Calum's PoV:

For the first time in what seemed like years I was woken up by my alarm instead of Eli wanting me to make him breakfast or Cade's hysterical crying.

I shut off the alarm and then laid in the bed for a few minutes, thinking about last night with Nessa.

Kissing her was so exciting to me, and when I had asked her to stay the night she had written it off as a joke, but I had been quite serious. Being close with another woman like that had been something I had craved since before I had even married Meredith.

I had never had that normal, casual intimacy in a relationship before. Yes, I'd had sex with Meredith, but that was it. She never wanted to be intimate with me other than those times.

So now it felt like I had all of this pent up energy inside me that I needed to let out, and Nessa didn't seem to mind if I let it out on her.

Footsteps were heard coming down the hall and I opened my eyes to see Eli run into my
room.

"Hey bud." I yawned as he climbed up on the bed. "Is Cade up?"

"No." Eli said as he climbed up on the bed.

"Come lay with me." I lifted up the blanket for him to crawl underneath and I put my arm over him. "Did you have fun with Nessa last night?"

"Yeah." He nodded. "She's funny."

"She is funny." I smiled. "She told me you had a girlfriend."

When I said that he nodded his head enthusiastically.

"Can I meet her?"

"She lives on another planet."

"Ah, I see." I chuckled. "So you like having Nessa around?"

"Yeah, I like it when she babysits me."

"Good. We're going over to Nessa's house tonight for dinner."

"We are?"

"Yeah."

The sound of crying was then heard coming down the hallway and I sighed as I let Eli go and got out of bed to go take care of Cade.

After a diaper change he was good to go and so I took them both to the kitchen for breakfast.

As they sat at the table eating cereal the house phone rang and I turned to grab it from its stand on the counter.

"Hello?"

"Calum."

It was my mother.

"Hey, Mom."

"I was just calling to see if you and the kids wanted to meet for dinner tonight."

"Oh, we actually have plans tonight but we'd be free tomorrow."

"Tomorrow is fine. What are you doing tonight?" She asked.

I wasn't ready to tell her I was dating someone, I wanted to talk about that with Nessa first.

"We are going to a friends house for dinner."

"Oh, okay then. Well let me know what time and place tomorrow."

"Okay, talk to you later."

I hung up the phone and then went to make my own bowl of cereal and eat breakfast.

Once all three of us had eaten it was time to get the boys dressed, fix their hair, and brush their teeth before we could leave the house to run our errands.

Today was my day off so I was happy but I loved my job and missed it when I wasn't working, but I missed my kids more when I was on the job.

After getting both of them in their car seats I began my drive to the grocery store.

Getting them both in a cart was exhausting but I finally got Cade in the child's seat and Eli sat in the basket while I began to roll the cart around the store, throwing stuff we needed into the cart.

As I turned down the canned soup isle my attention was caught by the back of a girl who had recently become my girlfriend.

Nessa had her back to us, reading off a list in her hands, and I stopped the cart, telling Eli to be quiet when he noticed her and then crept up behind her before grabbing her waist and pulling her back.

She gasped loudly and dropped her list on the floor, twisting harshly in my hands. I saw her cock her shoulder back but then she saw it was me and relaxed.

"Oh my God, Calum I almost just punched you in the face." She moved her hand over her heart as she took a deep breath.

"Well thank you for not punching me."

"You have to stop scaring me like that." She said and I smirked.

"Eh, you're kinda cute when you're scared."

"Shut up." She shoved my arm playfully.

"So you're shopping as well."

"Mhmm." She smiled. "I'm making you dinner and I needed a few things, I was actually about to text you and ask what flavour ice cream you liked best."

"Oh, chocolate is fine."

"Okay." She said and bent down to get her list so she could write it down.

"Nessa!" Eli then called out to her and Nessa looked up to smile at him.

"Eli!"

Nessa walked over to him and he reached up to hug her, Nessa lifting him out of the cart.

"We get to go to your house tonight." Eli said.

"I know, i'm excited."

"Me too." Eli nodded.

"Okay, well let's let Nessa get her groceries so we can finish our errands and then go to her house." I said.

"But I wanna go with Nessa." Eli pouted as he was being held up in Nessa's arms.

"I know, but I need you to help me."

"I'll see you later today, don't worry." Nessa smiled at Eli and set him back in the cart. I watched as she then went to hug Cade.

"Nwessa." He laughed and I saw Nessa smile.

"That's right, Cade." She kissed his cheek and then walked back over to me.

"I'll see you later then." She placed her hand on my side.

"Okay." I said and looked to see if Eli was watching and he was. "Turn around." I said and he frowned before turning around.

I watched him for a second to make sure he didn't look over his shoulder before looking back at Nessa and leaning in for a kiss.

"Bye, Cal." She whispered when we broke the kiss and then winked as she stepped back to her cart and began to walk away.

I smiled at what she called me and watched as she walked to the end of the isle, waving as she turned onto the next one.

The entire time we walked through the store I kept looking for her but didn't see her. 

After the grocery store we went home to unload groceries and have lunch before I had Cade and Eli take a nap.

While they napped I sat on the couch to watch television, thinking about convincing Nessa to stay the night at my house when an idea popped in my head.

I should get her a housewarming gift.

I hadn't really given her anything, and maybe if I sweetened the deal she would say yes.

But I didn't know what to get her.

There was a gift shop in town so when the boys woke up we headed there to look for some gifts.

"You're gonna help me pick out some gifts for Nessa, okay?" I asked Eli as we walked in and he got very excited.

We first looked at the candle section, and I remembered that she smelled like apples and cinnamon, so when I found a candle with that scent I chose that.

Next we looked at jewellery and I found a gold necklace with the letter N initial that I thought would look pretty on her, and then found some picture frames.

I found one that was dark stained wood and got that before getting her last gift which was a small vase of red roses.

The lady who owned the shop wrapped up the gifts besides the flowers in a purple gift bag and then we left to go home so we could all change clothes and I could put a picture in the picture frame I had gotten her.

I had Eli put on jeans and a grey tee shirt with a blue and green flannel on top, and had Cade in jeans and a red and black button up shirt.

I then changed into a black sweater and kept on my jeans before loading up the kids into the car along with the gifts.

"Is that Nessa's house?" Eli asked every time we passed a house and I answered no every time until we finally did get to her home and I parked in front.

I had Eli carry the purple gift bag and carried Cade in one arm and held the flowers in the other.

We walked up the sidewalk and to her door.

"Knock on the door, Eli." I said and he did and a few moments later it opened to see Nessa in skinny jeans and a red cardigan with a grey shirt underneath.

"Hi, guys!" She smiled as Eli jumped in the house.

"We brought you presents!" Eli held up the bag and Nessa looked surprised. "Daddy, says they're house presents!"

"House warming presents." I corrected him and while he was distracted looking around I leaned in and kissed her cheek.

"You didn't have to get me anything." She said.

"I wanted to." I moved back. "These are for you."

I handed her the vase and she smiled as she took it.

"These are my favourite, thank you." She said and then went to place them on the counter.

"Nessa, we have this one too." Eli ran up with the other bag and I set Cade down, Nessa taking the bag from Eli.

"Let's go look in it." She walked over to the living room and sat at the coffee table, setting the bag next to her.

Eli and Cade ran over to sit next to her and I walked behind them.

She reached into the bag and pulled out the candle first.

"Oh, wow." She smelled it and smiled. "Apples and cinnamon is my favourite, thank you."

"There's more." I said and she reached in to pull out the necklace.

"Oh, this is pretty." She held it up. "Thanks guys."

"There's one more thing." I said and she looked up at me before reaching back in and pulling out the picture frame that had a photo taken of Eli and Cade a few months back.

"Oh my gosh, I love it. Thank you." She smiled at the photo.

"I noticed you didn't have any pictures when I was here so I thought i'd get you one." I said and she looked up to smile at me.

"I really love this. Thank you." She stood up and wrapped an arm around my neck to hug me. She kissed my cheek and then let me go.

"Help me figure out where to put my gifts." She turned to Eli and Cade who stood up.

"You should put the picture here." Eli pointed to the side table next to the couch and she set it there.

"What about putting the candle on the coffee table?" She asked him and he nodded so she set it there.

She set the necklace next to it and then Eli tugged on her arm.

"Where's the bathroom?"

"It's exactly where the bathroom is at your house." She said and he smiled before running that direction.

Nessa then stepped up to me since Cade was just walking around the room.

"That was really thoughtful of you to get me housewarming presents." She stepped up to me and placed her hands on my stomach.

"I wanted to get you something." I smirked down at her.

"I really loved that picture...but there is something else I want." She said and I felt myself get my hopes up for something intimate but knew that was probably not where she was going. "I want a picture of you."

"Of me?" I asked her and she nodded. "I can do that, but I can do you one better. A photo of us."

"Oh?" She smirked.

"Yeah, let's take one." I said and she laughed as I pulled my phone from my pocket and held it in front of us, our faces on the screen.

She and I smiled and I took one like that before she leaned in to kiss my cheek and I took another. Quickly I kissed her cheek and took one last picture before putting my phone away.

"We do make a cute couple." She smiled and then kissed me.

Since Eli wasn't back yet I kissed her back for a few more seconds and then let her go.

"I have a question for you." I said as she went to pick up Cade, holding his hand in hers as she bounced him up and down.

"What?"

"I was wondering if you'd want to meet my parents tomorrow night?"

Her eyes went wide.

"If you don't that's fine." I said.

"Maybe it's a little quick...?" She said. "I mean we've dated for two days. Let us settle into this and then we can do the meet the parents thing."

"That's fine." I nodded. "Would it be okay if I told them about you?"

"Yeah, if you want to I don't mind." She then smiled and kissed Cade's cheek.

"Nwessa." He reached up to hug her around her neck and it made me incredibly happy that she got along so well with the kids.

At that point Eli came running back from the bathroom.

"Do you want to help me make dinner?" She asked him and he jumped up and down excitedly.

I took Cade from her and then followed her to the kitchen as she and Eli walked over there.

"What are we making for dinner?" Eli asked her.

"We are making my famous spaghetti." She said and Eli's eyes got big.

"It's famous?" He asked. "Has it been on the tv?"

"It has." She played along and he gasped before continuing to follow her. She pulled out two pots and filled one with water.

"Cal, can you get the tomato sauce from the pantry for me?" She asked as she went to the fridge to get some ground beef.

I slipped past her as she and Eli put the meat in the other pot and found the can she needed.

I then stood back and watched as she and Eli began to cook. She let Eli put in the spices, and let him mix the sauce which made him happy.

"Okay, now we have to put the pasta in the water so it can cook, but we have to do it the magic way, that's what makes it taste so good." Nessa said to Eli and he grinned excitedly. "So what we have to do, is get the pasta in our hands, and we're going to break it in half over the water and drop it in, but when you do it you have to say voila! Okay?"

"Let's do it!" Eli said and so they each took some pasta and held in their hands and Nessa counted down from three before they both said voila.

I clapped for them and then Eli helped Nessa set the table while I went to go change Cade's diaper and wash up.

When I was done with that Nessa began to make everyone a bowl, the four of us sitting down at her table to eat.

I got a fork and twirled some of the pasta around the fork and made sure to get some sauce before taking a bite.

"Holy crap Nessa, this is really good." I said, my eyes big.

"Im Italian, what did you expect." She smiled.

"That actually explains so much." I said and she rolled her eyes as she laughed.

"I like it!" Eli then jumped in the conversation."I think it's famous too."

Nessa laughed at this.

"Thank you, Eli."

"I think Cade likes it too." I nodded to my two year old who was shoving pasta in his mouth.

After dinner Nessa put away the left overs while I wiped off both Eli and Cade's faces. I then walked back to the kitchen where she was washing dishes.

I then stepped up and gently moved her out of the way.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"You made dinner, ill wash the dishes." I said and she sighed.

"Fine."

"What? You're not going to fight me on this?"

"No, because you've been very sweet so I thought i'd give you a break from feisty Nessa."

She then got out some bowls and began to scoop the chocolate ice cream in them.

"Mind if we share a bowl, I don't have enough." She asked me.

"Yeah that's fine." I said as I placed a plate on the drying rack.

I hurried to finish the dishes and then we went to the living room where we all sat down. She had a bowl of ice cream for us and one for the boys.

"Okay, what do you guys want to watch? A movie? Television?"

"We can just channel surf until we find something." I said and then took the remote from her, beginning to look through the channels.

She took a bite of the ice cream and I put it on the animal planet so I could set the remote down. I then slid one arm behind her back and she looked up at me and smiled.

I took the other spoon and had a bite, feeling Nessa lean into me.

I wanted her to spend the night with me, and I really was ready for her to, but I didn't know if she'd say yes or not.

Eli and Cade were eating their ice cream, both of them staring at the tv, and so I leaned in to speak in Nessa's ear.

"Come spend the night." I whispered and she shook her head no. "Why not?"

"Spend the night might as well be another way to say let's have sex." She whispered back at me.

"We don't have to do that yet." I replied.

"It's not appropriate for me to stay the night with your kids there."

I sighed.

She was right.

If she spent the night Eli would be asking more questions and be more curious than he already was.

I noticed Eli and Cade weren't watching so I kissed Nessa's cheek and she looked up at me to smile.

Eli and Cade fell asleep after an hour, and when they did Nessa took their bowl to clean it and I stood up to follow her to the kitchen.

"So are you going in to the station in the morning?" I asked her.

"Yeah, I have a lot of work to do actually." She said.

"Oh, do you need help?"

"No, i've got it. Besides, you have a very important job of keeping this town safe."

I then moved in to hug her, and she relaxed into my arms.

"I want to spend some time alone with you." I spoke into her ear.

"We can do that."

"I'll figure something out."

"Okay." She then looked up at me. "I have to get up early and so do you."

"Yeah." I sighed.

I let her go and went to carry Eli to the car and she got Cade, helping me get them in their seats.

"I'll see you tomorrow." She kissed me once they were settled.

"Yeah. Sleep tight."

"You too." She leaned up and kissed me again.

I watched as she walked up her porch and waved at me before going inside.

As I drove away I felt a little sad and guilty. Sad that she wouldn't spend the night with me and guilty that I had asked her to. I was conflicted.

The next morning after dropping the boys off at daycare I arrived at the police station. After walking in through the back and checking my mail, I walked through the door to the lobby where Nessa was at her desk, a stack of envelopes on her desk as she put labels on them.

"Good morning." I smiled as I walked around her desk, noticing she was wearing the necklace I had given her last night.

"Hey." She said as she stuck another label on an envelope and set it in a stack.

I placed my hands on her shoulders and leaned over her shoulder so I could kiss her.

"How was the rest of your night?" I asked her.

"Good." She smiled.

"What are you working on?"

"I am sending out the envelopes for the new officers coming in." She said.

"Ah well I'm going to grab a coffee and then head out on patrol."

"Okay, just kiss me before you go." She said and went back to her work.

I smiled as I walked back to the break room to get some coffee, Luke walking in to do the same and grab a protein bar.

As we walked back I stopped at Nessa's desk, leaning over to kiss her again.

"Be safe, please." She placed her hand on my cheek and kissed me once more. "You too Luke." She smiled at him as she sat down.

"You bet." He said and I waved before the two of us made our way to our car.

"So how was dinner at Nessa's house?" Luke asked me as we got in our squad car.

"Good. She's really good with the kids. I'm meeting with my parents tonight and i'm going to tell them about her."

"So this is getting serious?"

"Well to me it's pretty serious. I'm not dating Nessa for fun, i'm dating her because I want to be with her."

"Do you think she could be the one?"

"I mean it's a little early to tell but if everything works out then maybe." I shrugged.

"That's good. I'm happy for you." Luke smiled at me and I laughed it off.

It was quiet around town this morning.

During our whole shift we only had one traffic stop, and there were no other calls from dispatch.

When we got back to the station Nessa was already gone.

It was about lunch time so Luke and I met Michael and Ashton outside so we could walk over to the corner store for lunch.

Nessa and Kate were behind the counter talking when we walked in and when she saw me she skipped around the counter and up to me, placing her hands on my shoulders as she pulled me down to kiss her.

"Hi." She smiled up at me.

"Hi." I laughed. "You're chipper today."

"I'm just happy to see you."

Nessa walked back behind the counter and began to work the register.

"Have a good dinner with your parents tonight." She said once I had paid.

"I will. I'll call you tonight."

"Okay." She smiled and we shared another kiss before I left.

I called my mom once I was back at the station to tell her where and what time we would meet for dinner, and then clocked out so I could pick up Eli and Cade.

I got them ready and when it was time we headed over to the Italian place I had taken Nessa to on our first date.

When we got there we got a table and a few minutes later my parents walked in and joined us.

"Hello." My mom walked up, hugging me and then her two grandchildren.

"Nana, look what I drew today!" Eli showed my mom a picture of a dog.

"That's good, Eli." She smiled and then my dad went to hug him.

"You get bigger every time I see you." He said as he hugged him.

"Papa, do you want to see my picture?" Eli asked him.

"Of course I do, show it to me." My dad smiled and Eli held up his picture.

My mom and dad then hugged Cade before we all sat down.

After we ordered our food and Eli and Cade were distracted with their toys my parents and I began to talk.

"So how have you been Calum?" My mother asked.

"Good." I said and hesitated before breaking the news. "I've started seeing someone."

"You have?" My dads eyes went wide.

"Yeah." I nodded, trying to fight a smile.

"Well who is she?" My mother asked, grinning ear to ear.

"Her name is Nessa, she works at the corner store and at the precinct, and she's babysat the kids a few times."

"What does she look like?"

I pulled my phone from my pocket and found the selfies Nessa and I had taken last night before passing my phone to my parents.

"She's from New York, she just moved here like a month ago. She has a degree in pediatrics, and she's great with Eli and Cade." I said as they looked at the photos.

"She's very beautiful." My mom said, my dad nodding.

"Nessa!" Eli looked at the phone and smiled.

"So you like Nessa?" My mom asked him.

"Mhmm." Eli nodded. "I like Nessa."

"Well when can we met her?" My dad asked.

"We just started dating a few days ago, so I think we'll get a bit more time under our belts before I introduce her to you." I said and they nodded in understanding. "But I was wondering if you'd watch Eli and Cade for me this weekend."

"Sure. Are you and Nessa going somewhere?"

"Well I haven't asked her yet but i'd like to take her into the city or something."

"We'd love to watch the boys for you. But let us know when we can meet her."

"I will." I smiled.

"Have you told Meredith's parents?" My dad asked and dread settled in my stomach.

"No, and I that's not a conversation i'm looking forward to. I mean it must be hard to hear the man that was married to their daughter who died is now dating someone else."

"Well they might be a bit sad but if you and Eli and Cade are happy then i'm sure it will be alright." My mom took my hand.

"So she works at the station?" My dad asked, and I noticed his hair was a bit more gray.

"Yeah, she's the office administrator. I got her the job."

"Well that's nice." My mom smiled.

"Yeah, I like working with her. She's an absolute sweetheart, honestly, a lot different from Meredith."

"Calum." My mother said and nodded to Eli and Cade.

"Yeah." I sighed. "But when you meet her, you'll understand."

Our food arrived and while we were eating my phone went off in my pocket and I looked to see Nessa had texted me.

'Hey, I know you're busy, but when you have the chance I was wondering if I could get Michaels number?'

'Why do you need his number?' I texted her back, and moments later she sent a picture of a bloody ankle.

"I'll just be a minute." I excused myself and went outside to call her.

"What the hell happened?" I asked her.

"One of the steps on my porch broke underneath me and the wood cut me." She said.

"Do you need help?"

"I mean yeah, but you were busy so I thought since Michael was an EMT he could help me."

"Yeah, i'll send him your way. Do you need me to come over?"

"I mean I don't think so but i'll let you know."

"Okay. I'll call you after I leave dinner with my parents."

"Alright. How's that going?"

"Good. They're happy for me and are excited to meet you hopefully soon."

She laughed.

"Soon. I promise."

"Alright, well i'll call you in a bit."

"Okay. Bye, Cal."

I hung up and then walked back inside.

"Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. Nessa's foot went through one of her porch steps and her ankle is all cut up so I sent Michael over to check on it."

"Is she okay?" My mom looked concerned.

"Uh, we'll find out." I said, and kept my phone out on the table so I could see if Nessa texted me.

And she did as we were leaving the restaurant, sending me a photo of Michael holding her ankle as he looked at it.

She then sent a message after.

'Nothing's broken or sprained, just scraped up pretty bad. Might have to get a few stitches and a tetanus shot though.'

'I'm gonna stop by on my way home.' I sent back.

'Okay.' She sent with a little smiley face after and I mimicked it as I drove to her place after saying goodbye to my parents.

When I got there Michael was gone and I carried Cade and made sure Eli didn't fall through the hole in the stair as we climbed her porch.

I knocked and a minute later she opened the door, already in her pyjamas.

"Hey." She smiled at us and gathered Eli in a hug.

"So did you need stitches?" I asked her as we walked inside.

"No, I should be okay. Michael bandaged it up pretty good." She stuck out her foot to show me her wrapped up ankle. "But now I have to get stuff to build stairs tomorrow."

"You're going to build new ones?" I furrowed my eyebrows.

"Yes. Well i'm going to try anyways."

"Let me know if you want some help." I said and she nodded.

I set Cade down and both he and Eli ran into the living room, giving Nessa and I a moment alone.

"So my parents are very excited to meet you soon, and I also got them to watch the kids this weekend so you and I can have some time alone."

"But what about work?" She asked.

"We'll take off."

"Okay." She then smiled. "What are we going to do?"

"I was thinking we could maybe go to Atlanta. It's only an hour drive."

"That sounds great to me."

"Okay then, Atlanta it is."

"Okay then." She cheekily smiled back up at me and I laughed before leaning in for a kiss.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" I asked when I pulled back.

"Mhmm." She kissed me once more before I left with the kids, now extremely excited for my weekend alone with Nessa.

--

How do you think their weekend in Atlanta will go?

And how do you think Merediths family will feel when Calum tells them he is dating again?

More to come!

Much love xx-M