Rain Check?

~111~

"I don't understand why you won't tell me anything about the reception," Dempsey complains to Chris as he moves around the kitchen of his, soon to be their, California home.

  "Damn, woman!" he jokingly yells while pulling a pot out of the cupboard, making a loud crashing sound as several fall into a new spot from the disruption to the stack. "Just give me this one. Have I ever let you down?"

  She eyes him closely as he stops what he's doing to turn and face her. She leans up closer on the table that sits in his kitchen. Opening up the palm of her hand, she holds it out. Chris sighs and feigns annoyance as he reaches into his back pocket and pulls out his wallet. He fishes through a couple of bills until he locates the ten and drops it in the palm of her hand.

  "You know, Carly won't have to worry about Ethan's college costs with having you for an uncle."

  "I mean, I can afford to send all the nephews and nieces to ever come into this family to college and still have enough for our own kids. I mean, I am gonna get residuals for Cap until I die," he reminds her.

  She doesn't change her gaze. "No. I mean because of that mouth of yours."

  He leans down on the table across from her. "You like this mouth of mine," he teases his lips with his tongue before gripping it gently between his teeth. 

  "Down boy," she laughs out, pushing him back away from her with the palm of her hand to his face. "You're gonna have a house full here shortly."

   Chris grips her hand in his, bringing her palm back to his lips for a kiss. "Doesn't mean I can't play until the gate buzzes."

  "Yes, actually it does. Lunch isn't gonna make itself ya know."

  "Not here, but there's always delivery." He pulls his cell out of his front pocket. His brow furrows as he notices a missed message. "Looks like they're already on their way. Said they had no issues getting luggage or the shuttles I secured. So, Chinese sound good to you?"

  "The kids don't eat Chinese, Chris."

  "I'll cook grilled cheese for them. At least that's something Miles 'wikes,'" he tells her while thumbing through the delivery apps on his phone. He glances up for a moment when Dempsey doesn't speak, noticing her brow quirked. "Well, he liked it last week. Sue me for hoping he still does this week. There's peanut butter and jelly too."

  "Crunchy  or smooth?" she asks, again remembering things Chris has forgotten about his family.

  His shoulder fall as he answers, "Smooth. Crap."  

 Dempsey smiles and holds up a hand for a high five across the table. "Good job, you get to keep your money that time. But, you may want to stock your house with crunchy peanut butter when you know they're all coming. Not like Cap can't afford it."

  "Nah, that'll break his bank. Crunchy is way more expensive than smooth." He goes back to working through the lunch order.

 "But don't worry. I heard Cap's sugar mama, unemployed teacher, future wife has a few bucks stock piled away."

  Chris lifts his eyes from his phone. "You're such a smart ass,' he says smugly.

  Dempsey smirks and holds her hand out once more. "That'll be twenty, sir."

Dempsey POV

  My anxiety has only grown the closer we get to six in the evening, knowing that in just a few minutes a car will be coming by to pick up the women for an evening out on the town. "Someone's going to spot us with Chris' mom and sisters," I remind Sawyer as I pass her the curling iron.