*ADOPTED*

*ADOPTED*~Twelve~

Klayton drove me to Chloe's house and said he'd come and pick me up for that date around 7:30 if that was ok with me. I gave him a smile and told him that 7:30 would be fine, then I walked to the house, but just before I went in I looked back at Klayton and waved to him and watched as he went around the corner. When I walked into the house and noticed Sandy and Chloey both searching the entire house and hollering for Alex to come out from hiding because he was really scaring them. I rushed over to them, and asked them where my son was! They both got off the floor and said they couldn't find him anywhere. I ran out of the house and searched the backyard, once I realized he wasn't out there I really panicked, for the front yard didn't have a safety fence around it, and he could have scampered off anywhere, or any crazy fucker could've snatched him in a drive-by.

I went running down the sidewalk looking and screaming out for him to answer me if he could hear me! Chloe and Sandy went in opposite directions to look for him too. I began to cry in emotional despair thinking that my son was gone forever when I heard his laughter further down the street. I rushed into the huge front yard without asking first and mindlessly moved toward the sound of my son's laugh, where I was immediately backed down by three very large dogs. Criss looked around and called them off very quickly and apologized for his dogs, that they were just protective around the kids, and none of his dogs knew me yet. I ignored Criss and went around him and grabbed my son as my tears fell from my eyes like a waterfall.

I moved his hair out of his face and told him never to disappear on me like that again! That he took 7 years off of my lifeline that I couldn't afford to spare, then I looked at Criss and asked him how in the hell did he end up with my son! & that Chloe and Sandy have been searching for him all afternoon. Criss said he was playing with his son when AJ just walked into the yard like he owned it and asked to play with them, so he figured that someone knew where he was at, then he assured me that AJ was very safe with him. I closed my eyes trying to settle down from all the worry I was going thru and told him that I wasn't blaming him, it was just too much for me to handle all at once because I thought I lost my son forever. Especially when Chloe and Sandy didn't know where he was.

Criss apologized again and said from now on when he got a visit from the lil guy without me, he would call me and let me know that he was there playing with him and Johnny. I shook my head and told him that would be fine, but before I left he ran around me and said with a little humor, that he couldn't call me though unless I gave him my phone number. I sat AJ down and told him to stay right beside me, then I pulled out a pen and wrote my phone number down on Criss's hand then just out of pure habit I drew a little heart around it, then I picked AJ back up and wished him a good evening, and goodbye. Criss thanked me and said it wasn't goodbye...it was 'see you around'. I turned and smiled at him and told him I'd see him around then.

After I left his breathtaking home, he looked down at Johnny and said he was so looking forward to seeing me again, then he lifted his lil man up over his shoulder and asked comically what he thought of his new playmate and his mommy. Johnny squealed with laughter as he said he likeded them very much. Which made Criss laugh with him as he said he likeded them very much too. Then he got a small dinner made for the both of them and settled down for the night beens it was his weekend off from the Luxor. I finally made it back to Chloe's house and told her and Sandy both that my wild and crazy kid made his way all the way down to Criss's house and was playing in the backyard with him and his son Johnny all evening.

Chloe knelt down to AJ's level and told him never to run off from her when she was watching him, because it scared the life out of her when she couldn't find him, then she hugged him and asked him if he was hungry because Sandy and her two kids were there to share dinner with them along with Sandy's boyfriend and her new boyfriend. AJ scampered into the kitchen as he said yea very loudly and hopped into his booster seat at the table. I went up to my bedroom and looked thru my clothes trying to think of what to wear for my dinner date tonight with Klayton when Chloe came up and asked me if I was coming down for dinner.

I turned around as I had on my black evening gown with matching sandals and said that I was going out for dinner with Klayton and I would appreciate it a whole lot if they would watch AJ and put him down for his bedtime around 8:00. Chloe gave me a hug as she said she was so proud of me for moving ahead in my life and getting a man already. I laughed at her as I told her it was just a friendly dinner and nothing more, because I wasn't ready for another relationship and Klayton knew that already, he just wanted to enjoy the evening with me by having dinner, plus I owed him a little something after him helping me out all evening getting AJ into the best preschool in the city, and chauffeuring me around in his awesome muscle mobile.

Then I heard the doorbell ring and as I opened it Klayton was standing there with a bouquet of flowers and asked me if I was ready to go...I accepted the flowers than before I closed the door behind me I told them not to wait up for me, that I had my key to the house because I wasn't sure when I'd be home tonight. Klayton escorted me to his car and opened it for me as I got in he closed the door and ran around the car and hopped in as he said he hoped I liked where he was taking me. I smiled at him and told him that wherever it was, I would have a good time because of his friendship and company.