The next morning when I arrived at work I was the first one there.

I had driven my new car and parked in the lot across the street and walked over. I had also gone through the Starbucks drive through to get myself a coffee.

I unlocked the corner store and then locked the door behind me and dropped my bag behind the counter.

After taking a sip of my coffee I began to go around the store and straighten up, and not minutes later there was a knock on the glass door.

I turned and looked to see Calum outside with a drink carrier in his hands and smiled as I went to let him in.

"Hey." I said as I opened the door.

"Morning." He smiled at me.

I locked the door behind him and then walked behind the counter as he set the drinks down.

"Oh, you have coffee." His eyes landed on my drink.

"Yeah." I gave him an awkward smile.

"I got you a caramel macchiato...that's what you like, right?"

"It is, yeah, thank you." I smiled as he passed me a drink. "There's nothing wrong with a little extra caffeine."

He laughed at this and then the door opened and we both looked to see Kate walking in.

"Oh, hey guys. How was your date the other night?"

Calum and I looked at each other and both smiled as a blush came to our cheeks.

"I'm going to assume it went well." She said and both Calum and I laughed.

"Well, I just came to drop this off, and I'll see you later on?" Calum raised his eyebrows when he looked at me.

"Yeah." I said and he glanced at Kate who rolled her eyes.

"Oh my God, kiss her already. For the love of God."

I laughed at this and stepped around the counter to be closer as Calum stepped forward and kissed me.

There was a smacking sound after both kisses and he smiled before saying see you later and taking his leave.

"So love is in the air for you and Calum huh?" Kate smirked when the door closed behind Calum.

"I wish." I sighed.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I don't want to be dramatic and needy but we've been on several dates and I thought everything was going really well but yesterday he went to help me buy a car and he told the salesman we were just friends. And I thought we were something more."

"Hmm." Kate hummed.

"Like I know we're not boyfriend and girlfriend because he obviously hasn't asked me yet, but am I crazy for thinking we are at least something more than friends? I mean friends don't kiss each other like that."

"You're telling me." She snorted and I laughed. "When he comes for lunch today I can talk to him."

"You don't have to do that." I gave her a soft smile.

"I'm just as curious as you!" She laughed. "I'll make sure he doesn't think i'm asking for you."

"Thank you Kate." I hugged her.

I was really glad she was my friend.

Calum's PoV:

"Hey man, let's go get lunch." I heard Luke sat behind me as I stared my computer screen and excitedly got out of my chair.

It was time to see Nessa.

"You're ridiculous." Luke chuckled at me and I practically jogged out to the parking lot to meet up with Ashton and Michael.

"So how's it going with Nessa?" Michael asked.

"Good." I answered. "We had two really good dates this weekend."

"That's nice." I heard Ashton say and looked to see him giving me a genuine smile.

We walked to the corner store and when we approached I could see Nessa and Kate behind the counter, the two of them laughing at something.

When we walked in they turned to look at us and Nessa gave me a beautiful smile. She seriously was a gorgeous girl.

We got in line and I was last like always and when I went to tell Kate what I wanted she pulled me aside.

"Can I talk to you for a second?" She asked me.

"Yeah." I said confused and followed her to the back store room, glancing back to see Nessa smiling at something Luke and Michael were talking to her about.

"What is it?" I asked when Kate shut the door behind us.

"I want to talk to you about Nessa." She said.

"What about her? Is something wrong?"

"No. I'm just wondering how it's really going between you two."

"Oh." I said. "Well it's going really good. Has she said differently?"

"No, she's really happy. She likes you a lot. I was just wondering if you felt the same way."

"I do." I nodded.

"So what's your plan, are you going to ask her to be your girlfriend?"

"Did she ask you to ask you this for her?" I was now suspicious.

"No." Kate laughed. "She won't even ask me to get the supplies from the storeroom for her even when it's crazy busy."

I eyed her for a moment then sighed.

"I don't know yet, we're still getting to know each other." I said.

"I know that." Kate rolled her eyes. "But like what are you guys doing?"

"We're just friends right now, who go on causal dates."

"Friends don't kiss each other like the way you kissed Nessa this morning." Kate pointed out and I looked down at the ground. "Calum, you can talk to me."

"Yes, if everything keeps going the way it's going then i'd like for her to be my girlfriend, but i'm scared and I don't know how to ask her and I don't know if that's even what she wants."

"Then talk to her. Because if it does keep going the way it's going which is good, then she'd probably like to know what you're thinking about her, I mean I know I would."

I nodded.

"Has she uh, has she said anything about me?" I asked quietly.

"Some."

"What has she said?"

"She thinks you're really sweet. She said that she loves the boys, and that your dates so far have been really good, but when I asked her where it was headed she said she didn't know. So I wanted to ask you, not for her, but for you, but I guess also for her because you need to communicate with her. I know you haven't had to do that with a woman for a long time but Nessa needs to know what you're thinking and you need to know what she's thinking."

"You're right." I said after a minute, processing everything.

"Just try and talk to her about it. It doesn't have to be right away but at least soon."

"I will." I nodded and she smiled.

"Okay, now you can leave and go kiss her."

"Thanks." I laughed awkwardly and we left the storeroom.

Nessa was on the computer when we walked out and had her back to us.

Maybe if I was more affectionate that would help Nessa see that I was really into her.

I walked up behind her, ignoring the guys who were waiting for me at the front of the shop, and wrapped my arms around her waist, hugging her from behind.

"What are you doing?" I asked her.

"Making an appointment with that mechanic you gave me the name of." She replied. "What are you doing?"

"Hugging you." I mumbled and she let out a laugh.

"Come on, i'll get your lunch." She said and I let her go so she could get my sandwich from Kate and I handed her a five dollar bill.

She gave me back my change and I put it away.

"Hey, how come he's allowed behind the counter and we're not?" Michael called out to us.

"Who said you weren't allowed behind the counter?" Nessa asked.

"Me." Kate raised her hand and we all laughed.

"Okay, well i've got to head back but let me know when you're on your way." I turned back to Nessa.

"Okay." She said, and forcing myself to ignore the guys blatantly watching me make a fool of myself, I closed my eyes and leaned in to kiss her.

The kiss was slow and hot, and when I pulled away she had a dazed kind of look on her face.

"Wow." She whispered dreamily.

"What?" I chuckled.

"That kiss gave me goosebumps." She smiled. "You really know how to bring a girl to her knees Calum Hood."

I laughed bashfully and felt the fire on my cheeks.

"I'll see you in a bit." I was surprisingly able to say despite my grin.

"See you." She smiled back at me.

I took my sandwich and then left with my friends, but not without looking back at her several times.

Back at work I ate my lunch and continued to tally up my parking ticket quota when I got a text an hour later from Nessa that she was on her way.

And around fifteen minutes later I heard her voice in the lobby of the police station.

"Um i'm looking for Officer Hood?"

I stood up from my desk and walked out from my shared office with Luke and out to the lobby where she was talking with another Officer.

"Hey." I approached her and she smiled me.

"Hey."

The Officer walked away and Nessa continued to smile up at me.

I leaned in for a kiss on her cheek.

"You ready to go?" I asked her.

"Yes, but first can you check and make sure I have everything?" She asked and I noticed a file folder in her hand.

"Sure." I took it from her and flipped through to see everything she needed for her new license. "You're all set."

We then walked next door where instead of waiting in the mile long line I walked her into the back.

"Ooo, I get special treatment." She said and I laughed.

I looked for my friend Rhonda, and older woman who worked at the DMV and found her at the back counter.

"Calum." Rhonda hugged me when she saw me.

"Hey, Rhonda. How are you?"

"I'm well. What can I do for you?"

"This is my friend Nessa." I placed a hand on Nessa's shoulder. "And we need to transfer her New York license to a Georgia one."

"Oh, are you dating again, Calum?" Rhonda asked me.

"Yes ma'am." I laughed.

"Well I can help you sweetie, follow me." Rhonda said to Nessa and led her to a desk.

I watched quietly as the two of them went through her paperwork and then Nessa had her picture taken and Rhonda printed out a paper copy.

"Just use this until the offical one comes in."

"Thank you very much." Nessa smiled and I thanked Rhonda as well before walking back over to the police station with Nessa.

"Thanks for helping me with this." She said as we stood in the lobby.

"No problem."

There was a moment of silence before she spoke.

"So I think i'm going to have to find a second job."

"Really? Why?"

"Because I only work part time at the store and I have to pay for this car and insurance and all of that."

"Yeah, that's understanda-"

"Hood!"

Both Nessa and I looked to the left to see my Captain walking towards us with a massive grin on his face.

"Captain Sutherland." I shook his hand when he stepped up to us.

"Working hard I see."

"This is Nessa. I was helping her get her license earlier, and now we're talking about jobs." I said. "Nessa, this is Captain Sutherland, and he is the Captain of this police department."

"It's nice to meet you." Nessa shook his hand.

"So how do you know Calum?" Captain Sutherland asked her.

"Oh, I babysit for him and um...stuff."

"So you're looking for a job, huh?" He said and suddenly a thought hit me.

"Wait, are we still going to get an office administrator?" I asked.

"Well that's where I was headed with this."

"What?" Nessa asked.

"We need an office administrator, would you be interested?" Captain Sutherland asked her and Nessa looked taken back.

"She's CPR certified, has a degree in paediatrics, hard working and trustworthy." I said and Nessa looked at me in surprise.

"Um, y-yes. I'd like that." She said and Captain Sutherland nodded.

"Great! Come by tomorrow and we'll talk more about it."

"I will." Nessa said and Captain Sutherland waved before continuing on his way.

"Okay what just happened?" Nessa asked, a shocked look on her face.

"You have another job." I said and she laughed before looking at me nervously.

"You'd be okay with me working here?"

"Yes, why wouldn't I be?" I asked her.

"Because of our... um never mind."

"I know what you're saying, and I really don't mind if you work here, I think it would be great in many ways, okay? Honest."

"Okay." She said.

"Would, would it be okay if I stopped by your place later tonight?"

"Sure." She said.

"Okay, i'll see you later then."

"Yeah." She said and I hesitated before leaning in for a kiss.

Her hand landed on my arm and she held onto it as I nudged her lips apart with my own.

When we broke the kiss she smiled at me before waving goodbye and leaving.

I would stop by her place and talk to her about our relationship...if that's what it was.

I couldn't stop thinking about it the entire day, and after work I picked up the boys and took them home, feeding them dinner, bathing them, and getting them to bed before Luke came over to watch them so I could go over to Nessa's.

When I pulled up in front of her house I could see the light from the television in her living room.

I parked my car and then got out, walking up her sidewalk and up to her front porch, knocking on the door.

A few moments later it opened to reveal Nessa standing there. She had changed clothes from earlier and was wearing grey cotton shorts and a purple tee shirt. Her hair was in that half down half bun style which was cute on her.

"Hey. Come on in." She said and I stepped inside. "How was work?"

"It was good." I said.

She stood there in the middle of the room, her hands behind her back and I looked at her before looking at the ground.

"So what did you want to come over for?" She asked.

"I wanted to talk about...us...?"

"O-okay?"

"Kate mentioned something to me today about that I needed to be more communicative with you, and I haven't had to be that way with a woman in a long time, but she's right. And so I guess I wanted to talk about where and...what we are."

"Calum." She said and then shook her head. "We don't have to rush this."

I nodded.

"But...we also don't have to hide the fact that we do have feelings for each other."

"You're right." I said. "I guess I just don't know what to do."

"Well," she said and I felt a bit of anxiety run through me, "I guess we could start by figuring out what we are."

"What we are." I repeated.

"I mean, were not like boyfriend and girlfriend, but we're more than friends...so we're somewhere in the middle.

"I guess we could say we're dating."

"Is that what you want to say?" She asked me and I nodded.

"Okay, then we're dating."

"Okay."

She looked up at me and I sighed before walking closer to her and placing my hand on the side of her face.

Her eyes were light as they looked up into mine and I felt the soft touch of her hand on my arm.

"If you're going to kiss me, do it like you kissed me today." She whispered and I smirked before leaning in and doing as she said.

She kissed me back and I moved my other arm around her waist. Her mouth tasted like peppermint and chocolate and I was addicted to it.

Nessa was the one to break off the kiss and I opened my eyes to see her catching her breath, and I brushed my nose against hers.

"Um, how long can you stay?" She asked.

"I can stay for a bit." I said and she smiled.

"Okay."

She stepped from my arms and walked into her kitchen.

"I was going to make some tea, do you want some?" She asked.

"Sure."

I leaned on the counter next to her as she made the tea and then handed me a cup. I then followed her to the living room where we sat down on her sofa.

"I'm glad you came over and we got all of that out in the open." She said.

"Me too. And I am excited that you're going to work at the station with me."

"Are you sure?" She asked.

"Yeah. We get to spend more time together, see how each other works; it'll be nice."

"Yeah, I think it will be too." She smiled at me.

It was quiet for a few moments, and I felt like I needed to say something to her.

Something honest.

"I never imagined the woman I would date after my marriage ended would be as pretty as you are." I said.

Nessa snapped her head to look at me and I saw shock in her expression.

"But I guess to be honest...I didn't know if I would ever date again after Meredith."

"Oh." She whispered. She didn't know what to say.

"So I guess what i'm trying to say is that I'm glad it's you...and that you're the girl i'm seeing."

A smile settled on her lips when I said that and she leaned up to kiss my cheek.

"Thank you." She whispered again.

"For what?"

"You didn't have to come over here and talk to me and tell me all of those things, but it's nice to know that you care enough about me and how I feel to do that, so I really appreciate it."

"Well I think if we are going to be with each other the way we are, or escalate what we are in the future, we should know what the other is thinking and how they feel. And I wanted to know how you felt."

"I couldn't agree with you more." Nessa smiled up at me, showing off her dimples and I had a very hard time not kissing her right then and there, so instead I just took her hand in mine, spending my evening with the person I wanted to be with.

Nessa's PoV:

Calum stayed over until around 10:00.

He and I watched television and sipped our tea and made small talk. I had liked tonight. There wasn't any pressure like on a normal date, we were able to just sit there and be together.

Once he had left I managed to go to sleep for a few hours.

In the morning I dressed nicer than I normally did with a black skirt and light grey tee shirt to tuck in. I did my hair in a half bun and then applied makeup before getting in my new car and driving to the corner store.

Kate had opened this morning and I arrived to see her standing behind the counter flipping through a magazine.

"Morning, Kate." I smiled at her as I walked in.

"Hey!" She grinned, her southern accent on full blast. "Did you talk to Calum at all yesterday?"

"Yeah, he came over last night and we talked."

"And?"

"We've decided to say we are dating. Not boyfriend and girlfriend yet, just two people who are very attracted to each other and like spending time together."

"Good. Well I'm glad you two talked."

"Me too." I hugged her. "Oh! I almost forgot! Calum got me a job as the office administrator at the police station."

"Really? Oh that's great, Nessa!"

"Yeah. So after lunch rush i'm going to head over there to talk to Captain Sutherland."

"That's awesome."

Kate and I handled a wave of tourists for the better part of the morning. Most of them were college kids and I was hit on by every guy that came in, so I felt a sudden sense of relief when Calum and his friends walked into the shop while a group of the kids stood at the counter to check out.

A particular guy with blonde hair and blue eyes brighter than a Caribbean ocean was trying to hit me up and I was trying not to slap him.

"So if you're on Instagram do you mind if I follow you? Because my Mom always told me to follow my dreams."

I was about to choke because of his awful pick up line when I felt hands at my waist and looked up to see Calum standing behind me.

He gave me no time to prepare as he ducked down for a kiss.

"Oh my God, thank you." I said under my breath when we broke the kiss and the guy and his friends walked away, obviously intimidated by Calum in his police uniform.

"Have they been bothering you?" Calum asked me.

"It's been all different people all morning long. Where did all of these people come from?"

"There's a festival they're here for, so it's going to be crazy for the next few days."

"Great." I rolled my eyes.

"Tell me about it." He sighed.

Calum walked to the other side of the counter so he could get his lunch while I worked the register and once I had given Calum back his change I stepped out from around the counter and waved goodbye to Kate, walking out with my guy.

"Okay, i'm on my way to the station to talk to Captain Sutherland, so I'll see you tonight at 6:30 to watch the boys?"

"Yup. I might see you before then but I don't know."

"Alright, well i'll see you later then. Bye." I kissed his cheek and waved at him as he and Luke got in a police car.

I walked to the cross walk and began to cross the street to get to the lot where my car was parked when suddenly there was a car honk right next to me and I jumped, snapping my head to the right to see Luke and Calum laughing hysterically in their squad car.

I childishly stuck my tongue out at them and kept walking, making my way to my car and getting in before driving to the police station.

I parked out front and then walked in, looking around for Captain Sutherlands' office. When I finally found it I knocked on the open door and he looked up from where he was sitting behind his desk.

"Ah, hello. Come in." He smiled at me and I walked in. "How are you, Nessa."

"I'm well." I said. "It must be pretty busy for you though."

"Ah, i've got some of the best policemen and women in the state working for me. Have a seat."

I sat in one of the chairs in front of his desk.

"So your back ground check came out clean, so now all we need to do is go over pay, hours, and responsibilities. The job pays 15 an hour and Calum mentioned you have another job so for now we can just have you come in whenever you can. At least five hours a day and maybe more depending on what's going on. And basically you'd be the helper of this station, get here in the mornings and make the coffee so I don't have to, put paper in the copier, transfer calls, do some faxes and emails for me and a some of the other officers and whatever else we need you to do."

"I can do that." I laughed.

"Great. I'll have the paperwork for you by the end of this week, but for now I can show you to your desk and get you set up."

"Great." I smiled.

Captain Sutherland stood up and walked me back to the lobby where there was a counter with a desk behind it.

"So you'll be here. There's a computer and phone for you to set up and if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask."

"Thank you." I smiled and he waved before walking back to his office.

I sat down in the chair and took a deep breath, looking around me.

From my spot I was right in front of the door so I could see who was walking in, and I also had another computer on my desk that had different camera views from around the station.

I turned on my other computer and began to set it up, creating a username and password. Then I set up my phone and did a voicemail message before searching for the supply closet.

I picked out some pens, notepads, a mouse pad for my computer, some paper clips, staples, and sticky notes before returning to my desk and stocking it up.

As I did this several officers came by and introduced themselves, and a few minutes later as I was organising my drawers, a young male officer walked up to me.

"Hello." He said.

"Hi." I smiled back.

"I'm Alex, i'm Captain Sutherlands' son."

I looked at him closer to see had had some of the same facial features as Captain Sutherland, but unlike his father had thick brown hair.

"Oh, it's nice to meet you, i'm Nessa, the new office administrator."

"Yeah. My dad just sent me to bring you all of this."

Alex then set a stack of binders and notebooks and a sticker and badge on my desk.

"This is the sticker for your car so you can park in the lot we park in, this is your badge to wear so you can get in the secure areas and also scan in and out, and these have information you need to know about the department."

"Wow. Okay, thanks. I'll get right on it."

"Cool." Alex nodded and then left my desk.

After this I made my way around the building, learning the format. I found the break room, meeting room, kitchen, bathrooms, and then the cells which I decided not to check out.

I then went back to my desk and began to flip through the books. I needed to learn the names of all of the officers and type their phone extension on a word document so I could laminate it and have it on my desk.

As I did this more officers introduced themselves to me and when it got to be 6:10 I knew I had to leave for Calum's place.

I hadn't seen him come back so I knew he had probably taken the kids home from daycare really quick.

He was going to be super tired.

I decided to give him and Luke and extra something for when they came back and so I bought a candy bar from the vending machine for both of them then walked to the mail room and placed them in their boxes along with a little note.

Then I was able to leave and drove straight to Calum's house.

I parked in front and then walked up to the door, knocking and not seconds later it flung open to reveal Calum.

"Hey." He said and let me in.

"Hey." I said slowly, seeing how rushed he looked.

Then I noticed the mess. There was a bowl of cereal spilled on the floor, Cade was crying and Eli was pulling on Calum's arm.

"Sorry, things are crazy right now." Calum said and I could hear the stress in his voice, and see it all over his face.

"It's okay, you're obviously stressed. Leave, I can handle this."

"No, I can-"

"Calum! Go! I've got this."

He stared at me for a moment before nodding.

"Okay."

"I'll see you later." I said and he nodded again before dodging out the door.

Now to get this under control.

I first went to Cade and picked him up before taking him to the boys room where I sat in the rocking chair and rocked him to calm him down.

He held onto my hair once he had settled down and I rocked him for a few more minutes before taking him back in the living room and setting him on the floor where Eli was playing Legos.

"Hey Eli." I patted and kissed the top of his head before going to get towels and a mop to clean up the cereal mess.

When that was done I sat down on the sofa and took a deep breath.

"Nessa, I want a hug." Eli climbed up on the sofa with me.

"You do?" I asked him and he nodded. "Come here then."

"Daddy yelled at me." Eli pouted as I held him.

"Why did he yell at you?"

"Because he was cranky."

"I know that, but you have to remember in those times when he is cranky, you have to be sweet and patient."

"Okay." He nodded.

"Here, let's send your Daddy a photo." I said and took my phone and took a picture of Eli hugging me around my neck and the two of us smiling before texting it to Calum.

It wasn't until after I had cooked dinner for the boys and myself that I got a reply from Calum.

'That's cute! Sorry I rushed out but thanks for all of your help, I appreciate it and you more than you know. And thanks for the candy bar by the way, it is my favourite. I think it deserves an extra special kiss the next time I see you ;)'

'I'm looking forward to it ;)'

I sent back a text to him and then continued eating with Eli and Cade.

After a dinner of chicken nuggets, macaroni and cheese, and corn, I let the boys play a bit longer before getting them in the bath.

Cade was back to his smiley self and splashed around in the water as I washed his and Elis' hair.

Once they were clean I got them out of the bath and to their bedroom where Eli put on his pyjamas while I dried Cade off, put him in a diaper, and then into his pyjamas.

I then sat in the rocking chair with Cade and began to rock him until he fell asleep.

I put him in his crib and then went over to Eli.

"Goodnight." I kissed his cheek and he smiled at me.

"Night, Nessa."

Eli turned over in his blankets after I tucked him in and I turned out the light, leaving the door open as I left.

I made my way to the living room and sat down on the sofa.

Today had been kind of crazy, and a bit weird.

I had a new job, I had been hit on by more men in one day than I could've imagined, I hadn't seen Calum as much as I normally did and when I did see him he was stressed and putting off a weird vibe.

But his texts were sweet and like his normal
self, maybe he just needed to get past today, rest, and he would be back to normal.

I was suddenly ripped from my thought by the sound of my phone ringing, and I thought it was Calum but it only rang once.

When it stopped and then rang again I knew it was either my father, Dawson, or Jess.

"Hello?" I answered.

"Abby. Hey, sweetheart."

It was my dad.

"Hi, Daddy."

"How are you? Where are you?"

"I'm good. I'm still in Georgia."

"Is it okay there."

"Yeah, Daddy, I actually love it here."

"You do?" He asked.

"Yeah. I have a house and I just bought a car. I have two jobs, well three if you count babysitting, and i've met this guy and...I don't know I just really love it."

"Abby, I know you left because you had to, but don't get more people involved than you need to."

My breath caught in my throat.

"What?"

"Like this guy, buying a house and a car, are you planning on staying there forever?"

"Well I can't come back to New York, and I have people here who care about me, I have safety and security here. I think this could be where I settle down."

"Abby-"

"Abby doesn't exist anymore Daddy. I have to be Nessa now."

"I just want to make sure you know what you're doing."

"I do. I don't think I could ever go back to New York. But I have a home here and two jobs that I love. And the guy i'm seeing, Calum, he's a police officer and I work at the station and he makes me feel safe."

"He's a police officer? Abby are you crazy?"

"Abby Whitfield doesn't exist anymore! Daddy you have to understand that! I'm Nessa! Abby died! I'm Nessa!" I exclaimed into the phone.

He was silent for a few moments then I heard him sigh.

"Okay then Nessa, so you're dating a police officer?"

"Yeah. He's really sweet. He has two kids, that's actually who I'm babysitting now."

"How old is he?"

"25. His wife passed away two years ago."

"Oh."

"But I-"

"Nessa?"

I was interrupted by a voice not on the phone and looked to see Eli standing at the end of the hall.

"Yeah?" I asked him.

"I can't sleep."

"Okay, i'll come tuck you back in. Go to bed and i'll be there in a minute."

He nodded and walked back to his room.

"Hey I have to go. But call me soon."

"Yeah. Bye sweetheart."

"Bye." I said and hung up the phone before going to the boys room where Eli was sitting up in his bed.

"Okay, lay down." I walked over and kneeled down next to him.

"Why were you yelling?" He asked me.

"Oh, I didn't mean to wake you up. I'm sorry." I frowned as I pulled the blanket back over him.

"Who were you talking to?"

"I was talking to my Dad."

"Oh." He said and I smiled at him.

"Go back to sleep." I smoothed my hand across the blanket and then left the room again.

I went to clean up the kitchen and table area before going back to the sofa to watch television.

I was completely exhausted and was trying not to fall asleep when a few hours later the door opened and I looked to see Calum walk in.

It was only 1:00 A.M.

"Hey, you're back early." I said as he closed the door.

"Yeah, it started to rain so people left the place early." He said and then yawned. "I'll be right back."

I watched as he walked back to his room, undoing his belt and he came back a minute later and sat down next to me on the sofa.

"You okay?" I asked him softly.

"Yeah, I'm just tired." He sighed.

"Well then I can go and you can get some sleep." I patted his hand and went to stand up.

"No." He placed his hand on my arm and had me sit back down. "I barely got to see you today."

"Calum, you're tired, and there's no point in talking if you're too exhausted to even know what we are taking about. Get some sleep and I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Okay." He whispered and the two of us stood up.

"Goodnight, Calum." I kissed his cheek and then took my bag, leaving.

I saw him watch me as I left and when I got to my car outside I could see him standing in the living room.

I drove off as he walked down the hall.

Maybe tomorrow with him would be better.

--

New chapter for the new year!

Hope everyone had an amazing holiday season and that 2017 is an amazing year for everyone!

Much love xx-M