"I'm sure," Diane drawled.

"What did Luke take so long with?" Alyssa asked confusingly.

"Luke and Olivia grew up together. By high school, they were dating which continued into college. After college he just let her walk away!" Diane exclaimed, her hand flying in the air.

Alyssa's brows lifted. "He did?"

"Kind of . . . not really. I hurt Luke by not telling him about my plans. I just kept it a secret until it was all finalized, which was so stupid thinking back on it now. I should have told him, I should've included him, but I didn't and it only backfired. Once he found out, he refused to make a compromise, so I left." Olivia shook her head, the smile fading from her eyes. "I don't blame him for not coming after me . . . I would've been hurt too and probably done the same." She shrugged. "It's all over now and we're together like we should've been from the beginning and that's what counts. Sometimes you have to take the good with the bad and deal with it as best you can. The distance was difficult, and there were some tough times for both of us. We both were forced to climb mountains without each other's support, but the way I see it, it was meant to happen."

"You really think that it was meant to happen?"

"I do. What's meant to happen will find its way, Alyssa. It always does."

Alyssa thought about what Olivia said for a moment and then of John. "I guess you're right."

"I am right," she said, smiling and then took a sip of her overly sweet tea. The sound of sliding doors broke the conversation and Alyssa looked over her shoulder to see John walking toward her with an empty water bottle in his hand. His face lit up, dimples and all showing. John made her heart beat fast every time she looked at him. He walked right up to her, wrapped an arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple, tugging her to him. He went to hold her from behind and Brooke began fussing.

Picking his head up, he smiled at Brooke. "Awe, is my little cupcake jealous I have her mommy?" he asked, walking over to her. Brooke reached for John, nearly jumping out of Diane's arms. He put down his water and grabbed her. She leaned in for a Brooke kind of kiss then rested her head on the curve of his neck. Her tiny hand ran along John's neck searching for his tags. He pulled them out of his shirt and handed them to Brooke, who began rubbing them between her fingers as if they soothed her. John rubbed her back gently and went back to Alyssa. Olivia and Diane stood silently watching, their heads both tilted to the side.

"When's dinner ready, Ma? I'm starved."

"Now! Let's eat," she said enthusiastically. They began to walk to the dining room, but Olivia placed a hand on Alyssa's arm stopping her.

Looking her straight in the eyes, Olivia said, "I know we don't know each other very well, and I hope that changes one day, but I need to say something."

"Okay . . ." she trailed off.

"Don't question why John does what he does, Alyssa. It's clear as day how he feels about you and Brooke. Hopefully you'll see it one day, but just in that small interaction in the kitchen he's head over heels in love with you and your daughter. It's really sweet. Sometimes we don't see what's right in front of us . . . Don't make the same mistake I did and shut him out. The Jackson brothers are good men. Just roll with it," she said, squeezing her arm and then walked away leaving Alyssa speechless.

After dinner, Brooke bounced joyfully on Olivia's knees while Alyssa helped clear the table. John walked outside with his father and Luke to talk. Being in John's home with his family made her long for a family of her own. Sadly, that would never happen. Her father was long gone and her mother had disowned her. She'd been abandoned by her only family. Even with John and Luke out of the house now, they were still one whole unit, not broken apart or fighting. It was gratifying being among them.

"Alyssa, John was telling me that you work a double every Saturday. So you have a sitter that whole day?"

Handing another dish to Diane, she said, "Actually, I have a regular babysitter every Saturday and during the week it's someone else. I found a girl who is getting her degree online and needed extra cash. She comes to my house to watch Brooke and when she sleeps she'll work on her school work. I work two doubles, Fridays and Saturdays, and then a few nights. That way during the day I'm with Brooke. It works out pretty well for all of us."

Diane looked at Alyssa from the corner of her eye. "Except when she's sick and can't come in."

"Yeah . . . then I'm kind of in a bind. Luckily, that doesn't happen often and my boss understands."

"Have you considered going back to college?"

Of course she had, but having Brooke meant putting herself on the back burner.

"I have, but I also need to put a roof over my daughter's head so that kind of takes priority right now."

"What about your mother? Doesn't she help?"

This wasn't an easy topic for her and she was kind of wishing John had told his mother so she didn't have to.

"She still refuses to speak to me. So, no."

Diane spun around, soapy water dripping from her hands. "What do you mean, sweetie? I thought she was passed that."

Alyssa shook her head. "She was a teen mom, so I guess I messed everything up for her when she got pregnant? I'm not sure, Diane, and honestly, I never asked. It's like saying she wishes she never had me, and that's hard to take." Alyssa looked over her shoulder at Brooke with a sad smile on her face. "I could never feel that way about my daughter, but I also don't regret her either so maybe there's a difference," she said quietly.

Diane's eyes softened, her heart pouring out through them. "I'm so sorry she made you feel that way."

She shook it off. "It is what it is."

When Diane didn't respond, Alyssa just shrugged. She suspected Diane had more to say but was holding back. Call it intuition, but she knew something was on the tip of her tongue.

"You're a good girl." Diane dried her hands. "How about you take a break and I'll do the rest."

She just had Alyssa over for dinner. As if she would just sit there while she cleaned up. "Oh, no. I could never sit while you do it all. I don't mind helping." Alyssa grabbed a dish and towel dried it before Diane could say no, and then did another.

Once they were finished, Alyssa checked on Brooke, who was now sleeping peacefully in Olivia's arms. A full belly and some play time would have her napping for at least an hour or so. Walking back in the kitchen, it was just Diane and Alyssa.

"Do you need help with anything else?" Alyssa asked.

"Oh, you've been such a dear. I think everything is pretty much cleaned up. All I need to do is stick the pie to heat up in the oven. However, I want to ask you something." Diane poured two glasses of sweet tea and handed one to Alyssa. "Come sit down."

Anxiety rolled through Alyssa's stomach. There were so many things Diane could bring up to talk to her about. One being how she unintentionally hurt John . . . the paternity . . .

Diane took a sip of her tea then pulled Alyssa's hands into hers. Her dainty fingers curled around and she squeezed her hands softly. "Now I want you to hear me out and think about what I'm going to say before you say no."

"Okay . . ." Alyssa's eyes narrowed.

"How would you feel about allowing me to keep Brooke on the weekends so you could work? Clark and I gave it a lot of thought last night and it's something I would really like to do for you. I can only offer one weekend a month right now until I see how I can handle a baby all day with MS, but maybe down the line I could take on more for you. We miss having babies around and would love to have Brooke."

Alyssa was silent. She didn't know what to say. All she knew was that her emotions were running in opposite directions. She was moved beyond measure by Diane's kindness. She didn't want to cry, but for some reason her generosity moved her deeply. Maybe because her own mother had never shown it to her.

Taking a deep breath, she said, "As much as I appreciate your offer, I can't. It won't work out. By the time I get off and drive here, it would be in the early hours of the morning. Thank you, though."

"Figured you'd say that. So how about you bring her to me Thursday night and pick her up on Sunday? That way you guys can come for Sunday dinner, too? I don't know where you and John are at relationship wise, but that doesn't matter to us."

Alyssa swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat.

"Honey, I raised four rowdy boys. What's one more? A little MS can't slow me down." She winked at Alyssa. "Go home and think about it before you decide."

"I guess I could always pay you instead of Natalie . . ."

"Don't you dare! I will not take your hard earned money. You save it. Spend it on Brooke if you want, but you are not paying me. Do you understand?"

Alyssa's heart was heavy. Diane threw her a curve ball. "Diane . . . I can't do-"

"Yes, you can. No ifs, ands, or buts, about it."

"Diane-"

"Alyssa, I will not argue with you about this. I will not accept your money."

"I'm sorry, I just can't do it. It wouldn't be right."

Diane let go of Alyssa's hands and sat back. She crossed her arms over her chest and tilted her head to the side, her strong, grayish-blue eyes never leaving Alyssa's. "You're just as hardheaded as me." They both sat in silence staring off at each other. Alyssa wasn't backing down. In what felt like ten minutes was probably only one when Diane said, "Fine. You have a deal."

"Really? Just like that?"

"Really?"

"Yes. If you feel like you need to pay me, that's fine. Anyway I can spend time with that little ball of sweetness, I'll take it."

Alyssa smiled so big her cheeks hurt. Once again, The Jackson's generosity hit Alyssa hard. As much as she would like the help, would she be able to leave her daughter for all those days once a month?

John mimicked Luke's pose and crossed his legs in front, resting back in the wicker chair. He just finished telling Luke about what happened with Ben and the custody papers.

"Wow," he whistled. "Gotta say, I wasn't expecting that from you."

"She's been through a lot, I just want her to be happy."

Luke nodded his head in agreement. "That's a cute kid in there. You seem pretty attached."

He looked at his brother with an ear to ear grin. "I am. She's got me wrapped around her sticky finger."

"And Alyssa is okay with this?"

John chuckled. "Depends what time of the day you ask her."

Luke looked at him and John answered the question Luke had written on his face without having to ask it. "She thinks I'm going to just up and leave if it gets to be too much and she doesn't want that for Brooke. I've told her a thousand times I'm not going anywhere. I think she's finally starting to see it."

"You're young, man, twenty-one. You sure you want this kind of responsibility?" Luke asked, brows raised high.

"There isn't a doubt in my mind, Luke. She's everything to me."

"And you're sure? There's a kid involved. You can't mess around like that."

Wasn't that the same thing Alyssa had been telling him? Why didn't anyone believe him when he said he wasn't playing around?

"Put yourself in my shoes. What if that was Livy? What would you do?"

Luke took a swig of his beer. "No question about it. Livy is everything to me, too, always has been. You know this. I lost her once and I won't lose her again. I refuse. I'd do anything to keep her."

"Now you know what I'm talking about. I may not have lost Alyssa the way you did Livy, but I did lose a little bit of her spirit. She was hurt pretty bad, so I'm doing what I can to bring it back up."

"I guess I'd be doing what you're doing then." Luke paused before he answered. Easing back on the bench, Luke's brows angled in puzzlement at his brother.

"Nope. Not talking about it. I know what you're thinking, and it's not my story to tell."

Luke raised his hands defensively. "I didn't ask."

"You didn't have to. It's written on your face."

"Is she okay?"

"She will be in time."

Luke slapped John's back and squeezed the curve of his neck. "Glad to see you've changed. Thought I was going to lose you there."

Sadness crept through John's body. His best friend Jace, his own stupid drunk moments . . .

Yeah, he thought for a moment he was losing himself, too.

"Nah, I'm too stubborn to leave this world early. Plus, seeing what I have," John shook his head, "I never want to leave. It's killing me knowing the weekend is over and I have to head back to base tonight. I wish I could stay with my cupcake all the time."

Luke reared back. "Cupcake? Dude," he huffed out a laugh. "I don't want to know what you call Alyssa behind closed doors."

John barked out a laugh. It felt good talking with his older brother. "That's what I call Brooke, you ass!"

"Man. Who are you and what have you done with my brother?"

John chuckled. "Find the right girl and she can change everything."

"Cheers to that."

"You'll take what?" John asked walking into the kitchen. He stopped where Alyssa was sitting and draped an arm over her shoulders.

"Alyssa here has just agreed to let me watch Brooke one weekend a month."

John looked down at Alyssa with contentment showing in his eyes. Alyssa could feel it pouring out of him and when he squeezed her shoulder, her stomach flipped. It was obvious how happy he was over this.

"I think that's a great idea. In fact, I was going to suggest that I take her on Saturdays for you," John said.

Alyssa tilted her head up to John, her forehead scrunched. "I can't have you watch her every Saturday. You have your own life. What if you want to make plans or something and you're tied down to babysit?"

John's eyes lowered, darkening. "You are my life. Why don't you let me decide what I want? What did I tell you?"

A heavy breath rolled off her lips. He had told her he wasn't going anywhere countless times. Alyssa glanced back to Diane to gauge her response. The tips of her lips curved slightly and her hidden smile was aimed at her son. Had she not looked into Diane's eyes and seen the love and humble affection then maybe she wouldn't have noticed the smile too.

"I think that's a great idea, honey. I agree with John." Diane nodded energetically and Alyssa couldn't help but laugh. Of course she agreed with her son.

"Speaking of Brooke, where is my little girl?" John asked.

Alyssa stood from her chair. "She's asleep in Olivia's arms. I offered to take her, but she insisted on holding her."

They both walked into the living room. Brooke was sound asleep sprawled out on Olivia with her thumb hanging out of her mouth.

"Hey now-don't get any ideas," Luke said to Olivia as he sat down next to her. "I want you all to myself for a bit before we start popping out little hellions."

"But Luke," Olivia whined. "How cute is she? Look at her chunky thighs. The little rolls," Olivia picked up her foot and showed Luke, who smiled.