Catch My Breath • •

[Paisley Amelia McIntyre]

He was gorgeous. Jet black hair and bright blue eyes, six foot tall, and just about everything a girl could dream of. Paisley had hardly been able to believe it when he had given her his number the previous week in the diner. A lunchtime trip with Athena and Bridget was hardly out of the norm, but being asked out by the handsome guy from across the room at the end of it was. David was everything dreams were made of and Paisley was looking forward to this Friday night since the moment the date was planned. Once her classes were finished she headed straight back to her own apartment to get ready, taking her time with a long soak in the bath before picking out one of her favourite dresses. Usually, Friday nights meant pizza at Graham’s with him and Carson, and once the little boy was in bed they would break out the beers, or the wine if they were feeling like something fancier, and have some grown up time to relax. However, today she hadn’t seen the drama professor since lunch when she reminded him that she wouldn’t be at his place tonight because of the date with Mr. Perfect as the girls had been teasingly calling him all week long.

The date itself was about as perfect as a first date could be. It was one of the best restaurants in the city, David didn’t cheap out on the wine menu, and the food was incredible. He asked plenty of questions about Paisley’s life, actually listened when she spoke passionately about her job and her love of Shakespeare and literature, and spoke about himself. He was a surgeon, working in the city now after volunteering for Doctors without Borders for the last two years. He doted on his niece and nephew, planned to run the New York City marathon for charity next year, and had two rescue dogs. He was the guy every mother wanted to call their son-in-law, and the man no father could find fault in. Practically perfect in every way, Paisley should have felt over the moon to be on the date with him because he was amazing, and she knew that. Alas, while she was in total awe at his accomplishments and knew that he was the dream guy for almost every girl on the planet, she was having the same problem she had been having on every other date in the last few years; all she wanted was to be curled up on Graham’s couch.

It had plagued her almost ever since she had started hanging out with the drama professor. Every man she dated never made it beyond a second date because of it. No matter where they took her or what they did, she just wanted to be back there, beer in hand. It was ridiculous. In the past she had convinced herself it was just a bad date, an incompatible guy. Graham was so close to her, his place being her second home in the city that it seemed natural to want to be there when a date was going terrible. However this date was the closest thing to a dream date anyone could ever ask for and her heart still longed to be curled up in that house, next to that goofy man, with pizza and a drink within reach! It was ridiculous! She just about made it through the remainder of the date without pulling her hair out in sheer frustration, but Paisley said her goodbyes outside of the restaurant and flagged down a separate cab for herself. At first she was going to go home and just put herself to bed with a bad movie and a bottle of wine, but she found herself giving the driver Graham’s address.

The cab pulled up outside and by this point Paisley was done. She wanted to be able to live her life, to date and meet a guy who she might spend the rest of her life with. If that meant confronting Graham, getting this over with, and putting some distance between them then so be it. She couldn’t spend another year going on dates only to want to come back to another man by the end of them. It wasn’t healthy. None of it even made sense to her. She knew her feelings for Graham had twisted and tangled themselves after all this time, but she had ignored them the best she could for the sake of everyone. What good was it if they were still stopping her from meeting someone and finding her own future? She knocked on the door, loud enough for Graham to hear, but not loud enough to wake Carson if he was home and not sleeping at a friend’s. It was late, long gone eleven, and this wasn’t a conversation topic for a little boy to hear.

• • •

TAGGED! Graham Hunter Price
WORDS! 816!
OUTFIT! Pretty Perfect!
LYRICS! (Kissed You) Good Night - - - Gloriana
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Graham Hunter Price]

Graham was content in his life. He had a good job, teaching the next generation of actors how to hone their craft. He had his wonderful, energetic and adventurous son to keep him busy. And when Graham couldn’t do that, they had Bo to tire the kindergartener out no, the first grader now. It still shocked Graham that Carson was getting so big. He could remember when he’d been born. Graham had been terrified of the whole process, and so excited to meet his child. He and Clara had created a wonderful little boy with a mischievous streak a mile wide. And Graham couldn’t have been happier. He could wish until he was blue in the face for Carson to grow up with his mother in his life but Graham thought he was doing pretty well on that front, too. Carson might not have had his mother but he did have Paisley and Graham would always be grateful to his fellow professor for being in his son’s life.

But he also knew he couldn’t keep monopolising her time. She had a life to live, people to hang out with and dates to go on. Graham didn’t want to think about how that fact that Paisley was out on dates with other men got to him. It downright annoyed the hell out of him but he was not her keeper or her boyfriend. He had no say. And when she started to pull away from the father and son duo, maybe to start a family of her own, he only wished she would keep in contact with Carson. The little boy loved the woman, loved her dog and the games they played. His father just plain out loved the woman. And it drove him mental because he didn’t feel like he deserved to. She was there as his friend and a friend to his son. She wasn’t there for Graham to fall in love with. But she was just so damn good with Carson that he hadn’t been able to help himself. And it hurt. He loved his wife, he always would but Clara was long since gone and she was not about to come back. It tore him inside out knowing that he couldn’t have Clara and he couldn’t put Paisley in the position of all his baggage.

He had a lot of it. It wasn’t just him he needed to sell, he was a package deal and that usually drove people away. No one wanted to actually date a single dad, whose wife didn’t just leave him but died tragically. But Paisley hadn’t seemed to mind all that much that he had Carson and Bo, though to be fair, back then she hadn’t been really into it for him but for his son. She hadn’t minded listening to him talk about Clara when that time of year rolled around and he wasn’t quite himself. He was an excellent actor, so he could hide his feelings about that day from Carson but he would only be able to do that for so long before his little boy realised his daddy was upset. And he couldn’t keep telling his son when he did catch him teary eyed or mopey that he was just practicing for a new part. That lie might work for a while still but Carson was a smart little boy; Graham didn’t think he’d have another few years before he was calling him out on it.

Graham knew he wouldn’t be sitting on his couch, drinking a beer and watching some TV show he didn’t know the name of if Carson had been home or if Paisley was sitting there with him like she was every other Friday night. It was so normal to see her on the other side of the couch, arguing over what to watch or what to eat that her not being there set off all sorts of realisations and thoughts in the actor’s head. He was happier when Paisley was around. He didn’t forget Clara but he felt like she would approve of the blonde professor. He wasn’t so sentimental that he thought Clara brought Paisley into their lives for any reason but he did like Paisley being around; probably more than he should have. However, she was out on a date with some man who’d handed her number during her girl’s lunch the week before. It was late when Graham checked his watch but he thought he wasn’t interested in making it a longer one and was letting Bo out into the backyard to do his business before he locked the house up when he heard someone knocking at the door.

Connor’s mom knew his number so he knew it wasn’t about Carson; which was the only reason he took his time moving through the house to answer the door. It was late after all. He checked through the window beside the door to see who was at the door and his brows raised when he saw Paisley dressed for a night out, standing there looking annoyed. He quickly turned the locked and opened the door, concerned something had happened during the date. “Paisley? What’s wrong?” He asked, automatically. Did the date go so poorly she needed company, an ear to listen to her rant or a shoulder to pout on? If it was all he could be, he would be; even if he was at the point of realising he wanted more from her.

Tag || Paisley Amelia McIntyre
Words || 913
Clothes || Pleased Professor
Music || Good Lookin' Girl ---Luke Bryan
Notes || She loves him, really! <3

[Paisley Amelia McIntyre]

Paisley had always felt like she had left Mill Valley for a reason beyond escaping the vicious rumour circle of cliquey old women. They had been cruel, many still were, but Paisley still felt as though she had something out there in the big bad world to find. If she really thought about it then she realised that it wasn’t the first time she had felt that way in her life. As a little girl she had felt as though she needed to find a father figure to replace the one she never had, growing older it had been the education she clung to when friends obsessed over boys or shiny new cars. Now, she didn’t really know what she was searching for, but when she was with Graham and Carson she didn’t find herself looking for anything at all. Oblivious to that most of the time, Paisley thought that she had done what was right when it came to the single father and his son. She had entered their lives as a friend who could help out when Graham needed a babysitter at short notice, or when Carson needed someone to fuel his childish imagination with stories of far off kingdoms and daring swordfights. Over time it had changed into something more comfortable in which she was a semi-permanent fixture in their home and no one seemed to say anything about that; unless it was a teasing word from Bridget from time to time.

Maybe because it had just sort of happened Paisley hadn’t realised just how much Graham had come to mean to her. She knew she trusted him enough to open up about her past, revealing secrets and regrets she never thought she would share with anyone else in New York City. He had told her about Clara, about things he missed and the things he had done that he regretted. None of it changed what she thought of him or how she felt. It had only brought them closer. However, Graham was different from the men she dated. He wasn’t just some guy who approached her in the coffee shop or when she was out on a girl’s night. He was a man she cared deeply for already, a father who put his son above everything else, and someone whose wife had been snatched away before her time. It was certainly the kind of baggage that would have plenty of twenty-six year olds running for the exit, but Paisley had kept coming back. His baggage didn’t scare her in the slightest. What did scare her was the thought of losing him. That was why she had refused to read into the signs before now. Graham had been through a lot, through things Paisley couldn’t even begin to imagine, and she didn’t want to make his life awkward or ruin something good between them. She didn’t want to have to run away from Carson and leave him wondering where his fellow dragon slayer had gone. It was easier to ignore her feelings than deal with them, but after tonight she knew that all she was doing was setting it up for someone to get hurt again. Just like before. Just like in Mill Valley.

She couldn’t do that again. Especially not to Carson, who was inadvertently in the crossfire if something were to ever happen between herself and Graham. The little boy meant just as much to her as his father did, something that again might have worried most twenty-six year olds. Paisley just couldn’t keep doing this though. She couldn’t keep going on living her life as though everything was fine and dandy when her emotions were clearly tied to Graham. She still wanted so much. One day she wanted to make it up the aisle and have a family to call her own, but every potential bachelor had so far been overshadowed and outshined by a man who didn’t even realise he was doing it. Hell, Paisley didn’t even realise he was doing it because she hadn’t wanted to believe it was the case. Standing on his porch though, she felt like she was coming home though, which was something else that now finally triggered the alarm bells in her mind. “Everything. Is Carson here?” She pushed by Graham and walked through the house. Normally, the first thing she would have done would be to kick her shoes off, but Paisley deliberately didn’t want to get comfortable in case she was heading back out in five minutes after making a total fool out of herself. Plus, around Graham the added height didn’t hurt.

Unable to hold herself back, Paisley paused only to run her fingers through her hair before turning to face her fellow professor. “My date tonight made saints look like sinners. His skin even made a supermodel’s airbrushed ass look blotchy. He was perfect in every single way.” She told him, barely exaggerating. “He didn’t even get that glazed over look when I started talking about books or William Shakespeare. I can’t even give you one bad quality about him because I honestly didn’t see one in him.” Unleashed, it was like she couldn’t stop, not even when her brain was asking her, pleading with her to shut up. “A million girls would probably have fought to the death to marry him if they were given the chance, because he is probably the closest thing to Prince Charming that New York has to offer. And yet, while I’m sitting in the most amazing restaurant, drinking a glass of wine from a bottle that cost more than I spend on groceries in a month, on a date with this saintly Prince Charming, all I can keep thinking about is how much I would rather be here with you.” She confessed, meeting his dark eyes with her light ones. “And that’s the reason why no guy that I’ve dated in the last year makes it beyond a second date. And I can’t keep doing that, Graham. It’s not fair.” She felt as though she might break, but Paisley’s resolve was strong and she wouldn’t leave until they had finished this conversation and she was on her way to being free. She was certain that was how the conversation would end; awkwardly, with a heart broken, and strained promises in place for the sake of a little boy caught in the middle of something he was too young to understand.

• • •

TAGGED! Graham Hunter Price
WORDS! 1,083!
OUTFIT! Pretty Perfect!
LYRICS! (Kissed You) Good Night - - - Gloriana
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Graham Hunter Price]

Graham had given up on hoping for any sort of romance in his life. He was a single dad to a five year old boy. There wasn’t much time in his day to wine and dine some pretty woman into falling for him and his son. As the saying went, he came with baggage and there were too many people in the world who wouldn’t look his way twice because of Carson. And Graham was okay with that. He happily let Carson’s needs run his life and would until Carson was old enough to do things on his own. They just weren’t there yet. But having Paisley around had helped a lot. Her being around made Graham forget how lonely he really was some days.

Paisley had been different from the beginning. She’d been there to help out with Carson, give Graham a little room to breathe. She was there to storm the castle and slay the dragons when Carson wanted his fellow knight around to go on adventures and Sir Daddy just wasn’t that knight. Graham had loved the fact that Carson had taken to Paisley so well. He’d been on edge of course, what father wouldn’t have been. And he hadn’t wanted Carson to get attached in case anything happened between Graham and Paisley but it had been obvious the second the pair met that it would never happen. They might have had a falling out but Graham would have had to share his son with his fellow professor. So it was a good thing they got on so well or there would have been trouble in the future.

“No, he’s gone to Connor’s for the night. Didn’t he tell you? It’s all he’s talked about since Monday.” He told her confused, as he shut the door behind her. He stood there at the door because he honestly didn’t know why Paisley was at his door that late, why she was so out of sorts or if she would be saying whatever it was that was on her chest and then rushing out again. And it was obvious she had something to say. She had been his shoulder to cry on when he had needed one, he could do the same for her as well. Anger flared in Graham’s chest though when she finally did get to spouting her thoughts. If she’d wanted to come to his house and flaunt how great her date was, he didn’t want to hear it. Even though the date couldn’t have gone all that well if she was at his place and not with this perfect man still.

Graham was about ready to open the door and tell her if this amazing guy really did exist she could find her way back to him when she finished what she had to say and that stopped him cold. He’d been sitting alone thinking how quiet it was without Paisley there on the couch with him, watching something stupid and arguing about it because it amused him to keep the opposite opinion of her on it. It wasn’t anything important, it was stupid and trivial. But Graham looked forward to those Friday nights with a pizza, a cold bottle of beer and Paisley. Slowly, he’d moved closer to the blonde professor while she finished up her speech. He kept his expression neutral for the sheer hell of it. “Paisley, do me a favour.” He said, reaching out for her. “Shut up.” He said, taking it upon himself to do what he only realised he wanted when it wasn’t there. He didn’t hesitate because if he did, he’d actually think it through and he’d lose his nerve. Instead, he pulled Paisley against him and brought his free hand up to cup her cheek before he pressed his lips lightly to hers, his nerves catching up with him. But it was too late, now he just needed her to kiss him back.

Tag || Paisley Amelia McIntyre
Words || 714
Clothes || Pleased Professor
Music || Good Lookin' Girl ---Luke Bryan
Notes || She loves him, really! <3

[Paisley Amelia McIntyre]

Paisley had always been aware that there was so much more to life than boys and dates. She had never been the kind to whine about being single, or fuss about a date she had coming up at the weekend. She was more likely to squeal over a new book, or a seminar that she was attending. She did have hopes of finding the right guy someday, but her past had shown her that it was a difficult road to stumble down, and frogs littered the paths just waiting to get in the way. Paisley often told people that she had a good few years before she needed to start worrying, and that was all she would say when people commented on “a girl like her being single at her age”. She was twenty-six, hardly left on the shelf and heading towards the title of spinster. At least now she was starting to understand why no guy had held her interest, and why so many of her weekends were spent with Graham and Carson instead of elsewhere in the city.

Of course, now she was accepting why she wasn’t spending her weekends in bars with her friends, cruising for hot guys and potential dates. The truth had been in front of her all along, but Paisley hadn’t wanted to see it. She had been afraid of the complications of acknowledging it all. It wasn’t the thought of Graham and Carson that scared her, but rather the idea of losing them both. They meant a great deal to her, and life in New York without them would be bleak; barely worth sticking around for. The blonde woman could rarely be described as cowardly, but when it came to confronting her feelings for the drama professor, it was a rather apt word for her. She would do anything to keep from losing the father and son duo, even if it meant ignoring what she wanted most of all. That’s how much Graham and Carson meant to her. She didn’t see the little boy as a burden, or even a bother. He was wonderful, and she loved the excuse to let out her inner child in their wildly imaginative games just as much as the five year old seemed to love playing them.

Blinking, Paisley thought for a moment. Her thoughts were scattered in the moment as she tried to focus on the one thing she had come here to do. “He asked me if I was coming here tonight. I told him that I was out with a friend.” She shook her head and then looked at Graham. “I thought he was having dinner there and coming home again. He said something about you having the pizza all to yourself. I just assumed…” She trailed off, realising that she could easily sidetrack herself with talk of Carson and never get back onto the real matter at hand. As much as she adored the five year old, he was not what she needed to talk about right now. It was the little boy’s father who was on her mind. Standing in front of him, those thoughts were racing and she knew she was rambling, but she couldn’t stop herself. Paisley’s nerves were soaring, her lips moving to stop her feet from running straight back out of the door she had only just walked through.

Graham telling her to shut up wasn’t quite what she had been envisioning on the cab ride over to his house. Paisley had been imagining scenarios that involved him asking what she meant, saying that he didn’t feel the same way, and that he didn’t think it was a great thing for them to change what they already had between them. Paisley was about to ask Graham what he was doing when his lips pressed against hers. Her question instead turned into a barely audible whimper as her eyes fluttered closed. Everything else fell away completely and it took her a few seconds to respond at all. Her hands finally moved, sliding up his chest slowly, her fingers curling around his t-shirt as her lips moved softly against his. She pulled back slightly after a moment and looked up at him, blue eyes now wide in stunned shock. “How long have you been holding that back for?” She asked curiously, her voice barely above a whisper now. None of this was how she had imagined it would go, and now Paisley had a dozen more questions than she had arrived with. The smile was starting to pull at the corner of her lips though, and the English Literature professor had to bite it back.

• • •

TAGGED! Graham Hunter Price
WORDS! 781!
OUTFIT! Pretty Perfect!
LYRICS! (Kissed You) Good Night - - - Gloriana
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Graham Hunter Price]

For the last couple of years, Graham’s life revolved solely around his son and doing what was best for him. He wasn’t putting anything he wanted or needed the attention it should have gotten to make himself a little bit happier as well because it might not have made Carson happy. It wasn’t a life that should have been led but at the same time, it was the one that was best for his son at the time. And so it was the life that Graham put forth but Carson wasn’t going to be a little boy forever, sooner or later Graham would have to figure out what he wanted out of life and pursue it. He knew one day he wanted to get back to the stage and he would do that in a couple more years when Carson was a little bit older and could handle the longer hours his daddy dearest would be away. For now, he would teach and he would take side acting gigs when he could spare the time. Mostly it was special guest roles on sitcoms and dramas but it helped to pay the bills to keep a roof over his son’s head. And at the end of the day, that was what it was about; Carson.

“He asked so he could make his own plans. If you were coming by, he wasn’t going to go. If you weren’t, he would.” Graham said with a slight shrug. He’d given up trying to change his five year old’s mind when he’d been three and decided things needed to be done a certain way. He was a stubborn little boy, much like his father. He didn’t budge when he had something set in his mind that he was going to do it. Graham was probably very lucky he’d managed to teach the kid how to clean up after himself when he’d been smaller or their house would be a mess all the time. But the father and son duo seemed to have those things figured out. Graham gave Carson his space and let him do what he wanted as long as he knew he had to clean up after himself, when bedtime came round he went to bed with a story and he didn’t ask for a hundred bedtime snacks or treats when they were out doing the shopping. Carson was a good kid and didn’t ask for anything when they were out, most of the time. There were the occasional “but George has that rocket” or something similar when they were out but Graham waited to get things like that. If Carson went on about it for ages, he would buy it. If he stopped talking about it after a week, it wasn’t worth the money to be spent; Carson was already over it.

“A while actually. But I have Carson to think about and he loves you. I don’t want to take you away from him, especially if that hadn’t gone the way it did.” He said equally as softly. He wasn’t a selfish man, he couldn’t be when he had his son to think about. Carson came first in every decision Graham made. But with the little boy away at a friend’s house, he was going to be selfish for one night, he was going to put himself first. Paisley wouldn’t have come to his house, to rant and rave about the same things he was thinking about if she didn’t feel even remotely close to how he felt, right? He would worry about how it would effect Carson in the morning because at the moment, he could only think about Paisley.

Tag || Paisley Amelia McIntyre
Words || 662
Clothes || Pleased Professor
Music || Good Lookin' Girl ---Luke Bryan
Notes || She loves him, really! <3

[Paisley Amelia McIntyre]

Paisley had almost everything that she wanted in her life. She had put her education and her career first after almost walking down the aisle at the wrong time and to the wrong man. It hadn’t been a mistake she had wanted to make twice, and Paisley didn’t want to rush into anything romantically again after all that. Arriving in New York had been a new chapter in her life and so far it had focused heavily on her as Doctor McIntyre and the courses she taught at NYU, rather than anything else. Her idea of a social life was occasionally grabbing drinks with Bridget and Athena, and mostly spending evenings with Graham and Carson, never leaving at the time she originally planned on, but usually much later and spending most of the night afterwards playing catch up with lesson plans and grading papers. She wouldn’t change her life though, even though her mother started most phone conversations by asking if any cute men had come along, and reminding Paisley that Shakespeare was not a valid love interest.

Besides, it was impossible to invest in a relationship when she wanted to keep filling her time with plans from the drama professor and his son. “I swear he’s an old man trapped in a five year old’s body at times.” Paisley chuckled, shaking her own head. Carson’s absence though meant that there was no safety net tonight. If there was ever a moment in the past when she had wanted to say something, or the bottle of wine they were sharing were making their jokes bolder and pushing hers slightly more flirtatious, that little boy had always been around to keep her in check without even realising it. Without him in the house though there was no excuse, no little scampering of feet to disturb the moment and remind Paisley of all the reasons why feeling something for Graham was so very wrong. Still, she adored both of them, and wanted them in her life as much as physically possible. She missed them whenever she headed back to California, or Graham took Carson off to visit his grandparents. It was like there was something missing from her own life, though she would never come out and say that out of the fear that it was too strong, too weird.

Smiling, Paisley slid her hands up to loop around Graham’s neck. “That was pretty much my reason for never saying anything sooner. I didn’t want to lose either of you, and make Carson feel like he’d lost me. I love that kid, too. I’d never want to see him hurt because of me.” She admitted quietly, tilting her head to the side. She bit her lip softly and then lifted her gaze to meet Graham’s, curiosity shining out from her blue orbs. “But now that it has gone the way it did, what now?” The question brought the butterflies to her stomach, but Paisley was too old and too forward to dance around this forever. Although they had both been putting Carson first, and making sure they didn’t hurt the little boy, they had lost time to make up for. She didn’t want to rush into anything, but she didn’t want to waste any more time with Graham, not now that they both knew how the other felt.

• • •

TAGGED! Graham Hunter Price
WORDS! 562!
OUTFIT! Pretty Perfect!
LYRICS! (Kissed You) Good Night - - - Gloriana
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Graham Hunter Price]

Once upon a time there had been a lot Graham had wanted from his life. By the time he was old and retired, he wanted to look back with no regrets and smile knowing that he’d done the very best he could with the cards he’d been dealt. When they’d lost Clara, it had been devastating but Carson had been so small that he didn’t have those memories to cry over but Graham did. He found it a blessing and a curse for his son but they made it work. While Carson had gone about his days like any normal three year old, Graham hadn’t known at the time if he’d ever get over Clara’s sudden death. He coped and it became easier but he still thought back to the days when Carson was small. He thought that would never change, he would still think of her on that day, every year, evenw hen he was old and grey, curled up in a rocking chair, yelling about how he never got visitors. Because he expected his grandchildren to be too busy for their grandfather.

But now Paisley was in their lives when before Graham had thought the Price men would be alone for a while before Carson found himself a girlfriend, or boyfriend, Graham wouldn’t care. It had been a shock to him to realise he was falling quite hard for the English Lit professor but the more he thought about it, the more he realised it was staring him in the face. She was great with Carson and with Bo, she was sweet and entertaining and she fought him tooth and nail about Shakespeare over pizzas and beers. The last part he could have lived without so long as she was good with Carson and loved him as much as Graham did himself. The ability to talk to Paisley, laugh with her and be himself around her was an extra little bonus. He wasn’t sure how he felt about Clara watching over but he definitely felt like Paisley came into his life at the right time and he couldn’t be more thankful or happier about it.

“You should hear him some mornings. And I’m pretty sure the daycare he goes to hired a new provider. He’s speaking better Yiddish than Professor Berkowitz.” Graham said, chuckling at his son. He’d noticed it a lot more over the last few weeks. The after school daycare program had been a good idea when Carson had started school back in September and he still thought so now; especially on those days when neither Graham nor Paisley could run across town to get him when the final school bell rang. He hoped Carson was having fun at the sleepover because he’d been bored to tears alone and one of them should have been having a good time; though it was starting to look up for the father as well.

Graham pulled Paisley against him, not giving her much space at all to move. He’d waited too long, pushed too many boundaries for this to fizzle out in seconds. “You’re incredible.” He said, tilting his head down enough to press his lips to her forehead. How could he not adore a woman who put his child’s feelings and well-being ahead of her own. Somtimes Graham thought Paisley was just too perfect to be true. “Well, right now, we’re going to go back to the living room where the booze is flowing a little too freely and the pizza is still hot and fight over whatever is on the television with the added bonus of making out like teenagers before eventually making our way upstairs or falling asleep on the couch like we usually do.” He said as thought he’d had the whole night planned out and he’d just been waiting for Paisley to arrive. “Then tomorrow I’m going to pick Carson up, in the afternoon and we’re going to talk, see what he has to say. Which if I know my son will be something wildly inappropriate whilst still being so adorable I can’t possibly punish him for it, followed by him asking if the pair of you can slay dragons. He’s still waiting for that knighthood, you know.” He added, teasing. Carson loved Paisley and couldn’t see the five year old having anything bad to say. But he was five and Graham never knew what would come out of his mouth when he opened it; ever.

Tag || Paisley Amelia McIntyre
Words || 800
Clothes || Pleased Professor
Music || Good Lookin' Girl ---Luke Bryan
Notes || She loves him, really! <3

[Paisley Amelia McIntyre]

If she was honest, Paisley was scared of what might happen if she admitted how she really felt towards Graham. He was the first man she had felt strongly about since Anthony, but Paisley actually spent more time with Graham than she had done with her ex-fiancé. It didn’t matter to her that Graham came with a son and a history that would have many women running away instantly. None of that had made her hesitate for even a second when it came to falling for him. She had just held herself in check a little more, scolding herself when she had wanted to lean in on the couch or act suggestive when they were joking around after Carson’s bedtime. Paisley wasn’t the type to ruin the stability of a five year old’s life for feelings she was developing when they might not even be reciprocated. Carson had been more important to her for a very long time. Tonight had just been a breaking point, because she couldn’t move on with any other man without actually facing up to Graham and laying it all out for him. She had needed to know what she meant to him if she wanted to live her life and find happiness beyond Shakespeare and Friday night pizza with him and Carson. It was just a perfect bonus that it turned out to be exactly that which did make her happy, and apparently Graham thought so, too.

She stopped thinking about the worrying thoughts of what she might have done if he had broken her heart and told her he could never feel the same. None of that mattered now. Paisley wasn’t even scared off by the thought of Graham coming as a joint package with Carson. Like she had told him, she loved that kid, and laughed affectionately at Graham’s words. “Now will you let me teach him Hamlet?” She only half joked, though Carson really did seem to come on leaps and bounds with each passing week. If a few days went by when she didn’t get a chance to see him because her schedule was so crammed Paisley was often stunned with how much he had come on with reading or what he had learned in such a short time. He was always showing it off to her when she did see him the next time. Paisley wouldn’t have it any other way either. She adored being included in his life the way she was.

Smiling against Graham’s chest, she squeezed him tight, closing her eyes and breathing him in. God, why had it taken them so long to get here? Paisley obviously knew why, but at the same time she wished they had realised sooner. Nevertheless, she was glad this was finally happening now; better late than never as her mother would no doubt say when she told her. “Would you mind putting that in writing?” She teased, leaning back in his hold to grin up at him. “Maybe even engraved on a plaque for my office?” Paisley listened to Graham’s suggestion, a smile breaking out across her lips as he spoke. “Only trouble can come from mixing booze with making out like teenagers, Professor Price.” She teased lightly, kissing him gently. “And I need to get changed before I do anything that might eventually lead to sleep. This dress might look nice, but it’s not as comfy as a t-shirt and some shorts.” She was hinting, and not very subtly either. It was with great reluctance that Paisley stepped away and out of Graham’s reach, moving towards the stairs after she kicked her heels off, leaving them strewn where they lay. She was too giddy from the thought of curling up with Graham to be tidy. “So long as he doesn’t, I don’t know, think I’m stealing his daddy or something.” Her own mother had never dated again when she was growing up. She had never had a dad, but she had never experienced any potential step-fathers either. She had no idea how Carson might react to this news, but she hoped he wouldn’t turn against her. “And he gets his knighthood when he saves a princess and you let me give him a real sword.” She explained like it was the simplest thing to say.

Paisley changed, leaving her dress dumped on the floor of Graham’s bedroom. The t-shirt came to mid-thigh and the borrowed boxers touched an inch or two below that. It was ridiculously comfy and another addition for her list of ‘why didn’t we do this earlier?’ Smiling to herself, she padded back downstairs barefoot and made her way to the living room pausing in the doorframe to watch Graham for a moment. Part of her was still a little amazed this was happening, and she bit back the grin before making her way over to the couch, pausing as she went to sit in her usual spot. She smiled, and took a step closer to the drama professor and tucked her long hair behind her ear before sitting close to him instead, curling up against him. “I’m not going to lie, this feels a little strange, but good strange. Very, very good, strange.” She pressed her lips to Graham’s softly, smiling against his skin. This was really happening, at last.

• • •

TAGGED! Graham Hunter Price
WORDS! 901!
OUTFIT! Pretty Perfect!
LYRICS! (Kissed You) Good Night - - - Gloriana
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Graham Hunter Price]

It might have only been a couple years since Clara’s death but Graham had quickly resigned himself to the fact that it was very unlikely that he’d have a date for the foreseeable future; until Carson was double digits, at least. Of course, when it first happened, he’d also thought he wouldn’t be able to survive without the mother of his child. He’d wondered how he would ever take care of Carson on his own, wondered how Carson would feel not having his mother around when school started and he saw all the mommy’s picking up their kids and his wasn’t there. Eventually though, he’d started thinking it was him and Carson against the world and he’d been okay with that. He’d figured eventually, Carson would go off and figure out who he was as a person and it would be then that Graham could figure out who he was without Clara and Carson.

He’d never imagined that someone would come into their lives so soon and fill it so completely. Both father and son where quite taken with the blonde professor and Graham found himself wondering what time she would walk through the door and not what day. She had quickly become a constant fixture in the Price men’s lives and Graham couldn’t picture a day without her in it. He would be heartbroken if she up and left and realised too late that it was the same feeling he had when she spoke about dates. “No.” He said in a flat tone. “He’s not learning Hamlet at five. Even if he acts like he’s ninety.” Sometimes he really wondered where his son came from. He was just such an old man sometimes that it made Graham laugh out loud and that was maybe what the five year old was after but Graham never quite knew for certain.

“A plaque? Really?” Graham asked, grinning down at the gorgeous blonde in his arms. He’d never thought they’d get to this point. He’d thought they’d circling each other and toeing this line they were at forever. One of them should have made a move but they were both thinking of the five year old in their lives. He was enough to make anyone sit and think everything through. But he wasn’t there to keep them circling. “Take whatever.” He said, waving it off. The dress was stunning and Paisley looked gorgeous in it but it really didn’t look like sleepwear. Graham chuckled, shaking his head. “There’s no worries about that. I think you can share me pretty well. You have been for a while now already.” He pointed out chuckling. He had a good kid for a little boy who seemed to be wise beyond his years. “And we’ll circle back to swords when he’s eighteen.” Maybe sooner than that. After all, it wasn’t exactly fair that daddy got to play with swords and other weapons and he wasn’t allowed to unless they were able to bend.

He let Paisley go change without much of a fuss and decided to leave her shoes where she’d kicked them off. He could worry about being tidy later when there was a little one around who still needed reminders of those lessons sometimes. Instead, Graham turned back towards the kitchen to get Paisley a drink and brought it with him to the living room where he sat in his usual spot on the couch to wait, flicking through the television stations. He smirked when she sat down next to him, liking how close she was. Before there had always been this gap they put there, occasionally it was filled by his five year old curling up between the pair of them after an exciting day to watch a movie to unwind. Automatically, he put his arm around her shoulder. “I’m really glad I’m not the only one who thinks that.” He said against Paisley’s lips. Things were finally starting to change for the better.

Tag || Paisley Amelia McIntyre
Words || 734
Clothes || Pleased Professor
Music || Good Lookin' Girl ---Luke Bryan
Notes || She loves him, really! <3

[Paisley Amelia McIntyre]

Paisley had never found it strange how much time she spent with father and son. It had sort of just happened after she started babysitting Carson for Graham, and then it was a routine before she could think twice about it. It felt strange when she didn’t go over there because she chose to stay at her own place to get through a pile of essays that weren’t going to grade themselves, and she had stopped apologising for falling asleep on his couch after the third time it had happened. The signs had been there for the longest of times, but Paisley had deliberately chosen to ignore them when they were shining right in her face. She liked what they had, and loved the hours she spent playing make-believe with Carson. Of course, now she realised that it was foolish of her to tip-toe around shared feelings, but it was a complicated situation she couldn’t say she had been in before or even imagined when she had been away with the fairies as she had been growing up.

Paisley had shed a few tears when she had first heard Graham’s story. It was tragic, and she had been sympathetic to the man who had lost his love, and the little boy who had lost his mother. It was difficult for her to be in their lives at first without feeling like she was trying to fill a space that had been left, but Paisley had soon realised that she was a different person, a different puzzle piece in their lives. She was at a point now where she’d argue for her place in their home and fight for them should she deem it necessary. Carson was important to her, and Graham meant a great damn deal. She wasn’t about to give them up. “A Winter’s Tale?” She offered, grinning wickedly seconds later. She loved pushing Graham’s parenting buttons. Paisley would never do anything that might actually bring harm to Carson or push him too far too soon, but it was still fun to tease Graham with ideas.

“Really. Signed by you. Doctor McIntyre: She’s incredible. I think it’ll be nice in front of that silver photo frame.” The photo inside was Paisley with her mom when she was just a little girl, and the photo lifted her up on the bad days. Thinking of it now made her wonder what her mother would say to this when she told her. “Maybe. But you were definitely only tucking one of us into bed each night.” She joked with a small smile. Things might not change all that much on the day to day front between them with Carson, but Paisley knew that things would definitely be different now. They had been on the cusp of this for the longest time with their feelings, and actually giving into them would mean things would change, even just the smallest of things. “That will make you the mean one and me the fun one.” She said with a sharp nod of her head as though it was final. “Definitely cementing your role as bad guy in all future games, Graham.”

Curled up on the couch, Paisley snuggled in closer to Graham. It was strange to be sat with him like this, but it felt incredibly good at the same time. It was like finally coming home after a long trip away, and the contentment washed over her as she tipped her head back to rest against his shoulder. “I don’t really think this was how I expected this evening to go.” She admitted, thinking back over how they ended up at this point. “In fact this is sort of the complete opposite to what I was imagining when I knocked on the door.” She let her hand run up his leg and then back down again, drawing small circles on his thigh as she spoke.

• • •

TAGGED! Graham Hunter Price
WORDS! 665!
OUTFIT! Pretty Perfect!
LYRICS! (Kissed You) Good Night - - - Gloriana
NOTES! <3 <3 <3