Chapter 9

“Brian, stop,” Justin admonished, though his voice sounded playful more than anything. “I have to get breakfast ready for the kids.”

“They are old enough to get their own breakfast, Sunshine. I know of so many better things we could be doing instead,” Brian smirked, before he continued nibbling on Justin's earlobe while his husband tried to prepare breakfast for their family.

“Vicky isn't,” Justin pointed out as he tried to move away from Brian's wandering mouth and hands.

“She's got two older brothers that can get her something to eat.”

“You are hopeless,” Justin chuckled as he finally made his way out of Brian's embrace. He threw his  husband a playful glare before he opened the fridge and got some juice and milk from it.

“Hopelessly in love with you? You got that one right,” Brian chuckled, before he sighed dramatically. “Fine, you win. Breakfast first.” He then moved over towards the counter and got started on preparing scrambled eggs when Justin handed him the box of eggs.

“You are the best husband ever,” Justin snorted, but then came over and wrapped his arms around Brian's midsection. “I love you,” he said more seriously, leaning into Brian's broad shoulders, sighing happily.

“You need to make up your mind, Sunshine. It's either breakfast or play time.”

Justin left a gentle kiss on Brian's neck, but didn't release his hold on his midsection yet. “Breakfast now and I promise to make play time worth the wait later. How does that sound?”

When Brian turned around in his arms, Justin smiled up at the taller man, happy to see the happiness in those hazel eyes that he loved so much.

“Sounds great,” Brian whispered, then leaned in and claimed Justin's lips in a searing kiss.

***

“What's going on? Why are you waiting here outside the kitchen?” Gus frowned when he saw Jenny standing next to the doorway, but not moving inside.

“Your fathers... they are...,” she started, but then stopped, not quite sure how to continue.

“Making out?” Gus raised an eyebrow in question. When Jenny nodded, he wasn't surprised at all. “They always are. You'll get used to it.”

With that he unceremoniously passed his sister and made his way into the kitchen. “Dad, Papa, can you please stop? You're scaring Jenny,” he said as he passed his fathers on the way to the coffee machine.

They were locked in an embrace and kissing and he wasn't even sure if they had heard him or not, until they broke apart slightly breathless. The blush on Justin's face was a clear indication though that he had heard him.

“Uhm, morning Gus,” Justin muttered, before turning to Jenny, still blushing furiously. “Morning, Jenny. Sorry about that.”

Brian couldn't hide his amusement at his husband's blush and playfully squeezed his ass as he moved towards the fridge again. “You're such a WASP. Always so proper.”

“Brian,” Justin sighed, then got some more stuff for their breakfast out of the fridge. He walked over to Jenny and smiled at her. “Ignore him. He's hopeless.”

“It's okay,” Jenny muttered, looking from Gus to his fathers and back. Gus didn't even act like what had just happened was out of the ordinary, so she assumed that it must have been a pretty normal display of affection between the two men. “I don't mind. I think it's cute how much in love you are. I just didn't want to...”

“Interrupt,” Gus supplied. “You guys really need to learn to keep it to your bedroom when we have guests. You might have scarred me and Luke and Vicky for life, but leave Jenny out of it.”

Everyone in the kitchen could hear the joke in his voice and Brian shook his head dramatically. “How did I end up with such a prude for a son?”

“I am not a prude. I just know how to behave in company,” Gus gave right back, before he took his first sip of coffee and sighed happily.

A second later Luke came into the room, looking around at everyone. “What's going on here?”

“Jenny caught them making out,” Gus readily supplied, then flopped down at the kitchen table.

Luke snorted, then walked over to Jenny and gave her a clap on the back. “Welcome to the family. You're now as scarred for life as we are.”

“You make us sound like horrible parents,” Justin muttered, as he placed a plate with some slices of toast and some bagels on the table.

“You know that we love you,” Luke grinned as he grabbed a slice of toast and took a bite. “That doesn't mean that we can't be disgusted by our parents making out like any other decent teenager would be.”

“Hey, I am not a teenager,” Gus complained, just as he was about to take another sip of coffee.

“I was speaking for myself,” Luke explained, before he flopped down next to his brother.

Jenny watched the interactions between the brothers and their fathers and could see that everyone in the kitchen had a smile on their face and that no one seemed offended by what had been said. Everyone seemed amused more than anything.

“Where's your sister?” Brian directed towards Gus and Luke with a raised eyebrow, surprised that Vicky hadn't made an appearance yet. Usually she would be the first of their children to wake up and would come and wake him and Justin up at the crack of dawn.

“Right there,” Gus nodded towards Jenny, then stuck out his tongue at his father when he rolled his eyes. “Oh, you mean the other one? The incarnation of the devil...”

“How early?” Justin just asked, as he sat down at the kitchen table and poured himself some more coffee.

“Barely 6 o'clock,” Gus gave back, then nodded towards his cup of coffee. “Hence the need for coffee this morning. She said she missed me so much and she couldn't wait to tell me all about her new teacher and all the things she had learned in recent weeks and boy, did she tell me alright. I think she talked for two hours straight.”

Brian brought over the scrambled eggs and placed them in the middle of the table. “She's got that from him, not from me. Just saying,” he said with a smirk at his husband.

“She missed you,” Justin said with a gentle smile on his face. “And she's really excited about you being here for a couple of days.”

“I know,” Gus replied. “And I missed her too. It's just that she went back to sleep and is sleeping now, while I am here trying to get myself ready to survive the day with coffee. It's unfair.”

“We'll make sure she'll leave you alone tomorrow morning,” Brian offered, locking eyes with Justin who nodded in agreement.

“Nah, it's okay. I know she misses me and really? I missed her too and I think it's cute.”

Once the table was set, Justin excused himself from the table. “I'll check on her. She will be sad to miss breakfast with all of us. You guys already start, we'll be back in a minute.”

Everyone started having breakfast and indeed Justin returned just a couple of minutes later, carrying his still tired daughter in his arms. He sat down with her, brushing her hair out of her face.

Brian leaned over, looking at her in concern. “Hey princess, you alright?”

“Tired, Daddy,” she muttered, before she yawned to underline her statement.

“That's what happens when you wake up at the crack of dawn,” Justin chuckled, before he started preparing his bagel with cream cheese, skillfully preparing it while his daughter was still nestled into his chest. “You want some juice?”

Vicky nodded and whispered a quiet thanks to her Dad when Brian filled her glass and handed it to her.

Conversation picked up around the table once more and after a couple of minutes of fully waking up, Vicky joined in as well, being her usual lively self once more, entertaining everyone around the table with her tale of waking up Gus earlier that morning.

***

After everyone had finished breakfast and helped with the clean up, preparations for their big Thanksgiving dinner started.

Justin, Luke and Vicky continued whatever preparations they had started in the kitchen the day before while Brian and Gus checked on the dining room, got the dinnerware and cutlery, so everything would be available when Emmett turned up, ready to set the table.

Jenny watched in quiet fascination how the family seemed to work together like a well oiled machine. Everyone seemed to have their dedicated tasks and seemed to know exactly what they were doing.

It wasn't long before the first members of the family started to arrive. The first ones were Debbie and Carl. Jenny's eyes widened when she saw the amount of food they carried into the house, but nobody else seemed surprised at all. She had seen Justin and Luke and Vicky working on food, so she hadn't expected her grandmother to bring that much food as well, but apparently everyone else had.

Greetings and hugs were exchanged, before the doorbell rang again.

“Auntie Em,” Vicky exclaimed excitedly as she ran into the arms of the tall man that made his way over towards the kitchen.

“Now if it isn't my favourite goddaughter in the world,” he exclaimed just as happily as he hugged her close.

Once he let her down, he moved on to say hello to everyone else. Jenny couldn't help but be amazed about the familiarity in which everyone greeted the newcomer. There were hugs, smiles, jokes and all throughout she could see how Vicky, Gus and Luke were part of every conversation. This was so different to how her mom and her friends behaved with her. They always told her to go to her room and not to disturb them, claiming that she wouldn't understand what they were talking about anyway, but here, everyone included the children in their conversations and preparations and no one had sent anyone away so far.

“And you must be Jenny,” the tall man now had come over to her, exposing a toothy grin. “The last time I saw you, you were still in your diapers,” the man gushed, excitement clear to hear in his voice.

Thankfully Gus and Luke had prepared her for this Thanksgiving meal the previous night and had told her about all the guests that would be coming, so she had been prepared and knew all about Emmett's lively persona. 'His flame is shining brightly' Gus had said and now that she saw him, she understood what he had meant.

“Yes, I am. It's nice to meet you,” Jenny said, not quite sure how to react to this man that knew her, but that she had no recollection of at all. She had been too young when her mothers had moved her and Gus away to Canada.

“Polite and beautiful,” Emmett grinned. “Now if that isn't a perfect mix.” He was still smiling widely when he took her hand and led her away from the kitchen that was getting pretty crowded by now and towards the much quieter living-room. “Everyone here calls me Auntie Em, so that would be me. Your Auntie who will plan the perfect event for you, be it a birthday party, a wedding or a family Thanksgiving feast. Party planner extraordinaire, but also a very good listener and pretty good at giving advice. So if you ever need someone to talk to or to ask for advice, just call me, okay?”

Jenny nodded, smiling back at the man. “Thanks.”

“Oh honey, nothing to thank me for. You're family. Once you get over how crazy we all are, you will love this family.”

“I think I already do,” she said honestly, feeling like she could tell him the truth.

“That's good, honey. Everyone is so happy that you're here. It wouldn't do for you to not enjoy your time with us. Let me know if there's anything I can do, okay? Even if it's just to take you out of this house for a while to get a bit of a break.”

“Thanks, I appreciate it, but I think so far I can still cope,” Jenny chuckled, enjoying talking to this man who just like everyone else seemed very welcoming.

They were interrupted by Brian who made his way over to them. “Honeycutt, are you scaring her?”

“Don't call me Honeycutt,” Emmett said in mock anger, before he turned to Jenny. “As if she would be scared of me. Old Auntie Em. Seriously...If anything, she should be scared of you, Big Bad!”

Brian actually snorted at that. “You have no idea. According to Gus and Luke we have already scarred her for life as well.”

“Oh no,” Emmett gasped as his hand flew to his mouth. He then turned to Jenny with wide eyes. “You caught them in the act?” His face then broke out into the biggest smile possible. “You're really a member of our family now.”

“Kissing,” Brian clarified, glaring at Emmett for jumping to conclusions. “Contrary to public opinion, Sunshine and I know how to behave.”

“Pft,” Emmett rolled his eyes. “Baby knows how to behave. All hope is lost for you and has been for years.”

“Why does everyone always think he's the innocent one and I am the evil one?” Brian frowned. “I thought we would have disabused everyone of that notion years ago.”

“It's the blue eyes, blond hair and his youthful looks,” Emmett shot back right away. “Everyone knows you're the bad influence.”

Brian shook his head, then turned to Jenny. “See what I am up against in this family?”

She couldn't help but laugh when he dramatically rolled his eyes to underline his statement. Before she could reply, the doorbell rang again.

“That must be Mother Taylor,” Brian said, before he headed towards the door.

“Justin's mom,” Emmett supplied for Jenny. “She's really nice. You'll love her. And she's your namesake.”

Jenny nodded, already having heard about Grandma Jen from her brother and his siblings.

“Honey, I better get started on setting the table or Big Bad will have my ass. If you need anything, just holler, okay?” Emmett said, before he headed off towards the dining-room.

Jenny nodded after him, then made her way back to the kitchen where she watched everyone welcome Grandma Jen. She saw the blond woman who had to be Grandma Jen give a hug to her son, after hugging her grandchildren. She then greeted Debbie and Carl and called out a greeting to Emmett in the other room. Once again everyone seemed to get on really well and there was a sense of familiarity between all these people that Jenny had never experienced herself with anyone else.

“Grandma Jen, this is Jenny, my sister,” Gus introduced her as he came over to where Jenny stood with the elegant woman by his side.

“It's nice to meet you, Mrs Taylor,” Jenny greeted the woman, who was smiling at her warmly.

“Oh, none of that, Jenny. Mrs Taylor is my former mother in law and believe me, she's not someone I like. Just call me Grandma Jen like everyone else does. You're family.”

“Are you adopting even more grandkids, Mother Taylor?” Brian winked as he walked by to get the door once more as it rang again.

“Ignore him,” Jennifer chuckled. “You're Gus' sister, Gus is my grandson, so in my book that makes you my granddaughter, too. End of story!”

Jenny nodded, feeling quite overwhelmed by how welcoming everyone was to her. Noticing her slight discomfort, Jennifer smiled at her gently. “Don't worry, Jenny. You will get used to us. We might look like a crazy bunch, but you couldn't find better people anywhere.”

“It's just that everyone is so welcoming and... you don't even know me,” Jenny began. “And my parents...”

“Oh honey, of course we are. You're part of the family. And you're not your parents. If anyone knows about the burden of bad parents, Brian and Justin would and they would be the last people to judge anyone by their parents' behaviour. And they would never allow us to do it either. You are Gus' sister, Debbie's granddaughter. That's enough for us to welcome you into the family.”

“Thanks, I really appreciate it,” Jenny said sincerely as she met the older woman's gaze which was full of warmth.

“I better go and help with the food, but why don't you and Gus come by some time before the weekend is over? Maybe we can have brunch together or something,” Jennifer offered, turning to Gus and kissing his cheek. “I've really missed you, honey and Justin mentioned how proud he was of your latest work.”

“I am sure that can be arranged,” Gus agreed, hugging his grandmother close. “I'll show you some pictures later, but just so you're warned, he's biased.”

“Honey, you know that he isn't. He's really proud of your work and thinks that you're a brilliant artist. And quite frankly, I agree with him,” she smiled at her grandson, then moved towards the counter where Debbie was busy directing tasks.

Gus rolled his eyes, but then smiled at Jenny. “He's my father. Of course he has to say that he likes my stuff. And as my grandmother, she has to as well.”

“I don't think they would say it was great if they didn't really believe so,” Jenny said, honestly believing that they wouldn't. “They all strike me as pretty honest.”

“They are. Honest to a fault,” Gus agreed. “But they are great, all of them. I wouldn't change anything about them.”

“What did she mean when she said that your fathers knew all about bad parents? She doesn't seem like a bad parent to me,” Jenny mused and watched how Jennifer interacted with everyone else in the kitchen, most of all with her son. She could see from the interactions and smiles that there was some real closeness between Justin and his mother. And from what she had heard from Gus before, she also seemed close with Brian.

“Papa's father,” Gus sighed. “And Dad's parents... it's a long story. She is awesome though. Papa and her are really close, as are Dad and her. And she's also a pretty cool grandma. Even though I am not her biological grandchild like Luke and Vicky are, she has never treated me any differently. She's always treated me just the same. You will love her when you get to know her better.”

Jenny was just about to reply to that when she saw a big smile spread on Gus' face. “That's Uncle Teddy and Uncle Blake. The last ones you have to meet.” He took her hand and pulled her towards the men that were talking with his father in the hallway.

Gus had told her about Ted and Blake the night before and she knew that Ted was Luke's godfather and Blake was Gus' godfather. He had mentioned that Ted worked with his father and was a partner in his company and that he loved them both very much.

“Ted, Blake!” Gus exclaimed as he made his way over and hugged first one, then the other man.

“Gus!” Both men greeted, hugging him back. “How are you? How is New York?”

“Loud, busy, you know it,” Gus shrugged, then nodded towards Jenny. “You've heard about Jenny? My sister?”

“Right,” Ted nodded, before he turned to the girl. “Brian has told us about your visit. He said it's the reason he couldn't sign off on the Christmas bonuses yet,” the older man chuckled.

“No talking about work, honey! You know the rules,” the younger man by his side, Blake, interjected, before holding out his hand to her in greeting. “It's nice to meet you Jenny. We've heard so much about you.”

“Same here. Gus has told me so much about you,” Jenny gave back with a smile.

“I hope only good things,” Ted joked and everyone laughed when Brian muttered 'My son is not a liar, Theodore'.

“Only the best,” Jenny confirmed. “It's nice to finally be able to put a face to the stories he's told me.”

“Well, that's everyone now,” Brian said, opening his arms wide and turning towards the kitchen, the living-room and the hallway, all the places where people were gathered in his house. “Meet your crazy Pittsburgh family.”