One morning; Sweet Pea woke up to someone climbing on top of him; he opened his eyes to see Grady.

"Pirate," Sweet Pea greeted as he sat up. "Bad dream?" Grady shook his head. "What is it?"

"You and mama," Grady answered. "Are you two fighting?"

"What makes you think that?" Sweet Pea asked.

"You're sleeping on the couch," Grady answered.

Sweet Pea sighed. "Clever like your mother. Do you know why mama is truly mad at me?" Grady shook his head. "She says it was because I kissed her...but I think there is more to it."

Grady sat up more. "You kissed mama?"

"And she wasn't happy about it," Sweet Pea confirmed. "I need your pirate expertise to figure out why she is truly mad."

"You should get it figured out before Friday," Grady advised; Sweet Pea tilted her head. "Heard her on the phone about heading to back to Little Rhody."

"Great," Sweet Pea sighed.

***

The rest of the day carried on, Callie was at Watson's Wonders; she was unpacking boxes; putting items on the shleves when Sweet Pea walked in; checking out the place. He picked up a Josie cd; flipping it back and forth.

"What are you doing here, Pea?" Callie asked.

"You know why I am here," Sweet Pea said. "Didn't give Weatherbee a two-week notice."

"What for?" Callie asked as she walked over.

"You are leaving for Rhode Island Friday, right?" Sweet Pea asked; he looked back to see Callie stumped. "And you weren't going to tell me?"

"Sweet Pea," Callie huffed. 

"Grady over your conversation," Sweet Pea said. 

"What Grady heard is true, I will be heading to Rhode Island at the end of the week," Callie confirmed. "I need to sell my old home. One of the Vixens has been thinking about buying it, but I still have a couple of things there." Sweet Pea stared at her. "I need to go pay my respects to Wilbur...."

"You didn't like him," Sweet Pea reminded her.

"He's Lottie's father, Sweet Pea," Callie informed. "I can't just..." Before Sweet Pea could say Kevin walked into the shop.

"Cal," Kevin greeted, he looked around the place. "Could you...as you know Cheryl and her mom have a ministry up at Thornhill?" He looked at her. 

"I'm not religious and neither are my kids," Callie informed. 

"I just don't want to attend alone," Kevin said as he puts his hands together. "Please come with me...just this one...Cheryl thinks I'm looking for something deeper than a hook-up in the woods."

"Uh..." Callie began. "Sure, we'll go with you."

"Awesome!" Kevin clapped. "Having you and your kids there will make this less painful." As he left Betty and Tabitha came in; they had the same expression when stepping into the place.

"Have you ever seen Coyote Ugly?" Betty asked; Callie nodded. "I was wondering if you and your vixens can help with that at the Whyte Wyrm?"

"What?" Sweet Pea asked in alarm. 

"We are trying to track the Highway killer," Betty answered."We figured having a Coyote Ugly night will get truckers to come in, we can set up bugs and cameras around the place"

"Yeah, I'll help," Callie answered. "Would you like any bugging help?" Tabitha looked at Betty.

"Back in the day, Callie was known as Riverdale's Bugging Queen," Betty revealed. "Sweet Pea...would you mind helping as well?"

"I can help," Sweet Pea confirmed. "What you are doing for those girls is honorable."

"Thanks," Tabitha smiled as she put her hands together. "We will get everything ready...just keep an eye on your phones and make sure to have a sitter at ready."  Those two then left the place.

"How do all of you know I am here?" Callie asked. "I haven't even told anyone about this place."

"Word gets around fast," Sweet Pea answered. "This business of your husbands isn't exactly clean...mobster."

"Most of it is legal thanks to me," Callie reminded him. "Plus, my ex-mother-law requested it; made points that it would bring money into a dying town...and perhaps when she's old enough, Lottie can take over."

****

Callie was now at a Blossom service with her kids; she sat in the back with Kevin as Nana Rose played the organ. 

Penelope began to sing.

"Blessed be 

The tie that binds

Our hearts 

in Christian love

The fellowship"

Kevin leaned over to Callie. "I know I requested that you come, but I'm out of here." With that he got up and left; Cheryl tilted her and Callie shrugged. After the service; Penelope walked up to Callie.

"Ms. Blossom," Callie greeted. "How is it being out of prison?"

"I can continue my ministry work," Penelope answered. "I did so good that I was up for early release." She looked down at the kids. "Cheryl has told me all about them."

"Ms. Blossom, this is Grady and Lottie; sweethearts this is Ms. Blossom, Auntie Cher's mom," Callie informed; the two kids waved. "They get along with Juniper and Dagwood quite well."

"That is just splendid," Penelope smiled. "Jason would have wanted it that way." After the service, Callie went to her Andrews's house; Archie was on the phone. 

"Puppy!" Grady lit up as soon they walked in.

"He's our new roommate," Eric said as Lottie hid by Callie's leg. "He won't hurt you, princess." Callie sat on the ground; her kids sat with her; the dog started to sniff, licking Grady; he laughed.

"Do you have a name for him?" Callie asked.

"We are still working that detail out," Eric answered. 

"When did you three get in?" Uncle Frank asked walking into the room.

"Uncle Frank!" Lottie chimed as she lifted up her arms; he picked her up. 

****

Callie returned to the apartment; she was packing a few overnight bags; she didn't even hear the door open.

"What are you doing?" Sweet Pea asked; she continued to ignore him. "Callie, please jsut talk to me."

"What is there to talk about?" Callie asked as stepped out; she went to Lottie's room and Sweet Pea followed.

"You ignore my calls, I'm sleeping on the couch, and you packing bags," Sweet Pea pointed out. "What is going on between?"

"Just spending the night at Archie's," Callie answered. "You are more than welcomed to come."

"Just so I can sleep on the couch?" Sweet Pea asked.

"Or the garage, Jones hasn't been home in a while," Callie answered.

"I'd rather go sleep in the trailer," Sweet Pea denied.

"Fine by me," Callie huffed.

****

Callie woke up in the middle of the night to find Lottie missing, and the door wide open.

"Lottie?" Callie asked as she immediately got to her feet. She stepped out jsut as Eric came up to her in a panic. "Eric, what's wrong?"

"The dog's gone!" Eric said in a panic.

"So is Lottie!" Callie panicked. "Wake Archie and meet me downstairs!" Eric did as he was told; Callie hurried downstairs. "Lottie! Lottie!"

"Cal?" Uncle Frank as he poked his head out of the room. "What's going on?"

"Lottie and the dog are missing," Callie answered in a panic as she rushed past him. 

"How did he get out?" Archie asked he came down the stairs with Eric. 

"Hey, guys, it's okay," Uncle Frank said by the bathroom door. "Calm down, I found them both."

"Where?" Callie demanded as she appeared in the hallway. They went by the bathroom door; Uncle Frank slowly opened it revealing Lottie and Bingo both on the bathroom floor; Lottie was curled up in a blanket; sucking her thumb and fast asleep. Callie breathed in relief as she got on her knees.

"How did they get in there?" Archie asked. 

"I don't know," Uncle Frank answered. " I guess the door was ajar. He was looking for a place to hide, and Lottie must've wanted to keep him company. Kids and dogs can have a remarkable unspoken bond." The dog whined a bit as he lifted his head. 

****

Next morning; Callie was doing Lottie's hair in the bathroom; Grady was playing with Eric and the dog.

"Lottie," Callie began.

"Mommy?" Lottie giggled.

"Why did you get up in the middle of the night?" Callie asked. "

"Puppy needed me," Lottie answered. "He is very cute."

"Very cute," Callie nodded. "Next tune, wake me...I was scared something bad had happened to you." Lottie looked up at her. "How did you even get down the stairs?"

"Puppy help," Lottie answered as she got on her tiptoes; Callie leaned down and kissed her head. When they left the bathroom; the dog left Eric's side running up to Callie.

"Hey, bud," Callie greeted as she knelt down; started to pet him. "Thank you for looking after Princess, Lottie." She kissed his head; Lottie did the same thing. The doorbell rang.

"Sweet Pea," Archie greeted opening the door. "I was surprised to not see you last night."

"Perhaps next time," Sweet Pea said as he walked in.

"Papa!" Grady exclaimed running over to him.

"There's Pirate!" Sweet Pea lit up; he picked him up; the dog made his way over to the two. "Who is this?"

"A rescue from the shelter," Archie answered. "Uncle Frank got him."

"Our new roommate," Eric added. "Thought he got out during the night. Found him asleep on the bathroom floor with Lottie." Sweet Pea looked at Callie, raising his eyebrows.

****

Night came fast; they had dropped off the kids with Toni and Misty, and Callie was now in Sweet Pea's truck fixing her make-up as he drove. 

"Here's a thought," Sweet Pea began, she looked at him. "How about I come with all of you to Rhode Island?" Callie turned back to her mirror. "It can be a family road trip?"

"You keep using the word family," Callie said as she closed her mirror.

"It's what we are, right?" Sweet Pea asked; glancing at her. "Or are you just trapping me on this merry-go-round?" 

"I'm trapping you," Callie laughed. "You can easily leave as you've done before." 

Sweet Pea slammed on his brakes; he began to yell at her. "So, that's why you are mad? Cause I broke up with you twice?"

"No," Callie denied as she pulled out her necklace. "This is why I am mad!"

"If you hate the alliance--" Sweet Pea began.

"This isn't about the alliance, Sweet Pea!" Callie yelled at him. "This is about the promises you broke! Or did you forget you used this as a promise ring?" She opened the door. "Wear it as a reminder that you would always be that, that you would always love me."

"Callie!" Sweet Pea yelled as she got out; she closed the door not giving him a chance to talk. Callie got down to the Whyte Wyrm, mostly everyone was there.

"Where's Sweet Pea?" Reggie asked. "We need his snake-ass for this."

"He'll be here," Callie assured as she took off her jacket, putting it behind the bar. 

"Was he crying?" Alice asked as she leaned over; they all looked over to see Sweet Pea walking in, he was wiping his eyes. 

"Fitting for a liar," Callie huffed, the girls all looked at Callie.

"Okay, gather around, people," Betty ordered before anything else could happen. "This is it. Hopefully, it will be a big night. We'll be checking everyone's Ids, aka, writing down their names, license plates, and driver's license numbers regardless of their age."

"That's after my new camera catches their faces coming in," Tabitha added. 

" Mom and Cal, you'll be working the bar," Betty instructed.

 "Keeping an eye out for anything and everything sketchy," Alice finished. "As I usually do."

"Hey, shouldn't Fangs be here?" Kevin asked. "Isn't he managing for Toni these days?"

"Yeah, but he's helping Arhie with some dog thing tonight," Callie explained.

"So, Toni asked me to step in," Alice added. 

"Veronica, Cheryl, Tabitha, and I will be performing," Betty announced. "While we keep the truckers busy, our stealth team of Kevin, Reggie, and Sweet Pea will be jimmying open their trailers, inspecting their trucks ad looking for anything suspicious. If you find something, I'll come check it out. Our main goal for the night is recon. Okay? Get names, get licenses, get plates, and cardinal rule, no one goes off alone with any truckers, Okay? This includes you, Sweet Pea." He simply nodded. "Are we ready to do this?"

Soon the truckers were pilling in, Callie and Alice were working the bar; the performers started to put on a show.

Tabitha started to sing. 

" Not a dime

I can't pay rent

I can't barely make it through the week

Saturday night I wanna meet my boy

But right now, I couldn't make ends meet

They all started to sing

"I'm always workin'

sweatin' every day

Gotta get a break from the same old, same old

I need a chance to just get away

If you could hear me think

this is what I'd say

Don't need nothin' 

but a good time

How can I resist

Ain't lookin' for nothin'

but a good time

And it don't get better than this"

Cheryl began to sing

"They say I spend m money on women and wine

But I couldn't tell you where I spent last night

I'm really sorry about the shape I'm in

I jsut like my fun every now and then

***

Outside the boys were looking through the trucks; they opened one to find blood stains on the walls. Kevin called the bar.

***

Callie took over Alice's customers when the phone rang. 

"How can I resist?

Ain't looking for nothin' but a good time" Alice gave Betty the signal; she dropped of beers before slipping out. 

Veronica began to sing

"You see I raise a toast to all of us

Who are breakin' our backs every day" She took the shot. " If wanting the good life is such a crime

Lord, then, put me away! Here's to ya!" Veronica began to vocalize as the other two girls went back to singing the chorus. 

****

Outised a trucker was getting ready to leave when the lights shined on him. 

"Hey, what's going on?" the guy asked. Betty, Reggie, Kevin, and Sweet Pea walked up in FBI clothes.

"I'm an agent with the FBI," Betty revealed. "We're investigating illegal contraband being shipped down from Montreal. I'm going to need you to open up the back." The guy did as he was told. "Okay, no contraband, but can you explain the blood?"

"Yeah, I just made a huge meat delivery," the guy answered. "That's cow's blood."

"And, I assume you have the documents and receipts to back that up," Betty said. 

"Yeah, in my cab," the man confirmed. 

***

Soon the night came to an end, Callie was walking home when a truck pulled up to her.

"Shortstop!" Sweet Pea shouted. "Get in the truck!"

"You heard Betty," Callie began. "Cardinal rule, no one goes alone with any truckers."

"Please just get in the truck," Sweet Pea requested. 

"Just go home," Callie ordered. "The kids are waiting."

Sweet Pea pulled the truck in front of her. "They are waiting for you too, so get in the damn truck." Callie sighed in defeat before getting in; they were both silent all the way home. When they got home; there was a note on the table.

'Having Grady and Lottie spend the night at my place, you can get them in the morning

- Toni'

By the time, Sweet Pea got in the door; Callie was already in the shower getting the night's dirt off her body. He stripped on the way to the bathroom, completely bare by the time he got in.

"Callie," Sweet Pea said as he closed the door,

"Just go away," Callie ordered. 

"Not this time," Sweet Pea said as he opened the curtain; she immediately turned around; trying to pull the curtain back. "Just let me talk to you." She put her head on the wall. "I know what I did was wrong." She finally looked back at him. "But I did not break the promise of loving you." He stepped inside, closing the curtain. He reached out gently touching her serpent tattoo "I have loved you every day since we have been apart." Callie turned around as their bodies pressed together; his hand went to her waist. "So why we are on this merry-go-round?"

"I'm not sure if I can trust you with my heart again," Callie admitted. "I waited for you to show up every day."

"I know," Sweet Pea breathed as he lowered his head. "I will fight every day to gain your trust back." He put a hand on her face; he searched her eyes. "Just tell me what you are feeling."

"I want to trust you truly," Callie admitted. "I counted on forever with you back then, and I'm foolishly doing it now."

"Don't give up on that dream," Sweet Pea pleaded. "I don't care how long it takes, I want to be with the girl from the Northside of the tracks; and our two beautiful kids. This is what we dreamed of before; back in high school. Don't you remember?"

"Of course," Callie nodded. "When we agreed on the name Grady."

"I'm counting forever with you, too," Sweet Pea admitted. "I don't care how long it takes for you to give me another chance... so please hold on to that dream a little longer." Callie nodded; she then made the move to hug him; for the first time in a long time. Sweet Pea happily hugged back, holding tighter than he has ever before. 

****

The next morning; Callie and Sweet Pea had gone over to grab their kids.

"Mama!" Grady cried happily as he ran over, and she happily picked him up. "Ms. Toni played with us all night!"

"I let them stay up till 9," Toni corrected. "Lottie fell asleep ten minutes after 8." Callie laughed; kissing the top of Grady's head. 

"Thank you for watching them, Toni," Sweet Pea said as he picked up Lottie. "We have one more favor to ask?"

"Anything to keep me busy," Toni agreed.

"We are going out to Rhode Island for a few days," Callie informed. "Could you keep an eye on the apartment across from you?"

"Gladly," Toni smiled as she rubbed her belly. "You keep paying with my food cravings and I will love you forever."

*****

They were now at Archie's place; they were telling them all about the dog fair they had. To get all the rescues from the dog fighting ring a good home with good people. 

"We have a name for our own rescue," Uncle Frank informed. "Bingo."

"That's amazing," Callie smiled; they looked over to see Lottie on the floor, sleeping next to Bingo. "It seems that princess loves Bingo as much as we all do." 

*****

The next day, Callie and Sweet Pea had finished packing Callie's car; it was early morning.

"First family road trip together," Sweet Pea said as he began to put Grady in his seat. "Two hours, stop for a rest, another two hours, and we should be there."

"Mommy," Lottie yawned as Callie started to buckle her. "It so early."

"We will get moving in a few minutes," Callie assured."We are heading to Little Rhody."

"Why?" Lottie asked.

"It's as dad said; a family road trip." The car shook a little; she looked to see Sweet Pea in the driver's seat. "I can drive."

"Nope," Sweet Pea denied as he adjust his seat. Callie closed the door on Lottie's side. "We have snacks, games, sing-a-longs, and movies to keep the rug rats busy." She got in the passenger seat; leaned over to him. He looked over at her. "What?" Callie put a hand on his face; pulling him into a kiss, and he happily kissed back.