Dylan's weekend with his daughter would soon past and every time he had to return her back to her mother for the weekdays, he realized how much he always wanted his daughter around.

However, Dylan was a sensible man and he would never file for sole custody despite the fact that he would probably win due to his ex-wife being unemployed for last six months as well as having a pretty inconsistent track record of jobs. While he would never do that because he wouldn't want to take custody away from the woman who birthed his child, he also knew that Morgan could counter-argue that he works entirely too much to take care of his child without help.

The whole process would be too messy, so he completely threw that option out and chose to deal with the cards he had been dealt. It still didn't keep him from missing his ray of sunshine when she was gone though.

It had now been three weeks since he had first taken Paige to her early morning tumbling classes at the Sportsplex. It had also been three weeks since he had first met Jackson and nothing had really changed. He still took Paige there every Saturday morning and he still found Jackson beautiful.

Occasionally, him and young instructor would do what he thought was definitely flirting, but then again he couldn't really tell due to him being out the dating scene for so long. Even when he was with Morgan they didn't really "date" once they got married, so he had slowly lost touch with the realm of dating.

Overall, he had grown hugely infatuated with Jackson and he was just trying to find the right time to ask him out. At Jackson's workplace was a risk, but to be honest, he was considering it. It wasn't like he would have much of an opportunity anywhere due to him not seeing Jackson anywhere.

The week went by extremely slow and was excruciatingly difficult, due to his trial with Christopher Pickett being so close. It seemed as if Friday night couldn't have rolled around any slower and when it did he could practically feel himself rejoicing.

At his desk on Friday he had finally came to the decision that he was going to ask Jackson on a date in hopes for the best.

Dylan was a very straight forward man and he typically took rejection well, not that he had been rejected often, but he was prepared for whatever response that was going to leave Jackson's mouth. He was just hoping that it was that Jackson wanted to learn just as much about him and he wanted to learn about Jackson.

Dylan pulled up hastily to his old house that held multiple memories, both good and bad, and felt himself become extremely happy.

As he routinely did, he unlocked the front door with his old key to the house and like every week he was met with sound of his daughter's small feet hitting the surface of the hard wood floors and her small suitcase rolling against it.

"Daddy!" Paige shouted jumping to hug her dad as Morgan followed her into the room.

"Hey princess." Dylan said relishing in the feeling of his little girl in his arms. He learned that he would have to cherish these moments before she got too old and no longer wanted to run up and hug her dad like she does now.

"I missed you." Dylan commented smiling at Paige as he poked her tummy causing her to giggle into her small hands.

"I miss you too, daddy." She replied showing off her childish grin and Morgan just sat back and watched her favorite scene unfold like every week.

"Hey Morgan." Dylan greeted his former wife who gave a small smile back, but looked as if something was weighing on her mind.

"Hey." She replied lightly in contrast to her usual snarky comments or vibrant spirit that Dylan once fell in love with. Dylan knew her well enough to know that something was bothering her and although they were no longer together he still cared about her.

"What's bothering you?" He questions not hesitating or beating around the bush.

"Um, actually, can we talk for a second?" Morgan asks pushing back her hair to behind her ears as she did when she was nervous. Dylan noticed and he knew whatever she wanted to talk about was bothering her.

Dylan put Paige down and instructed her to go to her room and pick out some more toys to bring home while he talked to her mom.

"So, what's going on?" Dylan asked as soon as Paige is up the stairs and out of ear shot.

"Well, I was just- I don't know. It's just, you know I've been thinking a-and I just miss you." She stutters out and mumbles all in one, completely avoiding the eye-contact of her ex-husband. While she was nervous and fidgety, Dylan's mind was going a mile a minute.

He half expected this would be the topic of discussion, I mean it had been multiple times before, but every time the conversation ended they were back in the same spot. They both wanted something different. Dylan wanted something new and Morgan wanted him.

"Please don't do this now Morgan." He pleaded trying to make it easier for her. She was only putting herself in the position to be disappointed again and he hated doing that to her.

"Then when should I do it Dylan! You only come around to get Paige. This is the only time I can do this." She exasperated obviously getting frustrated. Dylan had her expressions, hand motions, and temperaments down to a science.

"Okay, Morgan I really don't want to argue with you, but you have to know that coming to get Paige is the only reason I ever need to be around. At this point, there is nothing for me and you to see each other for outside of anything pertaining to Paige. I care for you and you know I always will, but we've been over this multiple times. We both want different things." He explained bluntly trying to keep a level head and cut the conversation short because he needed to mentally prepare for tomorrow while spending quality time with his daughter.

"Was what I did to you really that bad, Dylan? How many times can I say sorry for that!"

"You don't have to say sorry anymore. I've already forgiven you, but that doesn't mean this relationship will work." He explains.

Dylan always wondering why Morgan would rather be in a forced relationship than one they were both willing to fight for, but the only answer he could possibly come up with was that she wanted the perfect family. She had convinced herself that she was still in love with him, when in all actuality he knew she was in love with the perfect family she had created in her head, not him.

"But what about Paige? We could be a family and you are depriving her of that." And this statement completely confirmed his reasoning.

"Woah, woah, woah, I am not depriving her of a family. As long as she has a mother and father as well as other extended family members, she will have a family. We don't need to be together to raise our child and show her what family is."

"Dylan, please, just think-" but, she was cut off and honestly, Dylan was internally grateful for the disturbance his three-year old daughter had made.

"Daddy! I ready!" Paige said trotting as many toys down the stairs as she could, most of them falling out of her tiny arms before she reached the final step.

"Okay, sweetheart. Let's go." Dylan said grabbing her suitcase as he allows her to carry the extra toys in her hands.

"We'll finish this later I guess." Morgan said to Dylan. Her gray eyes showing her evident sadness, but Dylan would never admit that he was the blame for that. Although, he felt bad for his past lover, she was putting herself through this by trying to force a relationship that simply was not meant to be.

"Okay." Dylan replied not having enough energy to object. He just wanted to spend time with his little girl.

"Bye mommy!" Paige said waving her small hand at her mom before Morgan made her way over to her daughter to give her multiple kisses. As much as Dylan got annoyed with Morgan he couldn't deny that she was a great mother.

Soon enough they were off to his house like every weekend. Instead of cooking he listened to his daughter's constant shouts for pizza and they ended up eating pizza and watching Moana before Paige was asleep in his lap on the couch.

"I love you." Dylan said kissing his daughter's cheek as he made his way to her room and laid her down before going to bed himself.

Before going to sleep his mind wondered to Jackson and he decided exactly what he was going to do tomorrow. He was planning for it to be simple, just in case he got rejected, but still effective. He was crossing his fingers that it worked.

****

"You ready to see Mr. Jackson, today?" Dylan asked trying to mask his nervousness. He was never really the type to be nervous when asking someone out, but he really didn't know much about Jackson other than he was good with Paige and was extremely attractive. While that was more than enough to motivate him to ask Jackson out, it was definitely not enough to ease his mind.

"Yes, Mr. Jackson say since I was good a-and did a cartwheel, I gets candy!" Paige explained in her tiny voice that Dylan adored.

"That's great princess! I'm excited to see him too." Dylan admits.

Once they reach the Sportsplex Dylan couldn't help the immense butterflies that seem to be attacking his stomach.

"Okay let's go." He said grabbing Paige's hand once they had made it out of the car.

Paige excitedly skipped making his arm bounce up and down ever so often before they reached the gym and took off their shoes like every week.

"Is that Paige? Have you grown since last week?" Jackson said squinting his eyes at Paige who was quickly approaching her favorite instructor to hug his skinny legs that were clothed by his sweat pants.

"Yes! I almost four." She explains holding up three of her stubby fingers, but soon correcting herself putting up one more.

"I can tell." Jackson said with a bright smile before looking to Dylan who was settled behind his daughter.

"You say I was going to get candy." Paige reminds putting her little hands on her hips as if she was waiting which made Dylan chuckle at his daughter's sass and bluntness that she definitely got from her mom and him, to be honest.

"Ohh, you're right. I will give it to you at the end of class okay?" He asks making sure that was fine with Paige. He hadn't forgot about Paige's candy, but he didn't want to give it to her in front of all the other kid and not get them anything as well.

"Okay." She agrees nodding her head.

"Hello, Mr. Geick." Jackson said turning his attention to Dylan, his smile not seizing, but instead shaping into a small smirk as it always did when he formally greeted Dylan.

"I told you, you can call me Dylan." Dylan explained giving off a small smile.

"Mr. Geick suits you more." Jackson comments with a shrug before starting his class filled with many tiny kids.

The hour couldn't have went by any faster and the closer it was getting to Dylan asking Jackson out, the more he was becoming nervous and he absolutely hated the feeling. He never really got nervous, not even when presenting the major cases he took on in front of dozens of people who were there to judge him. His job literally determines whether someone would serve time in prison or not, yet this scared him more.

He wanted Jackson and this would either allow him to have him or make as long as Paige wants to take this class, extremely awkward.

"We're done for the day you guys. See you all tomorrow!" Jackson said giving the small kids high fives that walked up to him and like every week Paige would be the last one, leaving just him, Paige, and Jackson next to the trampolines.

"Ready to get your candy?" Jackson said putting his hand out for Paige.

"Yay! Candy!" Paige shouts latching on to Jackson's hand, but Dylan can't even focus on the cute moment because he is too focused trying to plan out a good time to ask.

They soon made it to what Dylan thinks is the employee break-room and Jackson disappears into the room before coming out with a king sized Cookies n' Cream Hershey's bar, as Paige had requested.

"One candy bar for Paige." Jackson presented letting Paige hold the big candy bar as she squealed.

"What do you say to Mr. Jackson?" Dylan guided making sure Paige used her manners.

"Thank you." She said happily trying to peel back the candy bar.

"You're welcome sweetie."

"Can you open this, daddy?" She asked looking up at her dad with her big, dark brown eyes like her dad.

"I'll open it in the car. Go put your shoes on and then we can go." Dylan instructed finding this to be a perfect time to talk to Jackson because he knew his daughter would be awhile with her shoes as he watched her run off to find her cubby. That left him and Jackson by themselves.

"Um, can I talk to you for a second?" Dylan asked turning his attention to the beautiful boy in front of him.

"Yeah, is it something important because we can step into the break room real quick." Jackson offered.

"Yeah, that would be great actually." Dylan said rubbing his sweating palms on his jeans before walking behind Jackson into the room.

"So, what's up?" Jackson said with a small smile.

"Well, I don't know how you will feel about this, but I find you really beautiful and-wow this is harder than it looks. But, um, I was wondering if you'd like to go on a date with me?" Dylan said sounding very unsure of himself, mentally slapping his head for speaking his thoughts out loud.

He watched Jackson's smile contort into an unreadable look.

"Um, I'm not gay." Jackson finally said after what felt like an eternity and it completely threw Dylan off. Dylan was so sure that Jackson was gay that he never considered otherwise.

"Oh my gosh, I-" Dylan began, but was quickly cut off by a laugh.

"Loosen up. Of course I'll go on a date with you. It would be an honor." Jackson said sporting a huge smile that showcased his deep dimples that Dylan found himself entranced with.

Dylan wanted to be mad at the sick joke that Jackson had just made, but he was too relieved by the fact that beautiful instructor said yes that he couldn't be mad.

"Oh, thank god." Dylan breathed out as he watched Jackson scribble something into a spare piece of paper.

"Here's my number so you can tell me when and where." Jackson said handing Dylan the small piece of paper.

"I will." Dylan said taking the paper me gripping it in his hand. Their hand grazing one another's when passing the paper.

"Good." Jackson said giving a small smile before leading them out the room where another instructor was pressed against the door obviously listening.

"Bryce, really?" Jackson said rolling his eyes.

"Good job Jackson, he's a catch." Bryce said eyeing Dylan who gave him a smile as Paige ran up to her dad.

"See you around Mr. Geick." Jackson said with a smile that Dylan had concluded he would never get tired of.

"See you around, beautiful." Dylan said feeling a burst of confidence now that he knew the beautiful instructor was interested in him. He watched as Jackson's face turned a shade of red before stumbling to go instruct his next class, giving a small wave.

Dylan loved where this was going.