Part 133
Nick must have fallen asleep as well, because it was well after nine when he turned to find himself alone, a spare blanket carefully covering him up. From downstairs he could hear muted sounds and something in the kitchen smelled wonderful. Not bothering with his shoes, he wandered downstairs, stretching and running his hands through his hair. This is how Becca turned to find him, mid-yawn, his fingers deeply entangled in his blonde locks.
God, she thought, if he only knew how many women would give their right arm to be here right now… She must have moaned and as she focused on his face once more, she found him grinning lazily at her.
"Fantasize much, Bec?" he smirked, folding his arms and leaning against the doorway.
"No, not at all," she replied, tossing a wet dishtowel at his head.
"Liar," he grinned.
"You give yourself way too much credit, Carter," she snorted, stirring the pot of pasta that was simmering on the stove.
Moving behind her, he wrapped his arms around her now-ample waist and began nibbling on her neck. "Smells good, Bec, I'm starving."
"Then leave my neck alone, blonde boy. Go wash up, dinner will be ready in about five minutes."
"What is it?" he asked, lifting a lid from the pot on the back burner.
"Fettuccine Alfredo, and leave that alone!" she waved a wooden spoon at him and he backed away laughing.
"Damn, Bec, you gotta stop hanging around Sarah, her attitude is contagious."
"Hormones, baby. Don't mess with a hormonal woman." She turned back once again to stir the sauce.
"No way. Besides, why do I have the feeling I'm going to be hearing that excuse the rest of my life?"
"I have no idea, Nicky," she asked, her eyes wide with innocence.
"Yuh huh," he said, "tell that to someone who DOESN'T have a house full of sisters." As he left the kitchen to wash up, he turned for one parting shot. "Ya know, this look suits you," he commented, looking her over from head to toe.
"Yeah?" she asked, her eyes softening with love. "How so?"
"In the kitchen, barefoot and pregnant," he smirked.
"OUT! Get OUT of my kitchen, Carter." The wooden spoon she'd been waving at him earlier barely missed his head as he ducked out, laughing all the way down the hall.
Becca grinned as she turned her back. "He's such a pig. And GOD I love him."
*******
"So, what did you do today besides sleep and cook?" Nick asked as he spooned a second helping of pasta onto his plate.
"Smart-ass," Becca quipped, "I did plenty."
"Such as?" he grinned. He loved to get her all worked up like this. Her eyes sparkled as they bantered back and forth, her cheeks took on a rosy tinge and it almost always led to some fantastic sex.
"Don't even think about it tonight, mister," she said, knowing full well what was on his mind. "Baby has been bad today and I'm worn out."
"I'm sorry, Bec," he said, softening his voice. "Anything I can do to help?"
"A backrub would be perfect."
"You got it, right after I clean the kitchen."
Becca sighed, once again wondering what she'd done to deserve him. Her eyes misted over and she tried in vain to cover the sniffles behind her napkin.
Nick watched her tears and wisely chose to ignore them. Lately it seemed like every little thing set her to crying and she didn't need him hovering tonight. "This was great, baby.
Thank you." He helped himself to the rest of his dinner watching her covertly from beneath his lashes. "So, really Bec, what did you do today?"
Becca slowly twirled her pasta onto her fork, seemingly lost in her thoughts. Nick was about to ask again when she spoke.
"I talked to Alex this afternoon." She didn't look up, giving her words a chance to sink in and also giving Nick a chance to reply. When he didn't, she continued. "He sounds great, Nick. We talked for a long time."
"That's good, Bec." Nick put down his fork, his appetite suddenly gone.
Becca watched him for some sign that he cared, some sign that the friendship he and Alex had shared was still there.
"He called *me*, Nick. Well, actually, I think he was looking for you, but-"
"Bec, it's okay. I'm glad you got a chance to talk to him. He's had a rough time." Nick stood and began clearing the table, his face a mask that showed nothing of how he was really feeling. "Go put your feet up, I said I'd clean up," he motioned Becca away as she began to pick up the rest of the silverware and the glasses.
"Nick-"
"Bec, let it go. I said I'm okay." Silently he rinsed the dishes, loading them into the dishwasher as his mind went back to that last night in the hotel in Boston.
He knew Becca was still there, he could feel her. It was just a matter of time before she started up again. Three, two, one-
"He thinks you hate him, Nick."
"That’s crazy!"
"Is it true?" No beating around the bush tonight.
Nick turned the dishwasher on and leaned back against the sink, his hands resting on the countertop. "I don’t hate him, Becca, he's my friend." Nick's voice grew heavy with emotion. "He's been a part of this for as long as *I* have, I could never hate him."
"Then you need to tell him, Nick. Have you talked to him at all since he left?"
Nick's silence was answer enough.
"Then you're the only one, baby. Even Sarah and Howie stopped by on their way to their honeymoon."
"I don’t know how I can face him, Becca."
"What? What are you talking about?" Becca was more confused than ever.
"That night, before he left, I said some really rotten things to him."
"Nick, you were angry, hurting."
"So what? And that's supposed to make it okay? That I ripped my friend a new asshole when he was going through one of the most horrible times of his life?" Nick snorted.
"Yeah, baby, that makes me a really big man, doesn't it."
"Nick-"
"And I broke my fucking hand on his face. Oh, excuse me, 'playing basketball'. I forgot that's how it 'really' happened. Yeah, I was so fucking supportive of my friend." He stomped from the room, tossing the dishrag on the table and flinging open the door to the patio.
Becca wiped a weary hand over her eyes and said a silent prayer for strength as she followed him outside. Her heart ached as she watched him lean on the railing by the pool.
"Becca, he could have hurt you. He could have hurt you just like he did Sarah, you know? And I lost it. He was so damned cocky and I just saw red, so I went after him. I wanted him to hurt the way Sarah and Howie hurt. I wanted him to not be able to hurt anyone else…" His voice drifted away as he finally let go of the anger he'd held inside since that last night they were all together. "How can I face him, Bec? I'm such a jerk."
"Baby, you're not. He knows how you felt, truly he does." She put her arm around him and lay her cheek against his arm. "Nicky, he apologized again."
"He's a better man than me, then."
"No, he's not, he's just had a lot more time to think about it than you have. He invited us out there to see him."
"Yeah?"
"I want to go." She turned him toward her and looked into his eyes. "We need to do this, Nick."
"I dunno…"
"For you as well as for Alex, Nick. Look, do you really want your first meeting to be with the press around? Because that's what will happen. You know that as soon as he's out of rehab they're going to swarm ALL of you, just looking for something new and juicy to write about. You need to heal your relationship with Alex before they show up and start hounding you for interviews, because you KNOW they will. You need to be able to present a unified front the first time you're in front of the cameras."
Nick hugged her closely before turning back toward the house.
"Where are you going?" Becca asked.
"To call my mom. I want to see what A.C.'s schedule looks like so I can get us on a plane to Arizona. Then I'm gonna call Alex."
Becca smiled gently. "I'll be up in the nursery. There's some stuff I want to measure." She kissed him sweetly and climbed the stairs as he reached for the phone.
An hour later, all the plans and reservations were made and Nick followed Becca upstairs, a huge weight lifted off his shoulders. Soft light spilled out from the room that was to become the nursery, and he stepped inside to find Becca asleep once again, curled up in her Cracker Barrel rocking chair holding a chubby stuffed bear that Carson had sent shortly after their interview in June. Turning off the light he carefully picked her up and carried her to their room where he tucked her beneath the comforter. Quietly he stripped off his clothes and slid in beside her, smiling to himself as she murmured 'I love you' in her sleep.
"I love you too, baby," he said softly. "Both of you," he added, cupping his hand around her abdomen and closing his eyes.