England

Laci had excused J from the room as she readied herself. I just five short minutes, she was a whirlwind leaving the room completely transformed. Her dance clothes had been shed and instead she wore a sundress and flats. "Definitely a record. I didn't think it was possible for women to dress that quickly." he laughed. The two made their way to the car and when Laci went to the driver side, Jason held no complaints. He didn't mind riding instead of driving. Sure, his lack of control worried him a little, but it wasn't a big deal.

As they took off, Jason slumped down into his seat, starting as the trees flew past. "I'm sure we won't be the last ones." J told her just before the car veered onto the side of the road. Looking at Laci, Jason could see that her face had paled and when she turned away from him, Jason could see her covering her mouth in the reflection of the window. In a matter of seconds, the door was open and Laci was deeply breathing in and out.

"Lace.." he began, "are you okay?" Jason opened his own door, got out, and padded around to where Laci was bent from her seat. "Maybe you should let me drive?" he asked her, brushing the fishtail behind her and holding the single curl she'd left out. He was worried, no doubt. He'd never been one to deal with these type of situations and he honestly had no idea how to take care of someone. After his parents had been murdered, Jason had turned off that switch - the one that showed any regard for anyone else's feelings. Laci was slowly, but surely bringing it out in him, even if they both refused to admit it. "Talk to me, Lace. What's going on?"

Asher heard Chloe come in, but refused to look at her. He'd walked away because he needed to gather his thoughts before getting into an argument with her. She didn't understand that though and pushed her way in anyway. He listened as she talked, trying his best to let any anger diffuse before he opened his own mouth. "When I have to leave? When you're a bitch? When Harmony's too much? Are you serious right now, Chloe!? I've been here for two years. Yeah, I was a pretty messed up kid when I came into your life, but I've changed so much and I've been here for you and for Harmony this whole time. Have I bailed yet?" Ash fought to keep his voice controlled and level. He didn't want to yell at Chloe. When she flopped down onto his bed, he stood and started pacing - a technique he'd learned long ago to help with anger.

When Chloe finally stopped talking, Ash came to a dead stop and just stared at her. Moments passed before he opened his mouth again. "I'm not Chris. I'm not going to leave you or try to kill you. Damn, Chloe. When are you gonna stop comparing me to him? You know I care about you and Harmony more than anything. So, what if me and you haven't worked out all the kinks yet? Well'll get there. That's no reason to deny Harmony the chance to have a father figure in her life." He couldn't bring himself to say what was really on his mind - that he loved her and he loved Harmony and he'd do anything to protect them both and give them the lives they deserved.

When Chloe hiked her dress up and the bruises showed, Ash felt his entire face drain and his temperature rise. If only he could run into that scumbag just once, Asher would be perfectly content. He'd make sure that Chris never put his hands on another woman again. Instead of lashing out and hitting the wall like his first instinct had been, Ash knew that violence wasn't what he needed to show right now and laid down on the bed beside Chloe pulling her into his arms.

"I'm here for you, and for Harmony, because I want to be. I just wish you could see that. We'll talk more later. Until then, I'll tell Harmony to just call me Ash." he told her, running his finger through the parts of her hair he could reach, knowing she'd have to get up and fix it in just a few moments.

Chloe gasped as Asher pulled her into his arms. She kept shaking for a bit but finally stopped and relaxed into his arms, feeling safe.
"I'm here for you, and for Harmony, because I want to be. I just wish you could see that. We'll talk more later. Until then, I'll tell Harmony to just call me Ash."
She tuned to face him and looked up at him. The vein in his neck that always throbbed when he was mad was still there. She knew he was fighting his anger but she wasn't afraid. She hesitantly turned toward him, while still remaining in his arms.
"I'm sorry I made you mad and that I'm being difficult." She said gently. She sighed in frustration, not at him but at herself. She wanted to be loved by Asher so much it hurt and she wanted to love him too but she didn't know how to. She just knew she longed to be near him, she longed to be in his arms, she longed to touch him, she longed to breath in his scent. He had made such a big impact on her. She glanced at him ad bit her lip.

The good christian girl in her was suddenly being torn by the fire that Asher helped bring out in her. She couldn't explain it but no matter how much she tried to keep they're relationship mental and emotional it always ended up physical. It wasn't that she was a physical person but she just wanted to be close as possible to Asher.

She unwrapped herself in his arms and quickly walked over to the door and closed it before getting back on the bed. It was if her body responded on its own, controlled by her desires. She quickly took her hair out of the braid letting it fall gently down her back. Then he laid back down next to him and gently grasped both sides of his face, looking him in the eye "I know your not Chris, I know I should trust you, I know you wont hurt me, I just don't know how to do those things yet," she said" But I wan't to learn,"

Before Asher could respond she kissed him. It was light and playful but became intense quickly. She wasn't sure how much time had passed but she could estimate it was around fifteen minuets. Not that she cared, right then and there she was happier than she had been in so long. She was happy to be in his arms, to feel his warmth, to feel protected, and safe. She sighed braking the kiss, and walked over to the full length mirror.
"Well my makeup is alright but other than that not so much," She joked taking in her hair and dress which was now wrinkled and awkwardly hanging over her body. "I can't go to the brunch like this," She concluded, " I also can't let Delilah see me like this."

She tiptoes to her room and grabbed a brush and a new dress. She quickly walked back in Asher's room.
"Look that way," she commanded him before checking to make sure he wasn't peaking and getting dressed. It was the same shade as her other dress it was just a bit sexier. She sighed and brushed her hair down into soft mermaid waves.
"Ok I'm done and we need to go downstairs," She said giving him one more long kiss before practically running down the steps.

Riley huffed softly as he was ignored by Jake, not quite wanting a fight, but sort of wanting some kind of reaction. When someone softly tapped his shoulder, he looked back to see Claire. Really he already knew that it was Claire, mainly because Beth wouldn't lighly tap his shoulder if she wanted his attention and Jake most likely wouldn't demand much of Riley's attention. Riley gave a wide, cheerful grin that was usual of him, "Ah, you look amazing as always." he picked his keys off the counter, "I'll drive, seeing as it seems we are being abandoned by Beth and Jake." he said grinning. While he questioned the thought of taking seperate cars, he was fine with the thought of having extra time alone with Claire. She seemed to always be more comfortable just around a single person rather than a crowed enviornment. And anything she seemed to prefer, Riley practically lived on providing it for her, something he wasn't afraid of letting her know. He held out a hand for her to take, silently hoping she did just to establish contact. He walked to his car, opening the passenger door for her and just trying to be as gentelmanly as possible. Riley definetly felt the need to make it up to her after how he had screwed up this morning.

Lacianne closed her eyes, trying to settle her stomach when she heard Jason speak. "Lace.." he began, "are you okay?" He asked her, pulling back her hair. "I'm fine." She murmured softly through her fingers. His sweet gesture was a reminder of the strong feelings she felt developing for him- no matter how much she tried to deny it, they were there and only growing the more time she spent with him.
When the nausea started to pass, she moved her hand and slowly sat up. Asking a slow breath to steady herself, she looked up at J and offered him a weak half smile. "I'm really sorry about that."

"Talk to me, Lace. What's going on?" Laci pursed her lips, glancing away from him. She nervously tapped her thigh, knowing she had to tell him but unsure of how exactly she should go about it. She took another deep breath and looked back at up him. She paused, studying him silently for a moment. "I'm pregnant." She blurted, then flinched.
She sat back him her seat, glancing away from him again. "Before I say anything else, just know that I don't want to to feel like you're obligated to stay now. You know I can take care of myself. After all, Chloe was ale to do it alone. I am fully capable." She paused, looking back up. "I want you to stay, but you definitely don't have to."

Laci let out a deep breath. "I'm sorry for not telling you before- I could barely admit it to myself. I'm pretty far along now. And it's yours, clearly." She chuckled nervously, tapping her fingers on her thigh again. She glanced down at her abdomen- she was showing slightly. You couldn't notice all that much unless she pointed it out, and she had been very careful to not wear any tight clothing. Her bright blue eyes flicked back up at him, unsure.