J2 - An Unexpected Love - Chapter 5C/16 - Mpreg
Title : An Unexpected Love 5C/16
Rating : R
Word Count : 20,435/49,869
Disclaimer : Really if they belonged to me do you think I'd have time to be posting.
Warnings : Talk of past abuse, Mpreg
Author : angels3 aka Angela
Beta : munibunny
Art and Soundtrack : ldyghst
Additional Art : wincest_drarry
Characters : Jensen/Jared, Steve/Chris, there may be more pairings along the way I'm not sure at the moment.Mike, Tom, Chad, Sandy, Sophia and Joshua Jackson will all be in this fic. There may be others as I find myself needing more characters.
Summary : Grief stricken over the death of his brother, cynical movie maverick Jared Padalecki did the unthinkable - he sought comfort in the arms of his brother's fiancee. The morning after, they both realized their mistake and left for their separate lives. Only Jared can't forget Jensen's soft lips and beautiful eyes. Even as Jared was beginning to think he had to see him again, Jensen came to him.
Jensen was pregnant with his child. His - not his brother's. Jared knew he wanted Jensen more than he'd ever wanted any other woman or man.
First he had to marry him.
Then he had to make Jensen love him.
Author Notes : I am basing this story off a book I read fourteen years ago. I do actually have the book but I will not be using it to write this story. I will be going from my memory of what happened in it, there will be some things that run the way the book did and lots that will not as this is a J2 and mpreg on top of that. The only thing that will be word for word, and then not really, will be the summary since I couldn't do it justice any other way.
Based on the book Scandals by JoAnn Ross
Harlequin Temptation Sept.1994 #506
Chapters 1 2 3 4A 4B 5A 5B 5C 6A 6B 7A 7B 8A 8B 9A 9B 10 11A 11B 12A 12B 13A 13B 14 15A 15B 16
Art and Soundtrack
Additonal Art
Jared woke up Saturday morning to the sun shining into his face where he'd forgotten to close his blinds. He glanced over at the clock and was slightly confused to see it reading eleven am because he was pretty sure Kristen's idea of bright and early was not almost lunch time. He pulled on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and hit the bathroom. After making himself human again, he wandered down the hallway, even more confused by the sound of voices coming from Jensen's room. It wasn’t that he didn't know who he'd find, it was just that he didn't know how they'd gotten there.
He opened the door carefully, afraid he'd knock into someone that might be standing behind it, and was slightly taken aback by the sight before him. Chad was rolling a layer of cream paint across the ceiling while Kristen was working on one of the walls. The balcony doors were open, which explained not only why the room was cold, but why they were both wearing long sleeve sweat shirts. Jared thought he'd seen everything but a noise behind him had him spinning around to see a head bopping in time with some unheard beat, a baseball cap pulled down over blonde pigtails that looked suspiciously familiar.
Jared took a couple of steps towards the bathroom and waited until the hand holding the roller set it back in the pan before he swiped off the ball cap and scared the shit out of its owner, causing everyone to jump and swear at the shriek Alona let out.
"I knew those pigtails looked familiar," Jared declared.
"Well, you didn't have to give me a fucking heart attack while you found out!" She complained, still holding her chest.
"You better be glad I wasn't doing trim work either," Kristen huffed.
"Sorry, jeesh, you guys are uptight this morning," Jared said, raising his hands in surrender.
"This morning," Chad looked out the door. "This morning passed by about four hours ago man."
"Yeah, thanks for letting me sleep. Yesterday was a long day," Jared acknowledged. "It's coming together quick isn't it?" He said, looking around.
"I was able to get things together faster than I expected so I got started last night and Chad helped out so it put us ahead," Kristen explained.
"I'm assuming you're the help that Kristen was referring to so gleefully the other day," Jared asked Alona.
"Yeah, well, the favor she owed me wasn't quite as big as the favor I owed you, so I had to barter my services with it," she sighed.
Kristen snorted, "Please, like I had to twist your arm. You've been trying to find out the skinny since Jared called and asked you to set up the meet."
"Fine. Traitor," Alona said, sticking out her tongue.
Chad just rolled his eyes and went back to painting. "There's food in the kitchen. You'll have to warm it up but it should still be edible."
They worked the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. By the time they finished, all the painting and trim work was done. Alona had decided that Kristen was in debt since obviously painting sucked immensely and she planned on making her pay by helping to redecorate her bedroom. Chad offered to help which, of course, was met with raised eyebrows and threats of castration, but when they realized he was serious, they immediately accepted and even groveled a little in way of apology for misreading his offer.
Jensen called around three to let Jared know that Sophia had finished packing his room while he was painting and that the only thing he had left was his studio so if he wanted to come over later on Sunday that was fine since he'd prefer to pack his painting equipment himself. Jared told him that was fine. He had a few things he wanted to get ready at the house, and he'd be over around five to meet the moving van. Jared had thought long and hard about the solarium, with its ability to be temperature controlled and the windows, specifically designed to control the amount of light being let in, he thought it would make a great place for Jensen to set up his studio.
"Hey, Kristen before you leave, can you guys give me your opinion on something?" Jared asked.
"Sure, show me what you've got," she said, getting to her feet.
Jared led the way down the hall and flipped on the lights. The space was empty and the plantations blinds were all drawn, so he hit the button that would automatically open them and give her an idea of what the space looked like with all the windows uncovered.
"Wow," Kristen breathed.
"Yeah, I was thinking this would be a great place for Jensen to set up his studio, since he'd have a lot of light and a great view," Jared said, motioning to the gardens in the back yard.
"It's a great idea, but isn't this for plants?"
"It can be, but this one was designed so you could use it for anything and the sprinkler systems you'd need for plants was never put in," Jared explained.
"I think he'll love it," Kristen said.
Alona and Chad both agreed, and after some discussion about types of sofas and chairs for lounging around that would work in the room, they all decided it was time to go home and get some rest since tomorrow was furniture and finishing touches day. Jared walked them all out and then headed back upstairs to do the same, but he found himself drawn back down the hall to Jensen's room. He walked in and sat down in the middle of the room just taking in the difference in how the room looked already. Jared sat there for a little while just thinking about how his life had changed and how much it was still going to change. He finally got up and walked down to his room. He had another day to get things done before Jensen finally moved into their house.
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Sunday morning, Jared was up at six a.m. He'd checked the paint and found it completely dry so he started to carefully screw the sockets back in place. He grabbed the vacuum and ran the soft brush attachment along the floor to get up all the dust particles and any other possible trash that could be hanging around. The furniture company was supposed to be there at eight a.m. making a special delivery on Sunday, something Jared was paying dearly for, but he didn't give a damn. Jensen was worth it.
Chad showed up first, a little shocked that Jared was already up and moving, but happy to see there was already coffee in the pot ready for the taking. He grabbed a cup and slid into a seat at the kitchen table. Alona and Kristen showed up fifteen minutes later, both flopping into seats opposite Chad. They both looked horrified at the perky Jared version and asked Chad in a stage whisper if this is what he had to put up with on a daily basis, to which Chad mournfully answered yes.
"You know, I was going to make omelets, but if you're going to be mean you can make your own," Jared informed them.
"You know, we only pick on the people we love," Alona batted her eyelashes at him.
Kristen snorted her coffee. "Jared, for the love of my sanity, would you please tell her what's going on?"
Jared looked confused for a minute. "You mean neither one of you have told her?"
"Well, we didn't really think it was our place," Chad said, shrugging.
"Yes, and I think it's very unfair," Alona pouted.
"Oh, poor you," Jared grinned as he set the plate of omelets down and everyone started digging in.
"Come on, I got you Kristen, and I even sold myself out in the deal. I'm desperate! You see what it means to work for Kristen?" Alona begged.
"Fine, lord, you’re worse than Chad."
"Hey!"
Jared just looked at him, grinning.
"At least I don't whine," Chad grumbled before he started eating again.
"You know about Jeff right?" Jared waited until Alona nodded and then continued. "Well long story short, his fiance and I went up to my parents cabin the night of the funeral, got drunk and had sex. Jensen found out about two weeks ago that he's pregnant. He told me not quite a week ago, and I managed to convince him to marry me, which we did Friday. He's moving in on Monday, and I didn't want him moving in to a guest room. I wanted a room that was his." Jared explained, hitting the high points.
Alona sat, blinking at him for a minute, processing the information. When she finally opened her mouth to speak, she closed it again and cocked her head to the side, just looking at him. The only word to make it past her lips was, "Oh."
The furniture arrived not long after breakfast was finished and left no room for much of anything but heavy breathing, and swearing as furniture was lifted up the stairs and put together arranged and then rearranged. Chad worked on changing out the fixtures in the bathrooms to a satin finish instead of the high gloss ones that had been in there previously. It gave the room a much warmer feel to it. Jared was about ready to strangle Kristen when she wanted the dresser moved again but when he got it where she wanted it, he had to admit the placement was finally right.
Once all the furniture was in and the wall hangings were put up, Kristen shooed them all out, so she could put up the candles and put the finishing touches on the rooms. Chad decided he was going to grab a shower and some food before he had to meet the moving van at the storage unit that night and told Jared he'd call him later in the week. Alona collapsed on the sofa, letting her head drop back and closing her eyes. Jared sat down in the recliner and stared off into space, his brain having decided to take a brief vacation.
"So you love him, don't you?" She asked quietly, shocking him out of his coma like state.
"Excuse me?"
"You love him. It's the only thing that makes sense. You didn't have to marry him just because he was pregnant, you're willing to take the chance that he'll get over your brother and feel the same thing for you that you do for him, and then there's the room. You've not only moved heaven and earth to get it done, but you've helped do it and I don't just mean the physical labor, I mean, you put thought into what he'd like and what would make him comfortable. You love him."
"There's no way you can't. There's just something about him, Alona. I don't know why in the hell I never noticed it while we were growing up, but it had to have been there the whole time."
"Maybe you didn't let yourself notice it," Alona suggested.
The more he thought about it, she was probably dead on, because he always thought of Jensen as Jeff’s back then.
Kristen came to get them an hour later. She told Jared to go in first and to let her know what he thought. Alona could check it out after. Jared was thrilled with the final product, even the balcony looked completely different with the furniture in place. Alona peeked in, totally amazed at what a few well placed candles and odds and ends could do. She made Kristen take a bunch of pictures, so she could put them in her work portfolio.
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Jensen spent the morning trying to finish up the new painting he'd started the day before. He wasn't sure it was going to be dry enough to move on Monday anyway so he figured he'd keep working on it, and if he had to come back sometime during the week to pick it up, it wasn't that big of a deal. The alarm on his watch rang at noon, reminding him to stop and eat, a precaution he'd decided to take to keep himself on a regular eating schedule. He'd already started bringing snacks into the studio to munch on when he got hungry, usually just grapes or apples, something nutritious, and a bottle of water to keep him hydrated.
He called Jared the day before to let him know that he could come by later if he wanted. Sophia had finished the bedroom yesterday surprising him when he'd finally been forced to lay down and take a nap before he fell asleep on his stool. He'd been a little taken back by the stab of disappointment he'd felt when Jared had agreed to come later, but he refused to study the feeling to closely afraid of what he might find.
Jensen was startled to hear the knocking on the door some time later, and even more shocked when he glanced down at his watch to and realized it was a quarter after four. He wiped his hands on the cloth, looking around at the studio, the one he was supposed to have been packing up. He sighed to himself as he went to open the door and face the music. Jared was standing on the porch, his hands shoved in his pockets. He was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt but no jacket. Jensen shook his head. Apparently, Jared never outgrew his hatred of coats and gloves, except for in extreme conditions. Jared looked at the paint splattered t-shirt and jeans and started grinning.
"You haven't packed a thing have you?"
"Well, I was going to after lunch, but I wanted to touch up this one little section....." Jensen trailed off guiltily.
"It's fine, that's why I came a little early, just in case you still needed help," Jared assured.
Jensen's relief was written all over his face and his shoulders sagged as the tension left them, but Jared caught the barest of flinches as he reached out to smooth a smear of paint off Jensen's cheek. He continued on with the gesture even though his first instinct was to pull back and give Jensen space, because the greater instinct to prove he wouldn't hurt him won out. Jared also had the feeling Jensen was hoping he hadn't noticed that particular slip and Jared was going to let him believe it for the time being.
When Jared pulled his hand back, Jensen stepped back and gave him room to pass.
"Give me just a few minutes to move the wet canvases over to the drying rack, and then we can get started," Jensen said over his shoulder as he was heading down the hall.
"Take your time. I'm going to call the movers and make sure they're still going to be here on time."
As soon as Jensen disappeared, Jared slumped down onto the sofa. He was pretty sure Jensen didn't find him repulsive, so flinching wasn't something personal. The more he thought about it, the uglier the picture in his head became, and it made him seethe with an anger he'd never felt before. There was something niggling at his memory, something to do with Jensen, but he couldn't place it and he knew it was important.
"Jared?"
Jared looked up, realizing Jensen must have called his name more than once, and from the look of nervous uncertainty, he was probably scowling as well.
"Sorry, I was thinking about this new film I have to start work on soon," Jared lied, watching as the worry eased from Jensen's face.
"Do you not want to do it?"
"Oh, the script’s great, the actors are divas. I don't look forward to the month of 'my coffee's too hot, my grapes are green instead of purple, someone put Crest instead of Aquafresh in my bathroom' we get to listen to," Jared mimicked the actors.
Jensen was laughing by the time Jared finished.
"That's why I hide in the prop room and let Chad deal with them," Jared confessed.
"That's awful," Jensen choked down another laugh.
"No, it's not, believe me, I have to listen to Chad whine about them whining."
"Well, I still think Chad's getting the worse end of the deal," Jensen stated. "I've got the paintings moved now if you want to work on packing."
They worked side by side, Jensen showing Jared how to pack the paints and brushes, so they wouldn't get damaged and Jared trying his best not to get distracted by the constant shifting of muscles under tight jeans and even tighter t - shirt. When the moving van pulled up, Jared went to meet it while Jensen finished up. The movers were the same guys Jared had used in the past. They were quick, efficient and careful. They started with all the furniture and boxes that would be taking to the storage area, so they would be at the back of the truck, and then they started loading everything that would be going to the house, including one of Jensen's drying racks loaded with finished canvases.
Jared had to climb into the back of the truck and double check the strapping just to keep Jensen from trying to. He was pretty sure the man was going to be the death of him in one form or the other. Jensen had made sure everything was marked very clearly to make things easier even if he didn't know what rooms to assign them to in his new home. When everything was loaded up and the delivery truck was pulling out, Jared started to climb into his car.
"Are you sure you don't want me to come by and help unpack?" Jensen asked worriedly.
"No, I want you to get some rest, clean out your fridge and pack up the last little stragglers and be ready for me to pick you up tomorrow," Jared said, grinning at the frown already appearing between Jensen's eyebrows.
"You do realize I can drive. I have my own car and everything," Jared grumbled.
"Yes, but we have to come back anyway, and it's going to take both vehicles to carry the rack and the canvases and I want to drive you to the house the first time you see it," Jared explained.
"Fine," Jensen gave in, seeing that it meant a lot to Jared, "So I'll see you around noon then?"
"More like one, I have a few things to do in the morning, but it shouldn't take me long."
"Okay. Is there anything specific you want to move tomorrow or just finish it sometime during the week?"
"Not really, anything you want to bring with you tomorrow is cool the rest we can get when we come back."
Jensen stepped back so Jared could close his door. He stood watching until the car was out of sight and then wandered back into his almost empty house. The sudden wave of exhaustion seemed to hit him out of nowhere and he was infinitely grateful that Jared had refused to listen to him and left the bed standing, arguing that the movers could come back and get it with anything else that needed to be taken care of. He curled up around his pillows and was asleep within minutes.
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The movers did, in fact, beat Jared to the house and were waiting by the gate when he got there. They helped him place all the boxes in the rooms they belonged in. The rack of canvases, Jared put in the solarium. He'd made sure to take a peek at the temperature settings in Jensen's studio so he would have it set the same, and he placed the paintings out of the light from the windows, closing off several sets of blinds just to make sure. He'd get Jensen to educate him on proper storage later so he'd know in the future what was dangerous to his work and what wasn't.
Jared set up the easels and the two stools Jensen had in his studio. The more he looked at the stools, though, the more they worried him. They were sturdy enough, but they had no backs, so not only could Jensen overbalance and fall off when he got further along in his pregnancy but with nothing there for Jensen to lean against there was no support for Jensen upper or lower back and Jared had read how badly a pregnant person’s back hurt. He decided that when he finished for the night, he'd sit down and order a couple with better support and depending on style something with an arm rest as well.
He unpacked all the miscellaneous items first, adding the CD’s and DVD’s to the already large collection in the den, making a note that he needed to get another media unit for storage, as well as possibly turning one of the extra rooms downstairs into a true library after unpacking Jensen's books and adding them to the ones he already had in the study. He figured he'd ask Jensen about that tomorrow. He moved on to the bathroom quickly, putting all the items away and making a mental note of the brands Jensen favored.
When Jared got to the bedroom, he started with the clothes in the closet and then moved to the dressers, unloading the clothes into them. He figured they would probably get rearranged but at least Jensen wasn't having to bend over and pull them out of a box. He placed several books he'd chosen to bring up to the bedroom on the small bookcase in the bedroom with a few of the objects that seemed to hold special meaning for Jensen by how they had been placed in his house.
Jared unpacked the box with Jensen's pictures last, some of his mom and some of Jeff and then there were the ones of Jeff and Jensen together. Jared set some on the dresser and a few on the bookshelves. There was one that was of Jeff standing on the beach looking at the camera laughing. It made his heart hurt just to look at it. He placed it on the nightstand beside the lamp, in the same position it had been in Jensen's previous room. It was hard competing against a ghost but Jensen was worth it.
He went to bed and dreamed about a house full of children and Jensen laughing up at him with love in his eyes.
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Jensen rolled out of bed Monday morning, not really sure what to do with himself. His paints were gone, he'd finished packing and everything else had already been moved. He, of course, spent the first thirty minutes in the bathroom, his morning ritual of greeting the toilet still firmly in place. However, an hour later, he was pretty sure he was going to go insane. He grabbed his keys and headed for the bakery since Sophia was supposed to be working, and he could get his chocolate and kill some time all in one go.
Sophia was a little surprised to see him, but she finished up with the order she was taking and sat down in the seat across from him.
"So exactly what are you doing here and by yourself might I ask?"
"You might, as soon as you get me my hot chocolate," Jensen said, grinning.
"Fine, I'll be back in a second," she said, disappearing behind the counter to get his drink.
Three minutes later, she was sliding the cup to him, "You know that baby's not going to want plain milk right?"
"It's going to be crying all night long and you won't know why and then it'll hit you, it's addicted to chocolate," Sophia finished.
Jensen just rolled his eyes and took another swallow of hot chocolate.
"Spill, why are you here instead of with Jared?"
"Jared's coming to get me at one. He had something to do this morning, so I can't stay long, but I've got nothing to do at home and I was going nuts."
"So, you came to me for boredom relief?"
"That and to see if you've been to any more financial institutions and pitched your idea?" Jensen asked, daring her to try and dodge the question.
"No, but I have an appointment on Wednesday for someone else to tell me no if it makes you feel better," she smiled sweetly at him.
"You shouldn't think like that," Jensen said, frowning.
"Maybe not, but I'm being realistic. I don't have anything to use as collateral, and they just aren't willing to take the risk on someone that doesn't have a degree behind their name," Sophia sighed.
"Well then they’re stupid and when you find someone who will, and you're a major success you can do the Pretty Woman thing."
"The Pretty Woman thing?"
"Yeah you know? Where she goes back to the store all dressed up and says big mistake to the snobby sales bitches. Well, you can do that to the banks when you have bunches of money. You can go in and talk to them about setting up accounts with them and go nope, you made a big mistake and leave laughing," Jensen smiled as Sophia dissolved in giggles.
"You know, I just may do that," she said wiping her eyes and sputtering a little when the giggles tried to return.
"I'm serious though Soph. You'll get your chance and it's going to be amazing."
"Okay. I believe you. Now go on and get out of here so I can do my job, and you won't be late meeting prince charming."
"Hmm, we'll see, they have a tendency to turn into frogs once you live together … the clothes never make it to the basket, the dishes are in the sink," Jensen laughed as Sophia threw her dishcloth at him.
"Get before I cut off the hot chocolate supply."
Jensen decided not to jeopardize a good thing and made his escape.
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The only reason Jared hadn't picked Jensen up at noon, or even earlier for that matter, was that Chad had called to tell him Eric had faxed over some of the financial information he'd put together on the sales from Jensen's past shows. Chad reminded him it wasn't a complete profile, but it was actually a good bit of documentation, so Jared had said he would meet him there in the morning so they could check it out and conference with Eric.
He pulled into the parking lot next to Chad's convertible. He still laughed every time he saw it. He'd asked Chad to pick a color and the first one out of his mouth had been purple, so purple it was. Chad still acted like a two year old every time he sat behind the wheel. Jared had given it to him as a bonus when he'd made his first million. He thought it was only right since, without Chad, things would never run as smoothly as they did. He'd offered several times to have the car repainted, but for some insane reason, Chad loved the color, said it made him unique. Jared thought it was hideous, but he figured to each their own.
Jared hurried up the steps, wanting to get the information looked over quickly so he could pack Jensen up, and they could finally start their life together, a little unconventional at the moment, but together nonetheless. He unlocked the door, pushing it shut behind him and relocking it. They weren't officially open this week, and he didn't want anyone stopping by because they saw their cars there.
"Chad, where are you?" Jared called when he didn't see him in the immediate vicinity of his desk.
"In your office," came the muffled response.
"What are you doing in here?" Jared asked as he walked in the door.
"The damn machine got jammed, I had to get Eric to resend the reports, but they should be coming through in just a minute. He's going to call you thirty minutes after the last one goes through on his end, he said."
"Did he say why?"
"Nope, said he wanted to ask you a couple of questions and figured you'd have some too," Chad answered, tapping his foot as he waited for the machine to connect and start receiving the information. "Ah, there it is," he sighed happily when the first sheet started inching its way out.
Jared just shook his head and went to grab a cup of coffee while Chad babysat the fax machine. When he came back, Chad had all the papers lined up on his desk and he was organizing them by dates.
"I've put them in order by his earliest shows to his latest shows so you can see how the earnings have increased. Eric said he'd have you some charts and graphs by the middle of the week, but this should work for now," Chad said.
Jared sat down and looked at each set of numbers, the earliest dating back to the time Jensen was in Paris until as recently as just a few months before Jeff's death, but they had all been joint shows with other artists. The earnings from each painting, depending on size, seemed to almost double from show to show and, at the last one, tripled in some cases.
"Hey Chad, there's two almost three years missing in between shows right here," Jared said, pointing to two sections of paperwork.
"Yeah, you’re right. We can ask Eric when he calls, but I don't think the machine ate it because the numbers all correspond to how many he sent."
When Eric called a few minutes later, Jared asked if he'd noticed the missing time and Eric said he did and that, no, he hadn't missed anything. Jensen hadn't done any shows during that time. He thought it was odd himself so he double checked but didn't find anything. They went over what the earning potential would be for his next show, to which Eric grumbled pretty damn high, and Jared asked why.
"Because my wife saw me working on the report and decided to Google the man so guess what she found?"
"His catalogue?" Jared asked, trying not to laugh.
"Yes, damn it, his catalogue, and now guess where I have to be in February?"
"I'm assuming you'll be here with me," Jared said sweetly.
Eric just growled at him which had Chad laughing hysterically.
"You do realize I'm going to be charging you more for this one. That way, I can pay for whatever she spends on your husband’s paintings."
"Oh, come on, you know just as soon as you get off the phone you're doing the same thing I am?"
"What's that?" Eric asked.
"Freeing up some capital to make a good investment."
"Shut up, and I'll see your ass in February," Eric said before he hung up.
"I swear that man gets more cuddly by the day," Chad said, wiping his eyes.
"I know, makes me miss him living here and busting into the office everyday looking like a Chihuahua on crack," Jared reminisced.
Chad grinned as he started collecting the papers. "I'm going to wait until he's here, and then I'm telling him you said that."
"You do and I'll key your baby," Jared threatened as he headed for the door.
"Yeah, and then guess who deals with Tom and Jessica?" Chad sing songed.
"Fine you win! I'll call you later," Jared said as he left.
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Jensen had been back home forty five minutes when Jared pulled up, thankfully early, because the thought of cleaning the refrigerator was starting to look entertaining at the moment. Jensen met him at the door with his coat on and his keys in his hand.
"I'm guessing you're ready to go?" Jared asked, amused.
"Are you kidding? You took everything last night. I didn't even have a book to read! I finally had to go get me some hot chocolate and talk to Sophia before I lost my mind," Jensen said, shutting the door behind him.
"Don't you want to grab the last minute stuff?"
"Nope, I've been waiting for three days to see your place and I'm not all that patient a person, so lets go see. Besides, it's cold as a witches titty out here," Jensen whined.
"How would you know, been pulling on any lately?"
Jensen shot him an ugly look and slid into the car when he popped the locks with the remote.
"So, how far away is it?" Jensen asked when he slid in behind the wheel and shut the door.
"Well, with the lunch hour traffic, there's no telling," Jared answered.
They made small talk on the ride to the house. Jared told Jensen about the movie making business and all the old movie posters he had framed in his office. Jensen had noticed them when he'd gone there to talk to him, he'd just had his mind on more important things but he'd wanted to ask about them. He told Jared he thought they were pretty cool, and Jared told him stories about how he'd come to own some of them, and how hard it was to find others.
The drive went by so quickly that it was a surprise to find themselves pulling up to the gate. Jared rolled down the window to speak to the gentleman at the house there. He introduced Jensen as his husband, and explained this was his first trip to the house. The guard asked that they stop by the main building sometime in the next day or two so Jensen could get his pass key and gate card, in case he ever needed to use them and the guard was on rounds and not at his post.
Jensen caught himself leaning forward in the seat, trying to catch a glimpse of Jared's house, which was silly, since he had no idea which one was his. Jared, on the other hand, was holding his breath to see how Jensen would react to his new home. Neither one of them should have been worried, when Jared stopped at the gate and punched his code in Jensen was already in love with all the trees and plants. Even though none of them were blooming right then, he could tell when they did the whole property would be awash in color and smell.
Jensen literally gasped when he first caught sight of the house. Jared looked over concerned something was wrong, but he saw the same look on Jensen's face, he knew he'd had when seeing the house for the first time.
"Jared, this place is gorgeous."
"I know, Alona is a miracle worker. I told her what I wanted, and she delivered."
" Alona?" Jensen asked, never taking his eyes off the house, which he seemed to be trying to memorize.
"Yeah, the realtor that found it for me."
"Oh well, she's fantastic then." Jensen agreed, praying he wouldn't see glass and mirrors everywhere when the door swung open.
Jared pulled into the garage and cut the engine. He figured he was probably as nervous as Jensen was and sitting out here wasn't going to make either one of them feel any better.
"Come on, I'll give you the grand tour," Jared said, getting out of the car and waiting for Jensen to follow before heading to the door.
Jensen stepped into the kitchen, blinking at the sheer size and the space, not to mention the wood flooring and cabinetry. He walked over to the closest set and ran his hand across the smooth surface.
"What kind of wood is this?"
"Mesquite."
"Like the stuff you cook with?"
"Yeah that too," Jared laughed. "I didn't know it looked like this either until I walked in here.
"Come on, there's still lots to show you," Jared said, tugging on Jensen's coat sleeve to get him away from the marble counters and into the dining room.
Jared walked him through the dining room and the living room, showing Jensen where he'd put his CD's and DVD's so he could find them if he wanted them. They walked through each of the bedrooms that were downstairs and Jensen seemed to want to ask a questions, but Jared could tell he was holding back.
"Did you want to ask me something?" Jared asked, stopping in the hall.
"I was just wondering which room was mine?" Jensen asked.
"Oh, yours is actually upstairs. These are more guest rooms, although I did want to ask what you thought about turning one into a library? I unpacked all your books and I put them in the office with mine but everything is double stacked. I thought it might be nice to have a proper library." Jared finished slowly when Jensen continued to gape at him.
"Jared, it's your house, you can do whatever you like in it. Did you really unpack all the boxes yourself?"
"Yes, I couldn't sleep last night, and you don't need to be doing anymore than you have to. As far as the house is concerned, we're married Jensen, it belongs to you too. If there are changes to be made, it's something I'd like to decide together. I've made the last changes I'm going to on my own over the weekend."
Jensen couldn't really do anything but stare at Jared, the man was just too damn trusting, lovable but trusting, and when had he started thinking of Jared as loveable?
"Now, come on, we still have several rooms to see," and with that Jared was off again.
Jensen followed behind, caught in a whirlwind as Jared showed him the gym, it had an elliptical and a treadmill. The weight bench was the band style that worked with natural resistance, there were free weights and jump ropes and some things Jensen didn't have a clue what the names of the items were much less how the hell you used them, but he knew he'd need it after he had the baby. Jared stopped in front of a set of French doors and squared his shoulders. Jensen was perplexed by the gesture until the door was opened, and he saw all his equipment set up as much as anyone that wasn't an artist could set up.
"Did you do this too?" Jensen asked.
"Yes, I tried to remember how you had things set up, and what I couldn't, I left in the box. I left some of the blinds closed because I didn't know if it would hurt the paintings, and I snuck a peek at your temperature settings so I could do the same here," Jared explained.
"Thank you, it seems inadequate, but it's all I can come up with right now," Jensen said, looking around at the room. "Why did you put it in here?"
"I thought you'd like the light and all the windows, plus...." Jared said moving to open the blinds into the back yard. "It's got one of the best views."
Jensen walked over and to one of the windows and looked out. He could see the flower beds nestled under trees and paths winding their way through grass still managing to hold it's color. Jensen could just imagine what it was like during the spring and summer and even in the fall with all the changing colors. There was beauty even now, in the dead of winter.
"Why aren't you using it for plants, since I'm guessing it's what its original use is for?"
"Actually, I don't think it's ever been used. The sprinkler system was never run for a greenhouse and if I were to have plants, they'd all die," Jared said.
"So who takes care of all your flower beds?"
"Martino, he's the god of all that's green and wait until you see what he did with the lights so I don't come home to a dark house. We could see about him setting up a lighting system in here if this one won't work, and I figured you could get some more racks if you need them. Or maybe another system for drying your paintings if you'd like since you have more space, you could do that," Jared offered. "But lets keep going. I still have all the upstairs to show you," he finished nervously before disappearing through the door.
Once up the stairs, Jared showed him the extra bedroom and the study.
"I see what you mean about books now," Jensen said thoughtfully. "I think a library might be a good idea, but could we wait a few days before we talk about it?"
"Sure, there's no rush. It was just something I wanted to ask you before I forgot, " Jared said, pushing open the door to his room. "This is my room. If you need anything, just knock or stick your head in and holler. Sometimes, I sleep soundly."
Jensen relaxed a little when Jared said my instead of ours because he'd been worried about having to upset Jared. He'd known Jared wouldn't expect them to share a room, but it hadn't kept him from stressing about it anyway.
"This is the room I thought would be nice for a nursery, and I put you in the room on the other side. That way, the baby would be in between us," Jared said, pushing open the door.
"You haven't done anything to this room?" Jensen asked.
"Well, no, except take out the furniture. I thought it might be nice if we did it together."
"I'd like that Jared. I'd like that a lot," Jensen said, looking around the room. It had its own bathroom, which would make it easier during clean up time. "I could paint a mural. I've never done anything like that before, but I'd like to try.
"I think that would be great, and I think you'd be wonderful at it."
They left the soon to be nursery and Jared paused in front of the last room. Jensen watched him rub the back of his neck and then run his fingers through his hair. He put his hand on the knob three times and even turned it once but he still hadn't pushed it open and gone in. Jensen tapped him on the shoulder, and he turned around.
"Is there something wrong?"
"God, I hope not," Jared said nervously. " I um.... didn't want you to be in just a regular guest room, so I had someone come in, and we redid the room, but I'm not sure if you'll like it and now I'm sort of terrified to turn the handle and go in.
Jensen reached around him and turned the handle, giving it a small push inward. "Shall we?" he gestured behind Jared.
"Yeah," Jared sighed.
Jensen walked in and the first thing he noticed, of course, was the color of the walls. They were a pale sage green and absolutely gorgeous. The trim was a light cream color as were the linens and comforter on the bed. The furniture was in the strangest shade of colors he'd ever seen, and he had a sneaking suspicion it was mesquite as well, but it was beautiful and absolutely unique. Jensen walked around the room, looking at everything in total amazement.
There were candles placed on the dresser, a few on the armoire. He looked around amazed at all the work that had gone into making him comfortable and welcome. Jared had even placed his wish box in the center of his dresser, there was no way anyone knew what it was, and until last year he hadn't even had a proper box for all the little trinkets he'd kept over the years. Somehow though Jared had understood that it was important and placed it prominently in the room, just as he had the picture of Jeff on the bedside table.
Jensen swallowed the lump in his throat and moved to the french doors, opening them onto a small balcony. There were two loungers and a small table along with several empty planters running along the sides of the space.
"I figured I'd let you choose what kind of plants you wanted in them and have Martino bring them up the next time he comes," Jared said quietly.
"Thank you. It'll be nice to sit out here and read when the weather gets warmer."
Jared showed him the bathroom and told him how Kristen had helped him choose the color so it would blend with the room. Jensen couldn't even speak. No one had ever done anything for him like this. Sure, his mom had treated him special and had loved him, but this was something else entirely. He was quite literally speechless.
"Do you like it? Jared asked worried the longer the silence dragged on.
Jensen looked up at Jared realizing his silence was being mistaken for dislike. He couldn't understand how anyone could dislike not just the beauty of the room but the feeling that had been in the act itself.
"Jared, like doesn't even begin to describe it. This is amazing. I can't believe you'd do something like this for me," Jensen said quietly.
Jared's grin bloomed fully onto his face, dimples peeking out.
"You're worth it."
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