I Still Believe (Criss Angel Sequel from very 1st book *Believe*)

*4*

As soon as Klayton slid down the railing and took a wild leap to the dining room Angie remembered him and his wild hair instantly and was in his lap before he sat down all the way in his chair and screamed Uncle Stoney! Klayton put her in a bear hug and drowned her with kisses, and told her how big she's grown, then he added that pretty soon he wouldn't be able to call her Squirt anymore. Angie reached up and touched his piercing like she used to do when she was a baby and kissed him again and told him she would always be his Squirt, then she hopped down and went to her seat like a good girl.

Abby sat down, as I came in but before I sat down I noticed my hubby was still not down yet but I wasn't in the mood to play wake up call with him, so I went over to Angie and told her to go get her daddy up before I went up there and poured cold water all over his silly ass. Angela ran up the stairs and peeked into the bedroom where her daddy was snoring lightly...she playfully tiptoed into the room then jumped on top of him and started tickling him, but he was already awake and knew she came in and was ready for her. He rolled her over and tickled her all over as he said he heard her mom calling, he just wanted to see which one would come get him this time. Criss stood up and bent over so Angie could jump on his back and he piggybacked her down the stairs then turned around as she plopped down in her chair, then he came up behind me and kissed my neck, and whispered next time it was my turn to come wake him up. I giggled at him and told him to go find his seat and eat before it gets cold or his crazy blood brother decided to eat it all.

We all ate in peace during our first dinner that we had together in a long time, then as we sat around and talked letting our food settle a little bit, I asked Klayton how long they were going to be able to stay with us because I really missed them being around. Klayton finished his glass of water and said they were going to be staying for as long as Criss and I could handle them being there, because the truth of the matter was, he was looking for a place in Vegas to buy so he could be closer to us, instead of living all the way in New York. Angela ran to his lap again as she said Yay every neighbor within ten miles could have heard. 

After everyone left the table and Klayton gave me a kiss and told me how delicious dinner was, I started hauling the dirties to the kitchen so I could get them cleaned up. Criss went into the den to keep Klayton entertained by playing a game of pool with him. Angie wanted to help by rinsing and drying the dishes, and Abby finished up by putting them away for me, then I handed Angela the dishcloth and she ran out to the table and wiped it clean then came back in and handed it to me. I rinsed the cloth out and sat it across the center of the sink then I turned out the light and went into the den with the others. Angela sat on her high stool that Criss got for her, so she could watch them play pool for a while as Abby and I were sitting on the large sofa chatting about her babies that were on the way, and how much fun and how crazy it was going to be every now and then.

It wasn't until around 10:00 that night that I realized Angela was still up watching them play...I stood up and lifted her off the stool and told her it was way past her bedtime, and that she needed to go upstairs and get her jammies on and brush her teeth, then go straight to bed. Criss kissed me and apologized for letting time slip by without noticing. But beens it was Friday night and it was Summer, I told him I'd let it slide this time, and Angela could sleep in tomorrow. Angie came back down in her jammies and kissed everyone and told them all good night but when she heard Spike whining at the door she turned around and asked us if she could let Spike in so she could sleep with him. I didn't really want the dogs in the house after I just got it spotless from top to bottom, but Criss looked at me then gave her permission to let Spike in.

Angela went to the sliding door and opened it very slightly just enough for Spike to squeeze in without the larger dogs getting in, even though she and everyone knew that Criss would have all the dogs back in the house before morning anyway. Spike did his happy bounce when he saw everyone, then Angela called him to come to bed and he raced up the stairs and beat her to her bed. After she got snuggled under her blanket Spike settled down and curled up at her feet and went to sleep. Criss and I both went up to tuck her in and say the nighttime prayers with her, then we gently closed the door and went back down to chat a little longer with Klayton and Abby, before we all decided it was bedtime. Klayton slid in next to Abby and rubbed her tummy as he told her night. Criss held hands with me all the way to our bed then I slid in first as he turned off the lights and joined me. He whispered sweetly in my ear for a while then we snuggled with our wedding bands touching as our hands were intertwined, and peacefully went to sleep.