyn and was on his way home, just in time for dinner. His parents were coming
to town to spend the holiday with them.

When Gary walked in the door, he could hear his father in the living room playing with the
girls. Gary took off his gloves, hung up his jacket, and then peeked into the living room.
The girls were into playing dress up and it looked like his father was their latest victim.
Jessica was tying a scarf around his neck and Casey was trying her best to put velcro
rollers in his hair.

"Oh you're looking good Dad." Gary said trying to suppress his laughter.

"Hi, Daddy." Casey said. "Grandpa Bernie doesn't sit still very well." Gary laughed.

"Go ahead and laugh Gar, you're next." Bernie said with a smile on his face.

"Believe me Dad, I've had my share of being the guinea pig." Gary said as he headed into
the kitchen where he found his mother over the stove.

"Hi, Mom. Merry Christmas." He said as he kissed her cheek.

"Hi, honey." She said with a smile.

"Where's Kaitlyn?" Gary asked.

"Oh, I sent her upstairs to lie down. She looked like she was completely exhausted." Lois
said.

"Really?" Gary said concerned. " Well, I'm going to go up and make sure she is all right."
He said as he headed into the hallway.

"Okay, honey, dinner will be ready in about an hour. The Kelly's should be on their way
and Chuck and Marissa are coming. Gary there was an envelope delivered for you. It's on
the table in the hallway." She called after him.

"Thanks Mom." Gary said as he picked up the envelope and headed up the stairs.

Gary looked at the envelope on his way upstairs. It was from the adoption attorney. He
started to open it as he headed into the bedroom and ran right into Kaitlyn as she was
coming out the door.

"Gary!" She said as she put her hands on his chest.

"Sorry, honey." He said as he quickly kissed her. "I thought you were supposed to be
taking nap. Are you feeling all right? Mom said you looked tired."

"I'm fine. It has just been a lot of work getting ready for the holidays. What's that?" She
asked pointing to the letter.

"I don't know I was just about to open it. It came by messenger." Gary said as he walked
past her and into the bedroom. She turned around and walked in behind him, closing the
door.

"Who is it from?" She asked.

"It must be about the adoption. It's from Kirkpatrick." Gary said.

"Well, we just filed the papers a little over a month ago. I thought he told us it would be
months before everything would go through." Kaitlyn said.

Gary shrugged and handed the envelope to Kaitlyn. "Here you open it. Maybe it's bad
news." He said.

"Gary." Kaitlyn said as she rolled he eyes. She finished opening the envelope and pulled
out the letter.

"Dear Gary." She began to read aloud. "We are pleased to inform you that your Petition
for Adoption for Jessica Ann Kelly and Cassandra Lee Kelly has been granted by the State
of Illinois. I personally hand delivered the Petition to Judge Hirsch, who signed it this
afternoon. Due to the holiday, the official Petition will be filed on Monday. I will send you
copies of the documentation once it has been filed. Congratulations and Happy Holidays
to you and your family. Sincerely, Andrew Kirkpatrick." Kaitlyn looked up at Gary and
smiled. "It's official." She said as she handed him back the letter.

"I can't believe it." He said as he smiled and looked at the letter. Kaitlyn walked over and
put her arms around his waist.

"Congratulations, Daddy." She said as she reached up and kissed his cheek. He smiled.

"Let's go and tell the girls." Gary said.

"Gary, the girls aren't going to understand. Besides, in their minds you are already their
father. That piece of paper isn't going to mean anything to them. I think we're probably
better off not even bringing it up, because it's only going to confuse them." Kaitlyn said.

"Yeah, your probably right. I'll tell my parents later, they'll be happy." Gary smiled.

"Now we have two reasons to celebrate." She said.

"What's the second reason?" Gary asked.

"Well, I was going to wait until later tonight to tell you this, but I think the timing is right.
I meant it two ways when I said, congratulations Daddy." She said as she put his hand on
her stomach and looked into his eyes and smiled.

Gary swallowed hard. "We.we.we're pregnant?" He stuttered. "I..I..I..mean you're
pregnant?" Kaitlyn shook her head yes. "We're going to have a baby?" He said.

"That's usually what pregnant means." Kaitlyn said with a laugh.

"We're going to have a baby." Gary said again as he kissed her then picked her up and held
her tight. He suddenly set her down. "I probably shouldn't do that." He said as he gently
rubbed her stomach with his hands.

"Gary, I'm pregnant. I'm not going to break." Kaitlyn said with a smile.

"When?" Gary asked.

"When what?" Kaitlyn asked.

"When did you find out?" Gary stammered.

"I've know for a little while now. I found out right after Thanksgiving." Kaitlyn said softly.
"Don't be mad at me for not telling you right away, I just wanted to make sure everything
was okay, because of the complications I had with Casey."

"Is everything okay?" Gary asked concerned.

"Everything is fine. Outside of a little morning sickness and being tired and those are all
completely normal. Otherwise, everything is on schedule." Kaitlyn smiled.

"Well, when is the baby due?" Gary asked.

"August 3rd." Kaitlyn said with a smile.

"August 3rd." Gary repeated as he hugged her tight. "God, I love you." He whispered in
her ear.

"I love you too." She said. He pulled back and looked at her.

"Oh, do you know how thrilled my parents are going to be?" Gary asked.

"I have an idea." Kaitlyn smiled.

"Let's wait and tell everybody together, at dinner." Gary said.

"Okay." She said as she kissed him. "I have to go and help your Mom."

"Oh, no." Gary said as he picked her up and started to walk towards the bed. "You're
going to get some rest." He laid her down on the bed and kissed her forehead.

"Gary, I'm fine." Kaitlyn said as she sat up. "I have to help your mother with dinner."

"No you don't. My mother has everything under control. You need to get at least a 20
minute nap." Gary said as he pointed his finger at her.

"But." Before she could finish Gary cut her off.

"No buts." Gary said. "Lay down."

"I was just going to ask you if you wanted to keep me company?" Kaitlyn said with a
smile.

"Sure I'll keep you company." He said as he crawled onto the bed beside her. "But, we're
going to sleep." He wrapped his arms around her and smiled. "Thank you." He whispered
in her ear before they fell asleep in each other's arms.
 

Chapter 28

Everyone settled around the dining room table for dinner. Bernie and Lois were there
along with Chuck, Jade, Marissa and Emmitt. Kaitlyn's parents, Collier and Lily, Kaitlyn's
sister Megan and her husband Mike and their son Ben. There were a lot of smiles and
laughter at dinner.

Gary sat back and enjoyed watching how easily his and Kaitlyn's family seemed to mesh.
Although they all had only known each other a short time, they were already like old
friends. Collier, Bernie, and Mike were talking about taking a fishing trip to Canada in the
spring. Gary overheard Lois and Lily talking to Jade about her pregnancy.

After dinner, everyone gathered in the living room for coffee.

"Can I tell them our news." Gary leaned over and whispered in Kaitlyn's ear.

"Okay." She said. Gary leaned in and kissed her.

"Hey, why don't you two get a room." Chuck joked. Jade reached over and smacked him
on the arm.

"Ouch! That hurt." He said. "I can't wait for you to have this baby, because I want you
back to normal. I thought women were supposed to be emotional when they were
pregnant, not mean."

"Chuck, once a baby comes things are never back to normal." Bernie said.

"Speaking of babies." Gary stood and stopped talking when the room got completely silent
and everybody stared at him. He definitely had everyone's attention.

"Gary, honey, do you and Kaitlyn have something that you want to share with us?" Lois
asked with a smile.

"Well, Mom, I know you have been waiting for this day for a long time." Before Gary
could finish Lois jumped up from her chair and rushed over to hug him.

"I knew it." She screamed.

"Mom, you're squishing me." Although his mother was holding on for dear life, he still
smiled.

"Somebody want to fill the rest of us in on what you two are talking about?" Bernie asked.

"Bernie, they're having a baby!" Lois screamed as she let go of Gary and moved over to
hug Kaitlyn.

"Can I feel." Lois asked as she touched Kaitlyn's stomach.

"Yeah, we're having a baby." Gary said nonchalantly.

Everyone took their turn giving their congratulations. Kaitlyn was a little bit worried at
how Jessica and Casey would react to the news, but they surprised her, they just took it in
stride.

"When is the baby due?" Jade asked.

"August 3rd." Gary said.

"Hey, Gar, how about that our kids will be a little over a month apart in age." Chuck said
as he slapped Gary on the shoulder. "You know they are going to be boys, they will
probably be best friends just like us." Gary and Chuck both smiled.

"Oh, yeah smart guy, what if our baby is a girl?" Jade asked quickly.

"That baby is a Fishman. Fishman's don't have girls we have boys. It's something in the
genes." Chuck said as he looked at Gary.

"Well what if Gary and Kaitlyn's baby is a girl?" Marissa asked. Gary shot Marissa a look
of disbelief.

"I didn't consider that. Leave it to you to point out that remote possibility." Chuck said to
Marissa.

"Gary have you told Kaitlyn what your baby name is?" Marissa asked with a sly smile.

"No, we haven't discussed that yet." Gary said nervously.

"You have baby names picked out?" Kaitlyn asked

"Oh, no it's just one name." Marissa said. "If I remember the conversation right, Gary felt
it was a unisex name." She said with a laugh.

"We'll talk about it later." Gary said to Kaitlyn.

"A boy or a girl, what difference does it make. It's a baby!" Lois beamed.
 

Chapter 29

Later that evening after everyone had gone home, and Bernie and Lois headed back to the
loft, Gary and Kaitlyn were putting the girls to bed. Gary had read them their bedtime
story and was in the process of tucking Casey in.

"You have to get a good night's sleep because Santa comes tonight." Gary told her. "I
have a feeling he is going to bring lots of presents."

"Is he going to bring our baby?" Casey asked. Gary and Kaitlyn looked at each other and
smiled.

"Casey the baby is in Mommy's tummy." Jessica said.

"It is?" Casey asked as she looked at Kaitlyn.

"Yep, it is, and it's going to be a while before we have the baby." Kaitlyn said as she kissed
her forehead.

"How long?" Jessica asked.

"Not till almost the end of summer. Now, you girls had better get to sleep. I'll see you in
the morning." Kaitlyn said as she kissed Jessica and headed out of the room.

Gary kissed Casey then went over and kissed Jessica. As Gary reached for the light, he
heard Jessica's voice.

"Daddy." She said.

"Hmm" Gary answered and turned his attention towards her.

"When Mommy has the baby, you're going to be the baby's real father, right?" She asked.

"Yeah." Gary said as he sat down on her bed.

"Are you still going to love us?" She asked.

"Of course, I'll still love you." Gary said. "Why would you think that I wouldn't?"

"Well, because you'll have the baby to love and you'll be the baby's real father." Jessica
said.

"Jess, I love you and Casey very much. I'll always love you. You are both my daughters.
No matter how many babies Mommy and I have, you and Casey will always be my first
babies." Gary said as he kissed her forehead. "I love you."

"I love you, too." Jessica smiled.

"Now go to sleep." Gary said as he tickled her. He got up from the bed, turned off the
light, and closed the door. He saw Kaitlyn standing in the hallway.

"I guess you heard that." He said.

"Yeah." She said.

"You okay?" He asked. Kaitlyn shook her head yes. "Come on we got presents to put
out." Gary said as they headed downstairs.

When they got downstairs, they headed out to the garage to gather up and bring in the
presents. After they had brought all of the presents out of the garage and into the living
room, Gary sat down on the floor in front of the tree his back resting against the couch.
Kaitlyn quickly took a seat between his legs and leaned back against his chest. He
wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her shoulder. The only lights
that were on in the room were from the Christmas Tree. They both sat and became
mesmerized by the twinkling lights.

"That is a beautiful tree." Gary commented.

"Yeah. Considering how we fought when we picked it out. I was so upset I didn't even
really look at it until we brought it home." Kaitlyn joked.

"What do you mean you didn't look at it?" Gary asked.

"You said pick a tree and out of frustration I did." Kaitlyn smiled as she turned and kissed
his lips.

"Well we'll never fight over that again. I promise." Gary whispered in her ear. Kaitlyn
sighed.

"Tired?" Gary asked as he started to massage her shoulders.

"Yeah." Kaitlyn sighed.

"Why don't you go on up and get ready for bed?" Gary said as he kissed the top of her
head. "I'll get the lights and make sure everything is locked up."

"Okay." Kaitlyn turned and gave him a quick kiss then got up and headed upstairs.

After she had changed into her bedclothes and brushed her teeth, she headed back into the
bedroom. She thought it was strange that Gary still wasn't upstairs, so she headed
downstairs to find him. When she got to the bottom of the steps, she caught him coming
out of the basement with an armful of packages.

"Where did those come from?" Kaitlyn asked as she pointed to the pile that he was
carrying.

Gary peeked over the top of the packages and said, "These are some extra things that I
bought." Gary said as he headed into the living room and set them under the already full
tree. "I thought you were going to bed?"

"You bought all those?" Kaitlyn asked. "Gary, this is to much. You are going to spoil
them."

"What I can't buy my kids some extra Christmas presents?" He asked as he walked over,
turned out the light, and picked her up.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"Taking my wife to bed." Gary said with a smile as he headed up the stairs. "You know,
not all those packages are for the girls. In fact, I think the one in my back pocket might be
for you." He said as wiggled his eyebrows at her and headed into the bedroom. He laid her
down on the bed. As he crawled on the bed beside her, he pulled the package out of his
back pocket and handed it to her.

"Go ahead, open it." He said with a smile.

"But, it's not Christmas yet." Kaitlyn smiled.

"Close enough. Open it." Gary said. "I wanted to give this to you in private."

Kaitlyn pulled off the wrapping paper to find a thin jewelry box. She opened the lid and
there was a beautiful diamond tennis bracelet.

"Gary, it's beautiful." Kaitlyn said.

"Not as beautiful as you." He whispered in her ear. "Merry Christmas."

"Thank you." Kaitlyn said a she reached up and kissed him. "Now I have to give you a
present." As she sat up to get out of bed, Gary grabbed her around the waist and pulled
her back down.

"You've already given me the best Christmas present I could have ever asked for." He said
as he rubbed her stomach. Kaitlyn smiled and put her hands on top of his.

"So, tell me about those baby names." Kaitlyn said.

"Zeke." Gary said quickly as he continued to rub her stomach.

"Zeke?" Kaitlyn asked.

"Yeah, Zeke Hobson. My son is going to play hockey." Gary said with a smile.

"Really?" Kaitlyn said. "What's the girls name?"

"Zeke." Gary said as he looked up at her. "But, we don't have to worry about that,
because, I know this baby is a boy."

"You're almost as confident as Chuck." Kaitlyn joked. Gary shrugged. "How about we
make a deal. If we have a son, you can call him Zeke if you want to, but on his birth
certificate we're going to give him a normal name."

"What, call him Zeke as like a nickname?" Gary asked. Kaitlyn nodded yes. "I guess that
would be all right." Gary said. Kaitlyn could hear the disappointment in his voice.

"You really like that name don't you." She said. Gary shrugged. "All right if it's a boy we
can name him Zeke." She said as she rolled her eyes. "I guess I have seven months to get
used to it."

"Ha." Gary smiled as he reached up and kissed her.

"If this baby is a girl, it will not be named Zeke." Kaitlyn said.

"Okay. You can pick the girls name." Gary whispered as he slowly kissed her neck. Gary
spent the rest of the night showing his wife exactly how much he loved her.
 

Chapter 30

When Gary and Kaitlyn awoke on Christmas morning, it was to the girls jumping on the
bed.

"Mommy, Daddy, get up Santa was here." Jessica screamed. "Grandpa Bernie and
Grandma Lois are already downstairs and Uncle Chuck is here.

Gary opened one eye and rolled over to look at the clock. It was 6:45. "All right, we're
coming." Gary said as the girls ran back downstairs.

"What is Chuck doing here so early?" Kaitlyn asked as she rolled over into his arms.

"He's delivering a present." Gary said.

"What present?" Kaitlyn asked.

"You'll see. Just promise me you're not going to be mad." He said as he kissed the top of
her head.

"I don't know if I like the sound of that." She said as she watched Gary crawl out of bed
and put on his robe.

"It's something that we talked about." Gary said. He picked up Kaitlyn's robe and helped
her put it on.

"Did you get a dog?" Kaitlyn asked. When he didn't answer her she said, "Gary?"

"Sort of." Gary swallowed hard then headed for the door.

When they got downstairs the girls had already started to tear into their packages. Chuck
stood in the doorway to the living room and laughed as Bernie encouraged the girls'
antics. When Gary walked up beside Chuck, Chuck slapped his chest with the paper.

"I believe that belongs to you." He said.

"You didn't look at it did you?" Gary asked.

"Why would I want to look at that thing?" Chuck asked innocently.

"Chuck!" Gary said.

"No. I didn't look at it." He said then turned and saw Kaitlyn. "Merry Christmas Mrs.
Hobson. I thought maybe you would get lucky and Santa's elves would carry him away."
He joked as he looked at Gary, who shot him an annoyed look.

"Chuck, why don't you head home to your wife." Gary said as he started to look through
the paper.

"Gary!" Kaitlyn said in a reprimanding tone. "Merry Christmas, Chuck." She said as she
kissed his cheek. "Where is Mom?" She asked.

"She's in the kitchen fixing coffee." Bernie said as he continued to watch the girls.

"Chuck you want to stay for breakfast?" Kaitlyn asked.

"No. I better get home before Jade wakes up." He smiled and turned to Gary whispering
in his ear. "Delivery is downstairs."

"Thanks, Chuck." Gary said as he nodded.

"Don't blame me, it was all his idea." Chuck said to Kaitlyn. "Merry Christmas
everybody!" He yelled as he headed out the door.

When Gary looked up from the paper, he saw Kaitlyn staring at him with her arms
crossed. He smiled.

"Looks like Santa gave me a Christmas present. I got the day off." Gary said as he closed
the paper. Kaitlyn just looked at him and walked into the living room.

After the girls were finished opening their gifts. Gary got up and said, "You two have one
more gift." He started to head out of the room.

"Need some help son?" Bernie asked.

"No, I got it." Gary said.

While the cat lay curled up in Kaitlyn's lap, Lois looked at her and shrugged her shoulders.
He returned a few minutes later carrying a basket, which he was trying to keep two golden
retriever puppies from jumping out of.

"Puppies!" Jessica and Casey screamed as they ran towards Gary. Gary smiled and set the
basket on the floor. Each of the girls reached in and picked up a puppy.

"Mommy look!" Casey screamed. "Two puppies."

Gary walked over and sat down next to Kaitlyn. The cat hissed at him. Gary gave him an
annoyed look.

"You couldn't just get one, you had to go for two." Kaitlyn whispered to him.

"Well, I couldn't decide between the male and the female, and they were the only two left.
I didn't want to separate them, so I got them both." He said cautiously. "How long am I
going to be in the doghouse for this?" Gary asked.

"Oh, you're in the doghouse all right. Literally." Kaitlyn said. Gary gave her a remorseful
look. "I hate it that I can't be mad at you for more than five minutes." She said. Then
smiled and reached over and kissed him.

"So, what are we going to name these puppies?" Bernie asked. "Casey, you're holding the
boy, what do you want to name him?"

"Buster." Casey said as she looked at him.

"Good name." Bernie said.

"What about you Jess?" He asked.

"How, about Daisy." She said.

"Well, I think we got names." Bernie said. "Buster and Daisy."

"Thanks Daddy." Jessica said as she came over and hugged Gary.

"Yeah, Daddy, thanks." Casey said as she followed her sisters' example and hugged him.

"Merry Christmas, girls." Gary said. He turned to Kaitlyn, and leaned in and kissed her.
"Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas." She smiled.
 

Chapter 31

Before they knew it, it was the middle of March. It was Kaitlyn's birthday and she and
Gary had made a date for a romantic dinner. Her parents were watching the girls'
overnight.

It seemed, since she told him about the baby, he had been swamped with taking care of the
paper. She would watch him, as he would drag himself out of bed in the early morning
only to return late at night, to be completely exhausted.

What little time they did get to spend together was compromised by Kaitlyn's bouts with
morning sickness, which seemed to last the entire day. Not to help was the fact that she
noticed a change in her waistline over the past few weeks. She was so excited about being
pregnant, but not being able to fit into her normal clothes was starting to depress her
slightly.

She slipped on the royal blue dress that she had purchased yesterday when she went
shopping with Jade. Jade insisted that she buy it, even if she could only get a few wears
out of it. As she looked at herself in the mirror, she noticed how well she filled the dress.
With both of her other pregnancies she hardly ever showed. She remembered people not
believing her when she told them she was pregnant. She reached down and rubbed her
stomach when she felt the baby kick.

"Well, you're definitely in there." She said with a smile. Unaware that Gary had finished his
shower and had been watching her from the bathroom doorway.

"I hope so." His words startled her. She turned to see Gary standing in the doorway
wearing only his boxers.

"Gary, don't sneak up on me like that." She smiled. He walked up behind her and put his
arms around her waist.

"I didn't sneak. I was watching for a while. Noticing how beautiful you are." He said as he
kissed her neck.

"I think by next week you're not going to be able to put your arms around me." She said
with a frown as she turned around in his arms.

"I'm sure I'll manage." He said. "You look beautiful."

"Thanks." She smiled. "Jade insisted that I buy this dress."

"Well I have the perfect thing to go with it." He said as he headed to the dresser and
opened his sock drawer. He walked over carrying a gift-wrapped package and handed it to
her. "Happy Birthday." He said as he softly kissed her lips.

Kaitlyn smiled as she took off the paper and opened the box. Inside was an antique
sapphire and diamond necklace that almost exactly matched Gary's Grandmother's ring.

"Where did you find this?" She asked surprised.

"I eyed it in an estate jewelry store downtown. I know how much you liked the ring.
I.I.I..well I thought we could start our own tradition." Gary stuttered.

"It's beautiful. Thank you." She said as she kissed him. "Can you help me put it on?"

Gary reached into the box and pulled out the necklace. Kaitlyn turned around and he
slipped it around her neck and did the clasp. He kissed the back of her neck when he let
go. She turned in his arms and he pulled her close for a kiss.

It felt so good to be in each other's arms that they got completely lost in that kiss. Gary
wrapped his arms around her as tightly as he could, pulling her close to his body.

They were lost in sheer ecstasy until Gary felt something against his stomach. He suddenly
pulled away and looked at Kaitlyn.

"What?" Kaitlyn asked.

"I felt that." He said as he put his hands on her stomach. She smiled. "There it is again."
He said, the excitement written on his face.

"I think this kid is definitely going to be a soccer player, it likes to kick." Kaitlyn smiled.

"Do you feel that a lot?" Gary asked with a smile.

"The last few days I have." She said.

"That's amazing." He said as his eyes started to tear. "You're amazing." He said as he
leaned in and kissed her.

When their lips parted, he moved to kiss her neck. Gary then trailed soft kisses from her
neck up to her cheek, to her eyes only to settle on her lips. When their lips met, Gary's kiss
was so gentle. He reached is hand up and placed it on her neck. Then he began to lightly
caress her cheek with his thumb. Before they knew it, they were swept away in such gentle
passion, their dinner plans removed to far in the back of their minds.

Later that night, Kaitlyn caught Gary clad in his boxers and a t-shirt, going through the
refrigerator in search of something to eat. When she peeked over the refrigerator door at
him, he looked up at her.

"I thought you were sleeping." He said with a smile. "Hungry?"

"A little." She said.

"Well, I was going to make a sandwich. You want one?" He said as he stood up and
kissed her.

"Okay. I'll get the bread." She said as she headed for the counter.

They sat down at the table and made their sandwiches. Gary told her how he had taken to
being a mediator between Chuck and Marissa at the bar.

"It seems things have returned to the way they used to be. They fight over the stupidest
stuff. Chuck is always trying to get her goat in one way or another." Gary said with a
smile.

"You're not letting him do any of the accounting work, are you?" Kaitlyn said.

"I learned that lesson the last time, he's not allowed to do anything financial. Marissa is
taking care of all of that. I can't trust him to do it. He got us involved in to much shady
stuff the last time." Gary said as he took a bite of his sandwich.

"Don't forget tomorrow at 10:00 is the ultrasound." Kaitlyn said.

"I'll be there." Gary said confidently.

"Okay." Kaitlyn said with hesitation. "Do we want to know if it's a boy or a girl?"

"They can tell that?" Gary asked.

"Yeah." Kaitlyn said with a laugh. "I keep forgetting that you're not experienced at this."

"Do you want to know?" Gary asked.

"I don't know. It has its advantages." Kaitlyn shrugged.

"Did you find out before?" Gary asked.

"No. I never really wanted to know before." Kaitlyn said. "I kind of liked being surprised."

"All right we'll be surprised." Gary said as he kissed her.
 

Chapter 32

The next morning Kaitlyn sat in the waiting room of the doctors office, leafing through a
magazine. She looked up and saw Gary standing in front of her.

"You're actually on time." She said surprised.

"I told you I'd be here." He said as he leaned down and kissed her.

"Mrs. Hobson." The nurse called. Kaitlyn got up and headed towards her. "We're ready.
Mr. Hobson, I'll come back and get you in a few minutes."

"Okay." Gary said as he sat down in a chair.

Kaitlyn followed her into the ultrasound room. The nurse handed her a gown.

"You can take your blouse off, put this on and get up on the table. The technician will be
in shortly. I'll bring your husband back with me."

"Okay." Kaitlyn said.

She was waiting patiently, when the door opened and the technician came in.

"Hi. I'm Nancy. I'm going to be doing your ultrasound." She said.

"Is this your first baby?" She asked.

"No this will be my third." Kaitlyn smiled.

"So you know the drill, huh?" Nancy asked.

"Yeah, but go easy on my husband. This is his first." Kaitlyn joked.

As if on cue the nurse opened the door and brought Gary into the room.

"You must be Dad. You can have a seat over there on the other side of the table." Nancy
said. Gary walked over and sat down in the chair.

"Okay Mrs. Hobson, if you can pull the gown up a little bit, we'll get started." She said.

She started the ultrasound. Kaitlyn reached over and took Gary's hand. "Look up there."
Kaitlyn said as she pointed to the television. Gary looked up.

"Is that an arm?" Gary asked.

"Yeah." Nancy said. "I'm going to go through the checklist here first and take some
measurements. Then I'll point some things out to you."

"Okay." Kaitlyn said.

A few minutes passed before the technician spoke.

"I'm going to have the doctor come in to verify something for me." She said.

"Is something wrong?" Kaitlyn asked quickly.

"No. There is nothing wrong. I just want her to look at something." She said as she picked
up the telephone and said, "Could you send Dr. Jeffries in please."

"Hi, Kaitlyn." Dr. Jeffries said when she came into the room. "How are you doing?"

"Okay." Kaitlyn said.

"Take a look at this." Nancy said as she moved the ultrasound conductor across Kaitlyn's
stomach. "There is a heartbeat."

"There is another heartbeat." Dr. Jeffries said.

"She already said that." Gary said.

"Well, we said it twice because, there are two heartbeats." Dr. Jeffries said with a smile.
"Kaitlyn, you're having twins."

"What?" Kaitlyn asked shocked. She turned and looked at Gary. "We're having twins."

"Really? You're sure?" Gary asked.

"Yep, there is definitely two babies in there." Dr. Jeffries said. "Congratulations."

"No wonder I'm so huge." Kaitlyn said.

Gary leaned down and kissed Kaitlyn. "Two babies." He said.

"Do you want to know what they are?" Nancy asked.

"No." Kaitlyn said right away. "We want to wait." Kaitlyn looked at Gary. "So, we could
be having two boys, two girls or one of each." Kaitlyn said with a smile.

"Two babies." Gary whispered as he looked at the television monitor. He turned to
Kaitlyn. "I told you I knew what I was doing." He said with a sly smile. Gary spent the
next few months showing everyone he met the ultrasound pictures he carried in his wallet.
 

Chapter 33

It was mid-May and Jessica had enlisted Gary to be one of her t-ball coaches.
One evening, Casey sat at the kitchen table coloring, with Daisy lying at her feet. Kaitlyn
was cleaning up the dinner dishes, looking out the window. She laughed when she saw
Gary and Jessica start to chase Buster after he stole the ball when Jessica dropped it. The
doorbell rang. Daisy started to bark and followed Casey into the hallway to answer the
door. Casey opened the door to find a woman standing on the porch.

"Hello." The woman said as she looked at the piece of paper in her hand and then at the
number on the front of the house to verify that she had the right address.

"Hi." Casey said as Kaitlyn walked slowly into the foyer and up behind her daughter.

When Kaitlyn got a closer look at the woman, she knew exactly who she was.

"Can I help you?" Kaitlyn asked.

"I don't know. I'm looking for Gary Hobson." The woman said.

"Well, you've got the right place. Casey, honey, go and get Daddy." Kaitlyn said as she
opened the screen door and held onto the dog.

Casey ran down the hall and into the kitchen.

"Please come in." Kaitlyn said.

A few seconds later Kaitlyn heard Gary come through the back door. When he entered the
foyer. He was giving Casey a piggyback ride.

"Gary." The woman said.

Gary looked up to find his ex-wife standing in front of him. "Marcia." He said as he
swallowed hard and walked over to Kaitlyn. Kaitlyn smiled.

"Honey, ah, this is Marcia." Gary stuttered. "Marcia this is my wife, Kaitlyn."

Kaitlyn and Marcia looked at each other and smiled awkwardly. "It's nice to meet you."
Kaitlyn finally said. "Casey, come on honey, Mommy has to finish the dishes and you have
to finish coloring that picture." She took Casey's hand and headed into the kitchen. "Come
on Daisy." She called the dog who followed. Gary watched his wife leave the room and
then turned to Marcia.

"What can I do for you?" Gary asked. Marcia looked at Gary.

"The bartender at McGinty's hesitantly gave me your address after I told him who I was. I
needed to talk to you about something. It won't take long." She said.

"Well, ah, okay. Why don't we go into the living room." Gary said as he guided her in the
right direction. Gary caught a glimpse of Kaitlyn watching him as he turned and headed
into the living room. Marcia took a seat on the couch and Gary sat down in the chair.

"Your home is lovely." She said pleasantly.

"Thank you." Gary said skeptically. "Not to be inhospitable, but what exactly did you need
to talk to me about?" Gary asked.

"Well, um, Gary my Grandmother passed away three weeks ago." She hesitated.

"I'm sorry to hear that. I always liked her." Gary said sympathetically.

"Thank you. She also obviously liked you." Marcia said. "You see, I never told her that
we got divorced. I didn't really see her that much and I never really felt the need to."

"You're kidding, right?" Gary asked as he looked at her surprised. "It wouldn't have had
anything to do with the fact that she liked me and she owned that company, would it?"

"Well." Marcia hesitated. Gary could tell by her reaction that he hit the nail right on the
head.

"Why don't you just get to the point and tell me what you're here for." Gary said slightly
annoyed.

Before Marcia could answer, Casey came into the room followed by Jessica and the dogs.

"Daddy. Mommy says it's bedtime. Are you going to read me my story?" She said as she
crawled onto his lap.

Kaitlyn walked in the room and said, "I'm sorry. Girls I told you to leave Daddy alone.
Come on let's go get ready for bed." She said as she guided Jessica to the hallway. "Come
on Casey." Jessica whistled and Buster followed.

"I'll be finished here by the time you get done with your bath. Then I'll read you your
story, okay." Gary said as he kissed her nose.

"Okay, but tonight's story better be a long one." Casey said as she headed into the hallway.
"Come on Daisy." The dog followed her upstairs.

Marcia just sat and stared at Gary.

"They are both very beautiful." She finally said with a smile.

"Thank you." Gary said.

"How old are they?" She asked.

"I think I know you well enough to know you really don't care how old they are. You just
want to know if they're mine." Gary said coldly. Marcia looked at him surprised. "I think
we need to get back to the real reason you're here." Gary said.

"Fine." She said angrily. "My Grandmother left the bulk of her estate to us."

"What do you mean to us? There is no us." Gary said.

"Well, like I said she didn't know that we were divorced. She drafted her Will under the
assumption that we were still married. She left the bulk of her estate to you and me."
Marcia said.

"I still don't know what you want from me." Gary said.

"Gary, I'm no estate attorney. I have consulted one, however, and it seems that legally,
because you are named in the Will, I have to give you what she wanted you to have,
unless I contest the will. Which will be a long drawn out process." She said. "In order for
me to get my money quickly, you have to get yours."

"I don't want your Grandmother's money." Gary said.

"I don't really care what you do with the money. You can give it all to charity for all I
care. Could you just sign the papers, please." Marcia said as she pulled the papers from
her brief case. Gary hesitantly took the pen and signed the papers.   Marcia took the
papers back from him and returned them to her briefcase. "A check will be delivered to
you by the end of the week." She said as she stood and headed for the door. As she
walked onto the porch, she turned around and looked at him.

"A little advice. You seem to have gotten yourself into a situation where you have two
small children and a wife who is obviously adding to your brood. I doubt highly that the
income you take in with your little bar is sufficient to take care of them. I suggest you
keep the money. It looks like your going to need it. Oh and if you ever decide you want to
get out of this situation, give me a call." She said smugly. With each word that came out
of her mouth, Gary grew more furious.

"I really don't think I'll be needing your advice. I think I made a lifetime worth of mistakes
when I married you. Oh, and to answer your question of earlier, Jessica is 7 and Casey is 4
and they are both mine." Gary said as he slammed the door.
 

Continued in Installment 3
Return to Installment 1

Email the author: radomsrcr@prodigy.net
 

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