They drove back home after struggling with Willie's car seat. Sitting beside Chanty's baby, Cassandra wondered aloud, "How old is Willie?"

"One year and two months," Philip answered her, his voice warm and proud. Heck, Willie was the only mistake in his sister's life that he was proud of. He noted his wife's calculative look.

"Chanty had the baby when she was what...twenty-five?"

"Yes," he replied. "And don't ask about the father. He's never discussed inside the family just so you know."

"Tell me about him."

"Who? Willie?"

"No, the father."

His brows furrowed. "Why? You don't know him."

"I'm just curious, you know."

"He was Chanty's long-time boyfriend during graduate school and he disappeared out of Chanty's life when he found out about the baby. Good enough for you?"

She nodded slowly. "What do we do now? I don't know how to take care of a baby."

Philip was silent for a few seconds. "Me too, but it would only be for three days. I guess it's not much of work."

"Yeah, I hope so too."

"You can ask your mom to help," he suggested as he maneuvered the car to the left.

"She's busy with her little business and I don't know anyone else who can help." Her mother had a flower shop in the city and she spent all her time there.

"I guess we have to work on this one together then."

"Yeah, I guess so too." Cassandra was silent for a long time again before she said, "You know what? I guess we have to minimize our little quarrels while Willie's with us. I read somewhere that babies can already have memories of such things."

An amused look spread across his face. He scoffed. "You read it?"

"What? Yes I did. Women read stuff like that sometimes," she said defensively. In Philip's mind, only women who had plans of having a family would read stuff like that. He realized there was so much about his wife he did not know about.

"Can't imagine you reading that kind of stuff," Philip commented, hesitant to ask questions. He had no right.

"Then I guess you don't know your wife that much."

*****

She frowned when she saw his jaw clench. With reasons she didn't know, it seemed to her that Philip didn't like it when she points out that they didn't know much about each other. Not that it's not true, she thought. They didn't exactly know each other that much.

He had said once that he found it hard to read her most of the time and she could say the same thing about him. Sometimes, he would look distracted just by looking at her and then his eyes would flare in anger by the little things she did. And most of the time, he would look at her with a look that seemed like he was making some kind of tactics for his business. Mostly, it brought her some kind of feeling she chose to ignore.

In short, he's like an abstract book. He's as impossible as me.

She was reminded once again of her reaction when she saw Philip and Angelica's interaction earlier. She had been furious and angry in a way a real wife would have been. It was not a very good reaction, she thought. She knew—deep inside—that Philip was something more than what she chose to believe him to be, but their situation was different and too horrendously complex that developing real feelings could make it complicated.

The obvious sexual tension was long accepted by both of them, but feelings deeper than that must not be entertained.

You can never be sure about that, that once-in-a-blue-moon voice inside her head spoke. She stopped that train of thought and concentrated on the matters at hand.

Though she was not really eager to start babysitting, she was quite excited in some ways. One reason was that she wanted to have a glimpse of what Philip was like when he would become a father. It was quite hard to picture out, but it sure would be fun to see him changing diapers which she planned would have to be his task because she was never going to change soiled diapers and risk Willie's accident.

*****

When they arrived home, everyone was ecstatic to see the baby.

Willie woke up in Hope's arms. Mary immediately prepared a formula to feed him while Cassandra secretly looked on to cheat how it was done. William proudly told everybody in every chance he could get that the baby was named after him.

"You two should start thinking of having one, you know," Cassandra's mother said over the commotion.

They were outside where the food was already prepared with candles. Actually, it was such a nice evening and the silent sounds of little animals in the woods were like music to Cassandra's ears—except for her mother's statement. Philip, who was sitting beside her, casually grabbed her hand.

He smiled at her mother and said, "We're working on that, right babe?"

"What? Of course not. Yet. But soon," she said with a nervous laugh. She could stab him with her fork right now. He gave her a teasing smile and she kicked him under the table. He winced and let go of her hand only to transfer it around her shoulder to pull her toward him.

He gave her a long lingering kiss on the lips which she surprisingly realized that she missed. Her mind flew to that night on the beach. She almost forgot how his lips tasted against hers and she did not realize that her hand had willingly gone to rest at his nape.

It was her father's loud clearing of throat that finally made them realize that once again, they had taken matters out of hand. Cassandra felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment when she saw the amusement on everyone else's faces. She felt Philip's arm release her and he straightened on his chair with a smile. Cassandra didn't know if he meant to punish her for contradicting him earlier, but she was pretty sure they got carried away. Across the table, she met her father's curious gaze and she quietly groaned.

He knew perfectly well that that kiss was not supposed to happen and she was afraid it would give him some crazy idea.

Willie's cooing released her and Philip from being the subject of everyone's mirth.

With her hand slightly shaking from that stark exchange of intense craze with her husband, she forked her pasta, already planning the night ahead. First, she would ask Philip to bathe Willie, then she would assist him in feeding, then she would see to it that he would put him to sleep.

Yeah, that's what's going to happen.

*****

Finally, when everyone was done and got tired of chatting, Hope passed Willie to Mary and Valerie. It left Cassandra to clean up the table alone since she couldn't possibly ask Hope to help her because—well, she's old. "Babe, can you help me here?" she asked aloud for everyone else to hear. Philip had been talking to her father far from William who was sitting in a lawn chair drinking wine. Both men's faces were serious but she decided to leave them with their secret for now because an emergency was at hand: the dishes.

Philip looked up and opened his mouth, then stopped when he noticed that they were not alone. She bet he was about to remind her of the chart and that it was Monday. Cassandra smiled wickedly as he stood up and went to the table.

"Thanks, babe," she exclaimed with a cheer and gave him a peck.

"It's Monday," he murmured under his breath beside her, reaching for the plates.

"I know. And your family is here, so..."

He looked at her in a helpless fashion and shook his head.

An hour later, Valerie handed back Willie who was wailing at the top of his lungs. God, why do they have to leave now?

"Oh, he's so cute. You should give him a warm bath soon, darling. It will calm him down," her mother told her.

He's cuter when he's not crying though, she answered in her mind. She swayed on both feet, cuddling Willie closer to her chest and hoped he'd just fall asleep.

"Don't juggle him," Philip hissed at her once everyone was gone. "He'd throw up everything."

"Then what do you suggest I do? He won't stop crying!"

"Don't shout. Remember, no fighting while Willie is here. You said it yourself."

Ah, yes, she forgot about that. "Okay, fine. What do we do?"

"Give him a bath, of course. That's what your mother said."

"You do it," she handed Willie to him.

"Why? I don't know how to do it."

"Don't complain, babe. Willie can hear you. He'd think you don't want him," she said tauntingly. He looked at Willie and held out his arms. "Okay, you go get him ready. I'm gonna prepare the bath." They went back inside the house as she said that.

"His bath soap and towels are in the bag over there," he pointed at the table beside the door. Cassandra went over to grab the bag and she noticed something. Willie had stopped crying. Curious, she looked back and smiled with amusement at Philip's pained look as he looked down at his nephew who was clawing on his face.

She couldn't contain her laughter any longer so she giggled, then laughed and laughed some more. God, she was going crazy. She realized she had never laughed this hard.

"What are you laughing at?" Philip asked, leaning away from Willie and the baby squealed with laughter. Philip smiled as she held up her hand while laughing. "What?" he asked again, this time a chuckle escaped him as well.

"You look funny," she said in between her laughter, her eyes tearing up. "Oh, look at Willie. He likes you!"

Philip laughingly frowned down at his nephew who was gazing at him with wonder in his little blue eyes. "Yeah, I think he does." He leaned down at the baby and asked, "You do like uncle, right little man?"

"Okay, I'm gonna get that bath ready," she grabbed the bag and ran upstairs to the bathroom in the hallway. She shook her head with a smile, Philip's picture carrying Willie in an awkward way still lingering in her mind.

It was nice to have a little nice break from all the craziness.

*****

Less than half an hour later, the two of them crowded over the bathtub. "Hold him tight," she reminded Philip for the nth time.

"It's easier said than done, you know..." he uttered, holding Willie by the armpit as Cassandra lathered baby soap over the crying baby.

"He's not like the babies in commercials."

Philip caught the laugh that almost escaped his throat. "What do you mean?" he asked, struggling to keep Willie still.

"The babies on TV smile—you know, in commercials."

Philip scoffed and rolled his eyes at her, "That's what commercials are for. The caretakers are actually behind the camera doing all the work."

She shrugged, "Yeah, I just realized that." When she thought Willie was too red from crying and he was clean, she grabbed a towel. Philip stood up with his arms forward and carried the dripping Willie toward her. She wrapped the towel around her nephew-in-law and took him in her arms, "Hush now, Willie or I'll drop the hammer down—"

"You can't say that," Philip hissed at her in disbelief.

She gave him a pointed look. "It was just a joke."

"It was a threat," he retorted.

"Okay, okay, no jokes or threats for baby Willie then." She turned around to leave before he could say anything further. "Go get his clothes."

Philip went out the bathroom door after her, shaking his head.

He was married to a possible candidate of the weirdest mother.

*****

"Where does he sleep?" they both asked the same time. Their eyes met in question.

"With you," they chorused.

"No," again, they exclaimed at the same time.

"Okay, let's think about this first," she gently rocked Willie in her arms. She was busy thinking when she saw Philip reach out a hand and brushed some strands of her dark blonde hair behind her ear. That simple gesture ignited hundreds of voltages throughout her body. And her husband acted like it was nothing—as if he did it every freaking time. Cassandra cleared her throat and said, "Why don't we put him in the spare room?"

His calm face turned incredulous.

"Okay, okay, not the spare room then."

They were silent for another minute and when Philip finally spoke, he said, "We'll sleep in my room."

"We?"

"Yes, we—which consists of me, Willie, and you."

"Why do I have to sleep with the two of you?"

"Because Willie has to sleep in safety. He could fall off the bed if it was just me."

"Babies aren't supposed to sleep in beds yet, do you know that?"

He stopped, "Really?"

"Yes. It's not safe even if with adults at either side. We could accidently smother him or something."

"And you read about that as well..."

"Yes, I did," she snapped. "We'll sleep in the living room floor. That way, there is nowhere else for him to fall."

"The living room's not for sleeping," he reminded her.

"Do you have OCD or something? Because I really think you should go see someone with your obsessive-compulsive behavior."

Philip closed his eyes to contain his temper. "Okay, fine. The living room then."

*****

She let Philip hold Willie to make him fall asleep because she realized their nephew was more comfortable resting his chubby pink cheeks against his uncle's broad shoulders, while she busied herself on layering comforters on the floor and rearranging the furniture against the wall. Philip watched with disapproval, but kept silent.

"Okay, I think we're good," she patted the soft layers beside her.

"Shh..." her husband hushed as he slowly bent down, resting one hand behind Willie's sleeping head.

But the moment the baby's head touched the comforter, he started to wail.

Cassandra wanted to cry in anguish. She was too tired and Willie was not helping at all. "Give him to me," she said, kneeling on her knees. Philip's face was contorted in helplessness now and she knew he was as tired as she was, what with all his efforts to make her stay inside the house and fetching her at the grocery, etcetera.

She got up and decided to sway the still crying baby gently. She could already feel her eyes stinging and her arms were almost getting numb. She actually wanted to cry in frustration.

"It's not working," she said, but there was no answer from her husband. "Philip—" He was already lying down on the comforter with his eyes closed, obviously asleep. She fumed. "Hey," she prodded him with her toes.

He groaned and turned to the other side.

"Philip," she hissed, kicking him now. "Wake up! You can't let me do this alone!"

"What? I'm too tired, Cass," he moaned, forcing his eyes to open.

She raised her eyebrows at him, swaying Willie wildly. God, he's getting heavier by the minute..."Babe, you can't just possibly let me suffer alone here," she kicked his butt this time.

"Fine, fine, fine..." he forced himself to sit up and with puffy eyes, he held up his arms. "Give him to me." She did just that and Willie immediately fell silent.

Cassandra snorted, "Ahh...you're the lucky one, I guess. He likes you. Congratulations, babe."

Philip groaned deeply in his throat and stood up. Cassandra sat with her hands around her knees and looked up at her husband. He was not really looking too good right now, but he was trying hard to keep his eyes open while dancing back and forth on both feet, swaying Willie.

"You can sleep if you want," he whispered, probably seeing her eyelids halfway through her eyeballs.

"No, I'm fine," she contradicted, secretly pinching herself. He could get tired and might need her help.

After almost thirty minutes, Willie's head dropped back and Cassandra was almost certain it was a sure sign that he was in the underground of his own little baby dreamland.

"I guess you can put him down now," she whispered at Philip.

Philip was too willing to do just that and laid the baby beside her.

Cassandra watched in fascination, realizing that he was getting good at it. "Wow, good job, babe," she whispered with a smile. Philip slowly and carefully repositioned Willie in the middle of the comforter. Cassandra held her breath and crossed her fingers. Please, let him stay asleep...

Their loud sigh of relief was audible in the dimly-lit room when Willie stirred but did not open his eyes. Cassandra kneeled down to surround Willie with a rolled up comforter, a barrier against her and Philip.

"Time to sleep," Philip declared, gently lying down at Willie's left side. She transferred to his side and plopped her pillow.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I am a very restless sleeper. I don't trust myself lying beside Willie."

She wrapped herself in a blanket and turned away from him. "Not bad for the first night, huh?" she asked with a smile, her eyes already closed.

"Yeah, I guess so..." Philip answered beside her and she felt him turn away from her to face Willie.

"Good night," she whispered.

"Good night," Philip answered and silence reigned as they drowned in their sleep.

*****

Willie must have been exhausted as they were because they never heard a single cry from him, and when morning came and the sun flashed through the glass walls of the living room and touched her face, Cassandra smiled and inhaled the manly scent against her. She could feel the arm over her waist, but she frowned when she felt that her pillow was not as soft as she remembered it. Slowly, she opened her eyes and it rounded in shock when she saw Philip's sleeping face just inches above her. And her head was lying on his upper right arm, his right hand securely locked around her.

She tried to move and she felt him stir against her and when she looked up again, his blue eyes where already staring down at her.

"Hmmm...I wonder how we got here," Philip's husky voice said.

Cassandra felt her cheeks heat up—and it was not from the sun. She forced a smile, "Hi, good morning."

He grinned down at her and said, "Good morning to you."

Cassandra didn't care that they were not really fighting right now, that they lay there comfortably with their limbs around each other, and she didn't care to think of logical things as her husband's face went down to kiss her lips.

Her eyes instantly closed, eager and ever ready to allow her to relish on the warm and igniting feeling of being kissed as thoroughly and tenderly.

At the back of her mind, a small voice whispered, This was bound to happen, and she agreed with it.

Philip rolled on over her, their lips locked in a fiery embrace of passion. Their breath became ragged and she could feel his heart hammering against her chest. Cassandra let herself get lost once again in that same familiar, passionate excitement she thought she would never experience again. She felt his hands roam at her sides as he pressed lower against her. She willingly grazed her hands through his already rumpled hair.

Last night, people were present when they shared that kiss during dinner. But right now, there was no one else to stop them except if Willie woke up and started crying.

That thought made her freeze. Willie.

"What now?" Philip asked against her lips, his face slowly drawing frustration.

"Willie!" She gasped and pushed him off her, her eyes sweeping the room in alarm and panic. "Where's Willie?"

The little haven of rolled up comforter remained untouched and Cassandra felt a momentary sense of relief. This was why babies were not safe in bed with their parents!